The Role of UX in Joint Application Design (JAD)
Scope of work & duration
Web application, 3 Years
Role
UX Architect
Overview
In JAD, UX voiced the user, guiding the development process.
During my time at one of the Big Four firms, I had the chance to dive into exciting projects alongside an energetic cross-functional team. From Minimum Viable Products (MVPs) to fully-fledged production-ready applications, I played a key role as a User Experience Architect, collaborating closely with both clients and software development teams.
The auditing applications, coming from different teams and platforms, were crucial for core auditing functions of the corporate. The Global Analytics Platform project aimed to bring all these diverse applications together, creating a unified ecosystem to streamline operations on a single platform.
Challenges
We picked UX tools based on the outputs we needed to validate with clients. When new UX tools came along, integrating them into our workflow made everything smoother and more efficient.
Establishing digital product style
At the project’s start, we lacked a designated design system or UI/UX style guide for digital products, relying solely on marketing guides. As the project evolved, integrating globally developed design components greatly improved and unified our design process.
Setting future standards
With the concept of a novel platform and applications, our designs needed scalability for forthcoming applications in this ecosystem.
Adapting design tools
We began with Axure RP, creating highly realistic prototypes. However, due to collaboration limitations, we later shifted to more versatile tools like Invision, Adobe XD, and Abstract. These tools improved sprint version management and fostered better collaboration within the team.
Process
Understanding existing gaps and user needs
Conducted semi-structured interviews with stakeholders, including auditors, project managers, and end-users, to gather qualitative insights. For Contextual Inquiry, we observed auditors in their natural work environments to gain deeper insights into their workflows and challenges.
Orchestrating design workshops & idea generation
Kicking off our project, we dove into Joint Application Design (JAD) sessions, bringing together clients, project management, design, and development teams. These sessions were pivotal in discussing requirements, exploring ideas, and identifying challenges. Crafting User Personas and mapping their journey through User Journeys gave us a visual roadmap of the user experience. We kept refining these personas and journeys, welcoming input from all stakeholders, which greatly enriched our understanding.
Collaborating within a dynamic team
To drive the project forward, we formed a dedicated cross-functional team overseeing design, development, and deployment. Keeping pace with the project’s speed, we meticulously aligned our design process and deliverables with the rapid development strides.
Outcome
Starting JAD sessions at the beginning of the development cycle not only sped up our progress but also allowed our UX team to craft applications by directly collaborating with our clients.
Creating wireframes & prototypes
Working closely with Business Analysts (BAs), I translated detailed business requirements into wireframes and interactive prototypes for client validation. These wireframes became foundational, aligning both business and development teams. Informed by requirement insights, we crafted conceptual designs and user flows, using interactive prototypes to spark discussions and refinements.
Design integration with development
Structuring the User Interface (UI) based on approved wireframes, I collaborated with the business team for iterations. Leveraging Abstract for version control, Azure DevOps became our central hub for managing projects, ensuring seamless collaboration among clients, BAs, development, and design teams.
Work Sample
The GL Analyzer, an integral component of the global audit analytics platform, specializes in examining and analyzing general ledger (GL) journals of any size. Initially, GL Analyzer featured both desktop and cloud versions. This project focused on consolidating GLA into a single analyzer, designed for deployment as an application on the Global Analytics platform. As the UX Architect, my responsibilities included understanding client business requirements, creating and validating user personas and journey maps, and designing applications such as the data preparation tool and GLA web app.
User Persona of an Auditor
User Journey of an Auditor
Key Takeaways
Cross-Functional Alignment
In my experience, I've found that JAD isn't just about bringing people together; it's about creating a shared vision. Through these sessions, we've fostered a shared understanding of our project's goals, limitations, and what matters most to everyone involved.Through facilitated discussions and decision-making exercises, JAD sessions ensure that UX considerations are integrated seamlessly with technical requirements and business goals. This alignment minimizes the risk of miscommunication, scope creep, and rework, resulting in a more efficient and cohesive design process.
Iterative Prototyping
JAD empowered us to rapidly prototype and iterate on design concepts in collaboration with cross-functional teams. By leveraging tools like whiteboards, sticky notes, and digital prototyping software, we could quickly translate ideas into tangible prototypes which were tested and refined in real-time. This iterative approach allowed for rapid validation of design assumptions, identification of usability issues, and optimization of the user experience before proceeding to full-scale development.
