The Problem
DLH corporation conducts yearly reviews for HeadStart preschools, to make sure they are eligible for the next years federal grant. The software currently being used to track this process was inconsistent, glitchy, cumbersome, repetitive and inefficient. Teachers, schools, and reviewers were working overtime to create workarounds to make the system work for them.
Together with DLH we asked: How might we create a more intuitive and seamless user experience for both reviewers and regional offices that enhances usability and improves workflows?
I was the lead interaction designer on the work, helped with research trips, and presented our prototypes to the client.
The Process
Over the course of ten weeks, I did observation, interviewing, synthesis, and concept generation and rebranding. Working with the headstart grant reviewers, leadership, and my IDEO team to deliver prototypes the team could use to test in the next phase.
Working with the Head Start Community
The first step was shadowing the headstart review process at Headstart grant recipient preschools in Farmsville Utah, and Duluth Minnesota. I spoke with preschool educators, parents of head start, reviewers and got to look over their shoulder to watch them use the software.
Through embedding with this community we arrived at several opportunities for the next version of this software:
Make communication trackable and traceable
Make the switch from people informing systems to systems informing people
Increase transparency in shared workflows
Make collection reliable, comprehensive and collaborative
Leverage the system to surface the urgent, important, and actionable
The Solution
The Concepts
Personalized Home page
Customizable homepage with real-time updates and schedules, offering role-based landing pages with advanced search functionality.
Review Tracker
A progress tracker for the entire lifecycle of a review, from scheduling to reporting. Keeps track of changes, comments, and ownership, eliminating the need for manual tracking.
Multiplayer Mode
Allows for multiple people to be in a guide at the same time, working on different things together. People can view questions, take notes, make comments, or address feedback from the comments.
AI Transcripts
Automated transcription and AI-assisted note summaries, retaining details and speeding up note-taking to save time for reviewers and allow for more efficient workflows.
Document Center
Centralized hub for uploading documents with the right guides to reduce search time, ensure data safety, and support batch uploads.
Reviewer Mobile App
A companion app for field reviewers, integrating note-taking, photo capturing, schedule viewing, and AI voice dictation, eliminating the need for paper reports.
Wrap Up
Working with the headstart community was one of the most eye opening experiences in my career. I have so much respect for educators, and the importance of early education. I learned headstart is one of the only federal to local programs that support real families thrive!
If you want to learn more about what makes Headstart so wonderful, read about their new initiatives here.