Productiv's AppCenter empowers employees with personalized app and license recommendations, streamlining access to the tools they need in minutes.

ROLE


Lead Product Designer

TIMELINE


4 months

TEAM


CPO, product managers, engineers

SKILLS


Interaction Design
Visual Design
Design Systems
User Research

TOOLS


Figma

Clock on the wall

ROLE


Lead Product Designer

TIMELINE


4 months

TEAM


CPO, product managers, engineers

SKILLS


Interaction Design
Visual Design
Design Systems
User Research

TOOLS


Figma

OVERVIEW

Developing Productiv Enterprise Suite


Productiv is a leading enterprise SaaS management platform that helps organizations effectively manage their app portfolios and spending. While the core product provided robust capabilities, it primarily catered to IT admins and finance leaders. These allow you to provision and ensure employees quickly gain access to the licenses they need to do their daily work. And only those licenses. It’s here to help you manage, renew, and also procure.


To expand their product suite, I led the creation of AppCenter, an end-user-facing solution, designed to deliver a guided employee experience for app discovery and procurement. Although a similar feature had existed previously, it was underutilized due to accessibility issues. To meet the needs of this new audience, I developed a completely new interaction framework through extensive customer research, multiple rounds of user testing, and an iterative design process from conception to launch. I simultaneously worked on a UI refresh for the entire product system, which helped inform the design choices made for AppCenter.


As the lead designer on this project, I collaborated closely with product managers and engineers to ensure our product strategy aligned with overarching goals and user needs. This teamwork kept us on track and enabled a successful product launch within just a few months.

01

CONTEXT

USER JOURNEY

What steps do users take procure an app?


We examined our existing product and mapped the user journey from the employee's perspective. Our findings revealed that many pain points stem from poor discovery and confusion caused by a lack of information.

RAPID IDEATION

Possible Interventions


The product team began by quickly ideating various solutions aimed at enhancing the user experience, drawing from our previously identified pain points.

IDENTIFYING & SYNTHESIZE

Identifying Core Product Experience

01

App Discovery



Empower users to find the tools correct for their role and function effortlessly.



02

Seamless Procurement


Streamline the process of requesting an app license to eliminate any friction or confusion.


03

Trust



Foster trust within organizations, while enhancing financial awareness among employees.

02

IDEATION

HYPOTHESIS TESTING

User Testing Round 1: Lo-Fi Wireframes & Interviews


Leveraging our team's insights, I created rough sketches of potential features for an enhanced AppCenter and engaged in calls with several of Productiv's customers to better understand their organization's needs.

PERSONAS

User Insights


From our customer call interviews we identified 4 main categories of employees using AppCenter, each with different goals when using the product, and areas of the product that they relied on the most.

ORGANIZATION LEADERS

Chief Financial Officer


GOALS

Cost Saving


OPPORTUNITIES

Editable license tier visibility

Similar apps in org

ADMINISTRATORS

IT Admin


GOALS

Seamless procurement for end-users


OPPORTUNITIES

License tiers information

App Approvers Contacts

TEAM LEADERS

Senior Product Manager


GOALS

Organized teams


OPPORTUNITIES

Editable license tier visibility

Similar apps in org

AVERAGE EMPLOYEES

Software Engineer


GOALS

Quick app procurement & app discovery


OPPORTUNITIES

Used by my team

Search Capabilities

FEATURE ROADMAP

What features do we prioritize?


We synthesized insights from our interviews, translating each user's needs into actionable features, which we then organized by page. This process allowed us to finalize our product roadmap and prioritize the essential features for version 1 of AppCenter.

03

APPCENTER V.1

APP CENTER V.1

Landing Page


In the process of transforming AppCenter into a core product, we enhanced the visual design by creating an eye-catching top bar, refining the color palette, and simplifying the navigation bar to improve overall aesthetics and usability.

APP CENTER V.1

Card Design


The app cards feature more comprehensive descriptions and include clickable tags that link directly to app capabilities and featured apps.

APP CENTER V.1

App Details Page


On the app details page, we added enhanced visibility into the available license tiers and request history, giving users more insight into their procurement process. Additionally, we've included a more detailed contact list, Slack assistance, and a display of similar apps currently in use within the organization.

04

USER TESTING

USER INSIGHTS

User Testing Round 2: Product Walkthrough


Once V.1 of the product had shipped, we got back onto some customer calls and had them walk through the product out loud, and even had them use it for a few days to understand what else could be improved on. We categorized the issues users faced into 3 main categories.

01

IA and Navigation

02

Visual Design and Accessiblity

03

Information and Feedback

HEURISTIC ANALYSIS

Reframing product requirements based on user insights


Reevaluating our product requirements based on the feedback we got from customer using AppCenter, I took a step back to reframe the core objectives from a broader, more strategic perspective.

End-user requirements

  • Search and find applications

  • Get license

  • Get notified of approval issues/delays

  • Submit requests for new applications

Company requirements

  • Ensure trust - brand site in their identity

  • Simplify app fulfillment

  • Provide visibility


05

FINAL PRODUCT

FINAL PRODUCT

Customizable AppCenter Experience



A personalized product, featuring customizable banners, component colors, and logos tailored to each organization, reinforces trust by aligning the brand experience with their unique identity.

FINAL PRODUCT

Enhanced Search Experience


AppCenter’s prominent search bar boosts app discovery, offering fuzzy search and the ability to search by both apps and capabilities. AppCenter further enhances this by suggesting relevant capabilities to employees based on their role and usage, guiding them to the right apps efficiently.

FINAL PRODUCT

Track your license cost


Provides employees with greater visibility into their personal license costs, promoting financial awareness, while also offering data on idle or unused licenses they can take action on.

FINAL PRODUCT

App usage details


Offers employees greater transparency and control over the procurement process by providing estimated approval times and direct Slack contacts for approvers. Additionally, it provides usage data on team members and insights into how the app is utilized within the organization, helping employees determine if it's the right tool for their needs.

FINAL PRODUCT

Request licenses seamlessly


Provides detailed descriptions of each license tier, along with recommended options, to help employees make informed decisions about which tier to request. Additionally, it streamlines the access request process for a smoother experience.

IMPACT

NPS increased by 20 points


The evolution of Productiv's core product, marked by the introduction of AppCenter and a new visual and interaction system, led to positive customer feedback. Users expressed satisfaction with the seamless app procurement process, and we observed a notable reduction in costs as employees opted for only the licenses they needed.

© Riya Bobde 2023

© Riya Bobde 2023

© Riya Bobde 2023