Design Process
01. Develop a comprehensive understanding of TMP & mentoring community
Our team began by establishing a holistic understanding of the mentoring community and TMP’s unique role within it.
We first created a method map with research objectives to guide our exploration. Following the method map, we actively engaged with diverse stakeholders—including TMP staff, mentoring programs, mentors, and mentees to prevent any voices from being overlooked.
Conducting method map activity
Attending mentoring community's conference
We synthesized our research data into three main archetypes that capture the essential needs of mentoring programs when they interact with TMP.
(3 main archetypes of clients we identified through research. Created using anecdotes in interviews.)
In addition to interviewing various stakeholders, we conducted thorough internal analyses of TMP’s current operational mechanisms to identify and prioritize the pain points faced by its staff with TMP’s business goals.
Conducting method map activity
Attending mentoring community's conference
02. Identify the right problem to solve
Following our initial research, we synthesized internal data from our client and external data from stakeholders with the techniques of affinity cluttering, impact vs. effort matrices, and prioritization metrics. This comprehensive analysis revealed the most impactful opportunity, which is supporting mentoring programs’ independent navigation of TMP’s online resources to enable continuous learning without increasing TMP staff time and investment. Such an opportunity can bring value to both mentoring programs and TMP:
Value to mentoring programs:
Wider range of support
Enhanced visibility of TMP’s diverse service offerings exposes mentoring programs to more reliable resources, leading to a greater spread of expert-backed support for youth.
Immediate access to resources
Mentoring programs can find answers immediately without needing to reach out to TMP staff and wait for a response.
Reduced frustration
With access to a wide variety of TMP’s credible and relevant resources, mentoring program staff can alleviate the burden of the high stakes of potentially harming youth.
Value to TMP:
Expanded mission reach
Increased visibility of resources can attract more mentoring programs to reach out to TMP, potentially helping TMP to scale its support.
Improved work efficiency
Improved online navigation allows TMP staff to spend less time answering common questions and directing clients to resources.
03. Investigation of users’ experiences with current navigation
With the identified problem, our team investigated mentoring programs’ current practice in using TMP’s online resources and created a user journey map to show their goals, challenges, and emotions. This helped us develop an understanding of users’ common mental models and practices when searching for resources.
(5-stage user search journey identified through our literature review and interviews)
04. Exploration of valued support in search assistance
We then aimed to uncover users’ fundamental needs for assistance when they search. To achieve this, we developed various prototypes that address our assumptions and questions from a comprehensive perspective.
(6 interactive prototypes that we developed to uncover users' essential needs when they search)
By testing these 6 prototypes, we learned that the users most valued:
Fast access
“I wish to not have to spend too much time finding answers.”
Interviews with mentoring programs revealed that users highly valued quick and efficient access to information.
Resource recommendations
“It makes me wonder what I am missing in my searching…”
When they search, users tend to worry about missing out on valuable content. Therefore, they appreciated having guidance to additional relevant resources.
Tried and true
“I'm interested in resources that have been used by others.”
Users also valued seeing which resources were helpful to other programs as it provided a level of validation and assurance.
05. Iteration of prototypes to ensure usability
We conducted 3 rounds of usability testing with 21 participants, progressing from low-fidelity to high-fidelity prototypes. This iterative process allowed us to improve our design solution from the general workflow and information architecture to more detailed UI elements, such as font size and color scheme, ensuring a seamless and organized search experience for users.
(3 rounds of iterations from low-fidelity to high-fidelity prototype)
06. Delivery of technical implementation plan
During the design of our iterative prototypes, we consulted with technical engineers to understand potential data flow in the backend and assess the ROI of our design solutions.
With the finalized prototype, we developed a detailed implementation plan for TMP, showing features and functionalities that can be launched in both the short term and long term, aligned with their business goals.
