Transforming Legacy Dispatch Tools with Research-Driven Map Views
Role: Lead UX Designer & Researcher
Company: Pacific Gas & Electric
Timeframe: Sep 2022 - Mar 2023
Background
Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) is the largest utility company in Northern California, but it has also been at the center of blame for some of the state’s worst wildfires, largely due to the neglect of its aging power grid. Recognizing the critical importance of maintenance to prevent such disasters, the company takes its maintenance prevention work very seriously as a crucial safety measure.
I was tasked with enhancing a dispatch and work monitoring tool for supervisors to manage maintenance inspections. The tool’s goal is to ensure timely safety checks, particularly before high-risk periods like summer fire season. The efficiency of these maintenance operations is vital to ensuring the safety of millions in Northern California.
Problem
The dispatch and work monitoring tool, Engage, was released in 2019 as a web application for supervisors across five departments, handling around 25,000 annual work orders. Initially, it was launched as a limited MVP. By the time I joined in 2021, it was clear that Engage had grown without a cohesive product roadmap, leading to inconsistencies and duplicated features, resulting in unnecessary engineering costs. To streamline the user experience and allocate funding more effectively, I initiated a research discovery phase to uncover the pain points experienced by the five departments.
How might we create a unified experience across these five departments to improve PG&E’s maintenance work efficiency?
Goal
To build a comprehensive product roadmap for Engage and plan future improvements.
Research Objectives
Identify relevant user archetypes (personas) who use the Engage application in distinct ways.
Enumerate the distinct stages of each persona's work cycle (journey mapping).
Provide clarity on how Engage is currently not meeting overall user needs.
Leverage these insights to form the foundation of an Engage "core" roadmap.
Research Findings
I conducted 14 in-depth interviews with supervisors from the five departments. Here are the key findings:
Location-Based Task Assignment:
Supervisors manage 25,000 work orders annually and struggle with task assignment by location due to a lack of map info, relying on paper maps. They need a way to quickly identify urgent tasks and efficiently bulk assign remaining work by area.Mobile Accessibility:
Supervisors spend 30% of their time in the field to assist and ensure work quality. Currently, Engage is not responsive or accessible on tablets. They need mobile accessibility for use in the field.Integrated Progress Tracking:
Supervisors rely on a separate attainment report to review progress, constantly switching between the report and Engage to understand workload and assignee progress. They desire a summarized view of all new activity and work progress in one place.Reassignment Flexibility:
Supervisors currently cannot update assignments once they are assigned. Reassignments may be needed if someone is out sick or has an emergency. There is a need for the ability to adjust assignments.
Roadmap Planning with Business Stakeholders
Based on our research findings, we met with business stakeholders to discuss how to prioritize and address user needs. To facilitate these discussions, I prepared communication tools such as personas and journey maps to help stakeholders understand user needs.
We identified the lack of geospatial information as a major factor affecting assignment efficiency and compliance. As a result, we decided to prioritize the development of a global map view and plan the roadmap for other features accordingly.
Biggest painpoint
The old design relied on a list view without geospatial information, forcing users to depend on paper maps. From a product strategy and UX perspective, here are some downsides of relying on paper maps:
1. Not Scalable: Supervisors frequently switch regions, making it difficult to manage and adapt to changes when information is on paper.
2. Data Accessibility: Supervisors often work with external contractors. Paper maps are not easily accessible or shareable, leading to inefficiencies and delays in updating everyone on current tasks.
3. Lack of Real-Time Updates: Paper records cannot be updated in real time, resulting in delays in communication and decision-making.
Design iterations
Throughout the process, the design evolved based on feedback from my design peers, users, and new insights about how the data should be displayed on the map. It was an iterative process, and I’m very happy with the final results.
Usability Testing
After developing the MVP, we conducted 5 usability testing sessions with users. Our goals were to identify enhancements needed before mass deployment and to capture future opportunities for improvement.
The outcome was insightful, revealing 13 key takeaways: 4 validated insights, 4 minor concerns, and 5 opportunities.
Some design updates were implemented before the release, and the opportunities were scheduled for future sprints. Overall, we received positive feedback and proceeded with the rollout.
Final Proposed Design
Below are the final mockups that were handed over to the developers for implementation.
Design Restrictions on Map View
For the map view, our GIS team used ESRI to connect data from SAP, which imposed certain restrictions, such as non-adjustable map layers for high fire hazard areas in yellow, red, and green. These layers made the map busier and the symbols less prominent. To address this, we discussed long-term solutions like adding layer filter options for users. Meanwhile, I experimented with different shades of red to ensure strong contrast for at-risk areas from a more zoomed-out view.
Recording from Final Product
Below is a recording from the released version
Impact & Feedback
Business metrics confirmed its success: the cost per inspection dropped by 10%, resulting in an estimated $50 million in annual savings.
The digital map showing open work and progress, provide clear visibility to the supervisors, and also is responsive and accessible when supervisors are out in the field.
