Taskly
*Note this project was designed during the UX Designer course I took through CareerFoundry. Updates made summer 2020.
Overview
Taskly is a native and web application designed using the mobile-first approach to change the way individuals and teams manage their schedules.
Problem
Scattered functionality across apps makes communication and collaboration challenging. Missing deadlines and forgetting to do things.
Goals
Design a solution that combines all necessary functionality to manage an individual’s or team’s busy schedule.
Role
UX Designer (Student)
Scope
User Experience Design, User Interface Design, Interaction Design, and Product Thinking
Timeframe
January 2017 - July 2017
*Updated summer 2020
Taskly
Taskly is a newly created native and web application designed to change the way individuals and teams manage their schedules. Taskly was designed using the mobile-first approach and supports cross-platform synchronization. With an intuitive and straightforward design, Taskly delivers a product that meets user needs without overcomplication. Taskly provides a single solution for households and companies. Taskly keeps track of tasks and projects with a simple to use interface. Taskly allows for collaboration with others using our built-in message system and calendar. Taskly’s customizable workflows ensure that no task is forgotten.
Task management system
Customizable workflows and predefined categories assist users in their day to day tasks and work responsibilities. Taskly keeps the user always connected and provides a cross-platform experience. From the laptop to the phone, Taskly will sync your information instantly and automatically. Task and Projects provide separate workflow opportunities for one time events to continuous events that require multiple steps. Taskly delivers a customizable experience to meet even the most challenging needs.
A comprehensive suite of tools
Taskly delivers a product that contains everything you and your team need to stay connect and organized. Taskly provides a built-in message system, calendar, and notification center. Syncing across platforms keeps everyone connected and removes barriers from workflows.
Starting with why
CareerFoundry tasked its students with creating an application that solved a common problem. While brainstorming possible app ideas, I focused on the challenge of time management. In today's world, we are all held to a higher standard, thanks to technology. Technology connects us and increases our productivity but often over-complicates our lives. Many people struggle managing their hectic schedules and lack a system to assist them. Having experienced the challenge of time management and knowing so many others who have, I decided I wanted to do something about it. The desire to take action and design a solution lead me to the question of how.
How
The UX course was six-months long, giving me around five months to find a solution. CareerFoundry instructed me to follow the Lean UX methodology and approach the problem with a user-centered approach.
Project Elements
Lets get started
The design process I followed consisted of four phases: research, design, development, and delivery. While I was mostly able to follow this approach, I learned the necessity of working in a more non-linear approach. In following these four phases, I was introduced to the Lean UX methodology. Working in Lean UX promoted the practice of build - measure - learn. In doing so, I was able to detect pain points early on before spending too much time or effort on Taskly’s design.
Discovery and MVP
My goal designing Taskly’s MVP was to create a product that was ready for the market as soon as possible. Early user testing and research quickly designated which features were most important to our target market. Several features were intentionally left out in the early stages of development, as they were not necessary.
A great deal of competitor research occurred before any actual design. I determined which features were most valuable in regards to Taskly’s goals and what did and didn’t work across several applications. Through this research, I was able to establish a solid foundation to build Taskly on.
Competitor Analysis
Using surveys, interviews, Google keywords, and market research, I was able to develop a cohesive understanding of what users needed and what the market had to offer. This information, combined with the methodology of Lean UX, assisted me in identifying Taskly’s goals and MVP.
User Analysis
User personas were created early in Taskly’s development. After determining Taskly’s goals, I created these personas to represent precisely who our market was. Once all this valuable information was collected, it was time to start conceptualizing. These personas aided me in creating Taskly’s user flow and reminded me of who I was designing for.
Design
Often applications are designed with overly complicated user interfaces and interaction patterns. This usually happens because products include as many features as possible in hopes of increasing sales without asking what will happen to the overall user experience. My focus while designing Taskly was to create a simple and easy-to-use app that was also aesthetically pleasing. To ensure Taskly was usable and visually appealing, I leveraged the ten usability heuristics defined by Jakob Nielsen.
Visibility of system status
Match between system and the real world
User control and freedom
Consistency and standards
Error prevention
Recognition rather than recall
Flexibility and efficiency of use
Aesthetic and minimalist design
Helps users recognize, diagnose, and recover from errors
Help and documentation
Wireframes
I started designing using pen and paper, rapidly progressing to high fidelity wireframes after extensive user testing and surveys. Taskly evolved from a simple idea to a powerful tool. During Taskly's development, it underwent several redesigns and refinement during all stages of design. Rapid pen and paper wireframes provided quick and easy visualization. Greyscale wireframes allowed for viable user testing, which lead to the focus of Taskly's UI and interaction design through high fidelity wireframes.
Build - Measure - Learn
Throughout the entire design process, I followed the methodology of Lean UX. The guiding principles of build - measure - learn, allowed me to work iteratively, constantly refining all aspects of the design. The below list contains many of the exercises I conducted during the design and development of Taskly.
Conceptualization through paper prototypes
Paper prototype testing
Design refinement from user testing and results
Re-testing refinement
Convert into digital grayscale wireframes
Digital wireframe testing
Design refinement from user testing and results
User flow testing and assumption validation
User flow refinement and addition of UI
Test refined prototypes
Refine designs using user feedback
Test validity of prototypes
Refine and polish design into high fidelity renderings
What Taskly became
In summary, Taskly's MVP was successfully designed within the five-month project timeline. Taskly provided individual users and companies a web-based time management solution, supporting cross-platform synchronization. A native and web-based version was designed, giving users flexibility on how they could use the product. With a clear understanding of the users' pain points, I was able to design a solution that met their needs.
