Union Navigation

Client

Union

Year

2024

Revamping Union’s rewards portal to deliver impactful features with the perfect balance of efficiency and simplicity.

Overview

Union, a company specializing in data solutions for bars and restaurants to track their business performance, sought to enhance its offerings by introducing expanded reporting features. This initiative was driven by a growing and long-standing demand from customers who sought more robust and actionable insights.

Client

Union

Industry

Beverage

Service

UI / UX Design

Interaction Design

UX Research

Duration

6 Weeks

Solution

Union’s customers requested new reporting features to be integrated into the existing manager reports portal. However, due to the technical complexity of the data involved, adding these reports would require the creation of numerous new report instances, potentially increasing backend bloat. To address this, a simple, user-friendly solution needed to be developed, allowing users to easily access these reports while safeguarding the integrity of the system architecture.

The Result

The solution we delivered fully addressed the customer’s needs by providing a streamlined, intuitive interface that simplified complex tasks. By carefully analyzing pain points and understanding user behavior, we created a system that not only met immediate functional requirements but also enhanced the overall user experience. Customers now have access to a more efficient, user-friendly platform that empowers them to achieve their goals with greater ease and confidence, while also supporting future scalability. This solution not only solved existing challenges but also set the stage for continued growth and innovation.

User Impact

The new navigation system performed exceptionally well in user testing, significantly reducing the time required to complete reporting tasks. Additionally, it provided access to highly requested reports that were previously unavailable, addressing key user needs and enhancing overall satisfaction with the platform. This improvement not only streamlined workflows but also empowered users with more comprehensive insights, further elevating their experience.

Interaction Design

The changes to the navigation structure were designed with careful consideration to preserve the familiar layout that users had grown accustomed to, minimizing cognitive load and ensuring a smooth transition. At the same time, updates were made to accommodate the selection of new parameters, enabling users to access previously unavailable reports. This thoughtful balance allowed for the introduction of new functionality without overwhelming users, maintaining continuity in their workflow while providing them with enhanced capabilities to meet their evolving needs.

System Planning

Extensive analysis was conducted on the order flow mechanics of bars to understand how they would influence the metrics displayed in reports. We evaluated multiple complex workflows to ensure the system’s flexibility, accommodating a variety of user scenarios.

This approach allowed us to design a reporting system that dynamically adjusts to provide accurate, context-specific insights, ensuring relevance for all operational environments.

Ensuring Consistency

The adjusted reports also underwent a navigation overhaul to ensure consistency across the system. This update aligned the reports with the new structure, maintaining a cohesive user experience while enhancing accessibility and ease of use across all touchpoints.

Saving Features

A key component of the navigation update was introducing the MVP for creating and saving user-generated reports. This feature allowed venues to easily access customized reports tailored to their specific needs, streamlining the process of retrieving vital data crucial to their daily operations. It empowered users to save time and focus on the metrics most relevant to their business, enhancing overall efficiency.

Sidebar Interactions

The sidebar navigation was redesigned to provide users with an intuitive and streamlined experience. When users click on "Saved Reports," the menu expands to display all saved reports across various categories, starting with Sales and Adjustments at launch. To ensure easy access to newly built features, Sales and Adjustments were moved to the top of the list.


Legacy reports were also organized into two separate lists: previous stock sales and adjustments reports, allowing users to quickly find older data. Selecting "Sales" or "Adjustments" directs the user to the new navigation interface in its default state, ensuring a smooth transition to the updated system while maintaining familiarity with the core functions.

Final Designs

The final designs successfully met all key parameters by balancing user needs, system flexibility, and ease of use. By streamlining navigation, integrating new features like user-generated reports, and ensuring consistency with the familiar layout, the design provided a seamless and efficient experience.

These updates enabled users to quickly access vital reports, tailored to their specific business needs, significantly reducing time spent on tasks and empowering users to achieve their goals with greater ease. The result was a highly successful solution that not only improved user satisfaction but also supported long-term business growth.

Reflections

What I learned from this project is the importance of balancing user familiarity with the introduction of new features. It became clear that while innovation is crucial, maintaining a sense of continuity and minimizing cognitive load is key to user adoption.


I also recognized, the need for a deep understanding of the end-to-end workflow was vital in ensuring the solution met all user requirements while protecting the integrity of the system. This experience has reinforced my commitment to designing solutions that are both user-centric and adaptable to future growth.

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