Overview

Client Challenge

Caterpillar Inc. holds an annual UX design challenge focused around problems currently troubling the company. This year they wanted to improve the Dealer work order (WO) system. A work order is a way to track maintenance and upkeep of machinery.

Takeaways

Solve obstacles facing the user and educating stakeholders

Our team presented an idea bigger than an interface redesign. Judges noted that other teams approached improving the look and feel of the work order system, but we were focused on solving the root causes of the issue.

Taking a step back to look at the WO process as a whole, allowed my team to deliver a solution that solved the apparent struggles between dealers and customers. By effectively communicating our design decisions, we were able to persuade our stakeholders in a way that it was educational and digestible.

Dealer Approach

To reduce the dealer’s workload, we decided to utilize user generated data. A majority of service request information can be gathered passively or directly from mobile input. Information like company info, location, and machine information (saved in user data) would serve as the basis for a work order request.

Customer Approach

Research from Caterpillar noted that 80% of users prefer using mobile applications versus desktop. To include all desktop functionality for users, we need to add the following:

[ Work Order Request — Customer Flow ]

Customer contact information and machine identification auto-populates, so the user only needs to define the issue and schedule a service.

Previous flow

New flow

[ Work Order Automation — Dealer ]

Dealers can easily process work order request emails with the "Automate to INTERACT" button. When clicked, the the only information left for the dealer to input is the service technician, project status, and cost estimate.

[ Work Order Dashboard — Dealer ]

Completing the automation will automatically create a new work order and approval document, lowering the required manpower by more than half compared to current work order processes. All information regarding the work order can be viewed and edited within this dashboard.

Changing UI isn't always the best course of action

As stated previously, our team stood out to the judges. This is because other teams approached the problem as a user interface redesign. When working with a corporation like Caterpillar, it's beneficial to keep in mind how many people use their software on a daily basis. Changing the UI and UX of familiar software can negatively effect the workforce as a whole. For example, new training may have to be implemented which stalls the profitability of the implementation.

Usability Testing Results

Three users tested the interface while our team recorded the results. Here is a list of the changes made from our findings: