Providing a Vision
This is the story of creating a vision to unify enterprise tools into a single platform that enhances the current B2B managed service and provides new B2C self-service functionality.
Background
Designed to be separate
The enterprise tools of the demand-side platform were designed to serve specific roles within the organization and throughout the campaign life cycle. One tool is designated for users in the pre-sales stage. Another group of users alternates between two additional tools after the insertion order is signed to set up and launch a campaign. Analysts utilize a third set of tools to monitor live campaigns. Post-campaign reporting consists of several third-party applications.
Problem Spotting
Too limiting
Aligning tools with organizational roles and the processes those roles performed restricted the capabilities of each tool.
Growing discrepancies
Focusing narrowly on each tool resulted in divergent interaction patterns, styling, and even fragmented coding of components.
The need for unity
These tools were loosely connected, and with a growing push from the business for self-service capabilities, they needed to be presented as a single platform.
Ideas
Unify tools into one platform:
Usage becomes more flexible while outputs stay consistent.
Enables customization to align with organizational structures.
Data presented in context:
Data is distributed across the platform.
Allows for immediate adjustments without tool-switching.
Streamlined workflow:
Seamless transition between different stages of work increases efficiency.
Example: Converting pre-sales plans into campaigns with a single click.
Communicating the vision
The history of isolated product initiatives made it challenging for the product and engineering teams to visualize the benefits of a unified platform. I created a prototype of a concept that aimed to:
Visually represent the concept boldly.
Highlight a few key differences.
Leave many aspects undefined in hopes of sparking imagination across the organization.
Normalize
Brand the platform, not the individual tools.
Establish a foundational and flexible navigational element.
Give intrinsic names to the tools and sections.
Eliminate unnecessary iconography and language.
Modernize
Adhere to established patterns regarding things like URL structure, page names, and breadcrumbs.
Implement a responsive layout for consistency and flexibility.
Recode anything that can be improved with newer methods.
Stylize
Build with a modern component library.
Push that library to create a personality for the platform.
Dark mode first, but give it some atmosphere.
Redistribute functionality and information
Each tool still might have a specific function, but this shouldn't prevent it from providing the user everything they need to inform an action and either take that action or quickly get them where they can.
Put the right dose of information and functionality in the right spots.
Allow appropriate movement from one area to another.
Results
It got the cross-functional teams' juices flowing
This work provided a way out of gridlock within the organization. It offered inspiration to reimagine how the system could work and who it could work for. It was a necessary first step in the effort to reinvigorate a staff and reimagine a product.
Several extra-large initiatives were eventually created to kick off what would become the effort to unify the internal tools into a single platform.
Looking back
The right amount of pressure
If I had spent more time developing the concept prototype, I could have influenced more aspects of my vision. However, I didn't want it to seem prescriptive. The primary goal was for it to look different so people would understand that this was something new. From there, I wanted my ideas to remain vague. My goal was for them to fill in the blanks and think about how to improve the system, tool, or feature they are experts on. I aimed to give people a chance to begin voicing ideas they might have only shared in side conversations, and it achieved that.
Identifying the Need to Overhaul
Investigating the shortcomings of systems that were straining the business and uncovering the extent of necessary changes.
Planning the Missing Piece
A concept for a reimagined planning tool that serves as the starting point for a unified workflow on a reimagined platform