Overview
Individuals experiencing housing insecurity often experience the loss of important documents due to constant moving, unsafe housing situations, and homelessness. The absence of these important documents, such as billing statements, and proof of residency, often leads to the denial or postponement of housing services.
In response to this widespread problem, Wilfred Pinfold and a team of volunteers at Code PDX launched a project called Personal Access System for Services (PASS). What began as an effort to offer secure online storage for personal documents has since evolved into a full-fledged platform designed to streamline interactions between individuals and social service providers.
My Role
I joined Code PDX as one of two UX Designers right as PASS project began. Throughout the course of the project the number of UX designers involved fluctuated from one to two. Given the small nature of the team, I was involved in all aspects of the design process and collaborated closely with the project's COO, the project's sponsor, a project manager, and a team of developers and front-end designers.
Over the course of 12 months, I led the UX team in designing a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) for PASS.
Design Process
- Research - User Interviews, Comparative Analysis
- Plan - User Flows
- Design - Sketches, Low-fi Wireframes, Hi-fi Wireframes, Prototypes, Color Scheme, Typography
Clarifying Project Goals & Objectives
At the project's initiation, I worked collaboratively with the initial team to gain a thorough understanding of the app's goals, motivations, and requirements. The overarching objective was to implement SOLID technology, an advanced and secure data storage approach, wherein each user is allocated a dedicated pod for safeguarding their personal data. Metadata would be instrumental in the verification process of crucial documents. Additionally, the design focus would need to accommodate two distinct user groups: housing insecure individuals and the caseworkers working closely with them. For this case study, my focus is solely on the screens for caseworkers.
PASS's Vision
Comparative Analysis
As an initial step, I conducted a thorough examination of document storage apps, including familiar platforms like Dropbox and Google Drive. I additionally explored wallet applications such as the iPhone's native wallet app.
After some digging, I was able to find an app that similarly focused on providing document storage for housing insecure individuals, called My Digital Data Locker. My Digital Locker is a cloud-based platform launched by the city of Baltimore and made in collaboration with coalition of public, private, and nonprofit entities. I also discovered KIIP, which similar to PASS is a centralized, two-sided platform for clients and service providers. Examining these two applications in detail provided valuable insights into the strategies employed by apps with an objective similar to PASS.
User Interviews
Several weeks into the project, the UX team conducted two user interviews with caseworkers in Portland who worked directly with housing-insecure individuals. Through these interviews, I was able to gain a better understanding of the needs of the two user groups we were designing for.
Key Takeaways
- Housing service workers are key whenever people are missing documentation - they directly assist people in finding, uploading, and sending documents.
- Common storage solutions (e.g. Dropbox, Google Drive) may be perceived as not secure enough by people working in housing services.
- The impact of missing documents can vary depending on who is requesting it. For instance, some landlords can be strict while some service organizations will approve an application, even with missing or outdated documentation.
- Technology that is secure, user-friendly, and trauma-informed is valued. Colors that are calming can be helpful - one participant mentioned red and yellow as colors that caused additional stress.
Conceptualizing User Flows
To initiate the design process, I captured screenshots from a video walkthrough of My Digital Wallet that I came across and replicated them in Figma. These screenshots formed the foundational framework for various user flows, encompassing actions like uploading a document and configuring permissions. Below, you can review the wireframes depicting the Upload Document screens.
Designing Essential User Flows
The user flows presented in the My Digital Wallet walkthrough closely aligned with our intended designs. However, due to the video's constraints, complete user flows were not visible. To initiate the design process, we adapted and modified the designs for mobile screens, and incorporated requirements essential for the PASS MVP.
In alignment with the MVP objectives, we segmented the app into three main user flows including:
- Adding a new client
- Uploading a document
- Sharing a document
Key features included:
- Activity Notifications
- Metadata integration with uploaded documents
- Capability to archive clients
Design Workshops & Iteration
To expedite the iteration process, I divided the design tasks among the UX team, encouraging a mobile-first approach. Regular sharing of designs and weekly feedback sessions allowed for a collaborative refinement process. I additionally led several workshops for the UX team to generate ideas as well as come a consensus on plans and priorities.
Upload Document Flow
I played a key role in refining the Upload Document flow. In line with the goal of incorporating metadata for document verification, I included multiple ways to classify a document as well as date picker to select the document's expiration date.
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Brand Color & Typography
For shaping PASS's brand identity, the UX team explored various brand foundations and identified key attributes. Ultimately, we settled on Trustworthy, Straightforward, Warm, and Secure. The chosen color palette and typography were thoughtfully chosen to align with these attributes.
High Fidelity Prototype
By January, our team successfully finalized a high-fidelity prototype for the app, showcasing the three primary user flows. You can watch the video below for a visual walk through.
Next Steps
The next phase of the project will involve gathering feedback from potential users and individuals who express interest in the PASS project. From there, we will continue to refine and iterate based on the received feedback.