Housing Link
Linking MSD staff to accurate Emergency Housing information
Housing Link
Linking MSD staff to accurate Emergency Housing information
Service Design | UX/UI Design | Graphic Design
During a quarterly housing meeting, MSD Regional Housing Managers highlighted a recurring issue that impacts the performance of frontline staff: the existence of three intranet sites—Manuals and Processes (MAP), Here is Your Answer (Hiya), and Doogle. These three sites provide conflicting guidance on navigating a person's circumstances to offer appropriate Emergency Housing support. This inconsistency often leads to poor decision-making and less desirable outcomes for individuals seeking assistance.
In response to this challenge, leadership assigned me and another service designer the task of developing an interim solution to address this issue. The initial proposal for a central knowledge hub, intended as a comprehensive repository of guidance and processes, has been paused indefinitely.
Exploring the Problem
Understanding the users and their learning process
To understand the root of the problem, we began by analysing the content and messaging across all three intranet sites. Our goal was to identify the inconsistencies and evaluate the learning processes for both new and existing frontline staff in contact and service centres.
My primary responsibility was to produce process flows that outlined the steps staff would take when learning or relearning Emergency Housing procedures. Creating these process flows was crucial to the project's success, as they allowed us to pinpoint specific events where we could implement an interim solution and identify key users to interview for further information.
Reframing the Problem
Uncovering the insights that shaped our investigation
Through our exploration, we uncovered three key insights that significantly influenced the project's direction:
Identifying additional users
We recognised the need to design for an additional user group: Capability Developers, who are responsible for training contact centre staff and case managers.
Opportunities for implementation
We identified three key learning opportunities where capabilities could teach staff essential skills. These included the “I te Mahi” learning process and the induction process.
Understanding staff needs
We discovered that staff often lack sufficient time to upskill due to the pressures of meeting Key Performance Indicators (KPIs).
This led us to the question: How might we develop a solution that supports Capability Developers in educating frontline staff on the correct Emergency Housing guidance?
Creation Phase
Ideating, prototyping concepts
In response the "how might we" question, we brainstormed various ideas and ultimately decided on one: to create a PDF that functions like an app. By leveraging our design skills, we utilised the hyperlinking capabilities of PDFs to create a user-friendly document. We designed pages with UI elements that enable easy navigation, allowing staff to quickly find the information they need.
My responsibilities included producing prototypes and wireframes in preparation for user testing workshops.
Workshop Methodology
The workshops were structured into three parts:
Workshop One
We introduced the problem and validated our current findings with users while also outlining what to expect in subsequent workshops.
Workshop Two
We presented the prototype for user acceptance testing, gathering feedback on its pros and cons.
Workshop Three
We showcased the prototype with the implemented feedback from previous sessions.
Outcome
Unfortunately, the project was postponed and ultimately backlogged due to the focus on Emergency Housing standards work, which aimed to establish consistent standards for Emergency Housing.