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Home Insights Dashboard
Role
UX/UI Designer
Timeline
6 Months
Team Structure
VP of Experiences, Product Owner, UX/UI Designer, VP of Engineering, Director of Technology, Back-end & Front-end Engineers, QA Specialists, Partner Success.
Company Overview
A leading provider of software solutions for study abroad and experiential learning programs. Trusted by universities and educational organizations globally, This platform empowers administrators with tools for managing applications, enhancing traveler engagement, and streamlining program operations.
Designed to foster data-driven decision-making, offering features like customizable application workflows, analytics dashboards, and student engagement tracking. The platform supports thousands of programs and travelers, positioning itself as an innovative influencer in the international education industry.
The home screen of a study abroad platform providing users with actionable insights into key metrics such as traveler journeys, form and application completion rates, and program performance.
The Problem
Users faced challenges in accessing a centralized, easily accessible view of their data, which hinders their ability to make informed decisions efficiently.
The scattered and disjointed nature of the data lead to operational inefficiencies, missed opportunities, and delays in identifying and addressing critical issues.
To address this, the Home Insights Dashboard was developed as a solution to streamline data visualization, foster better decision-making, and drive greater user adoption and advocacy.
Research
Overview
User Interview Objective
To gain insight into the challenges, needs, and behaviors of key stakeholders in managing traveler data, applications, and program performance to guide the development of the Home Insights Dashboard.
As someone new to the International Education space, I was incredibly grateful to have our Product Owner—a seasoned expert in the field—leading the interviews and building rapport with participants. Her expertise made these sessions seamless, and I couldn’t have done it without her!
Methodology
Participants
Conducted interviews with six participants, including:
• Directors for Academic Services
• Study Abroad Advisors
• High-Level Strategists
Institution Profiles
Universities represented ranged from small to large institutions, sending over 2,000+ students abroad annually.
Key Insights from User Interviews
Pain Points
Data Overload
Users grapple with fragmented and scattered data, making it challenging to efficiently extract actionable insights.
Limited Visualization
Existing systems fall short on intuitive visual tools, complicating data interpretation and hindering quick decision-making.
Application Bottlenecks
Tracking incomplete applications, addressing abandonment rates, and identifying process improvements remain significant pain points.
Inefficient Program Tracking
Monitoring program distribution and understanding student preferences is cumbersome and often inconsistent.
Resource Allocation Challenges
A lack of visibility into program performance prevents effective allocation of focus and resources.
Needs
Centralized Dashboard
A unified interface that consolidates key metrics for travelers, applications, and programs in one place.
Actionable Insights
Provides data on trends, program popularity, and participation barriers to support informed decision-making.
Real-Time Updates
Ensures up-to-date visibility for managing deadlines, tracking incomplete applications, and monitoring student statuses.
Customizable Filters
Allows filtering by timeframes, demographics, or program types for more detailed and specific insights.
Clear Visualizations
Features intuitive, visually appealing charts and widgets to make analyzing complex data simple and efficient.
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Behaviors
Frequent Check-Ins
Users regularly review traveler and application statuses but lack an efficient system to streamline these activities.
Reactive Approach
Limited access to real-time data often forces users to address issues reactively rather than proactively tracking trends.
Collaborative Decision-Making
Insights are frequently shared with stakeholders, requiring easily shareable reports and clear visualizations.
Focus on Completion Rates
Improving application completion rates and identifying submission barriers are top priorities.
Preference for Simple Tools
Users prefer intuitive, easy-to-use tools that seamlessly integrate into their daily workflows.
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Design Approach
Our design approach focused on crafting a data-driven narrative that is both engaging and user-friendly.
To achieve this, we adhered to best practices, including organizing the data into a cohesive story, narrating that story effectively, and selecting appropriate charts paired with complementary colors to enhance readability and visual appeal.
Collaborating with the engineering team, we identified a charting package that could bring our concepts to life while meeting technical requirements. This ensured that the visualizations were both functional and aligned with the intended user experience.
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We optimized the dashboard layout by following a logical flow—beginning with an overview, progressing into detailed insights, and ending with actionable conclusions.
Big-picture data was grouped with more granular details in a sequential manner, allowing users to easily follow the narrative. Additionally, we included links to detailed data tables so users could drill down further and explore the information at a deeper level.
This approach created a dashboard experience that is intuitive, informative, and tailored to user needs.
Brainstorm & Ideation
After conducting interviews and documenting user insights, we performed a thematic analysis exercise to identify and group user data into themes that represent their needs, motivations, and behaviors. This process allowed us to better understand the key patterns and priorities for our users.
Some participants generously shared existing data and reports they use in their current processes. These examples provided valuable context and helped us visualize what users would expect from our tool.
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Testing
Feedback Collection
Before releasing the Home Insights Dashboard, we gathered internal input through direct feedback.
Direct Feedback
Internal users provided feedback on specific elements, such as the page title, suggesting minor copy changes to make it more engaging.
After releasing the Home Insights Dashboard, we gathered user input through an in-app survey.
In-App Survey
An in-app survey was launched to gather quantitative and qualitative feedback on user satisfaction with the new dashboard.
In-App Survey Results
The majority of users (73.68%) rated their satisfaction at 4 or 5, indicating a largely positive reception.
Qualitative Feedback
Users shared the following comments about the new dashboard:
“The new dashboard is much better and much easier to use!”
Qualitative Feedback:
Users shared the following comments about the new dashboard:
“These dashboards are really beautiful and helpful.”
Qualitative Feedback:
Users shared the following comments about the new dashboard:
“Very wonderful improvement.”
Results
In-App Survey
The survey asked users, “How satisfied are you with the new insights dashboard?” The results from 19 respondents were as follows:
Rating Distribution:
• 1 (Very Dissatisfied): 5.26% (1 response)
• 2 (Dissatisfied): 5.26% (1 response)
• 3 (Neutral): 15.79% (3 responses)
• 4 (Satisfied): 15.79% (3 responses)
• 5 (Very Satisfied): 57.89% (11 responses)
