PUBLIC SECTOR ORGANISATION
Sensitive claims website review & redesign
Research | Workshops | Accessibility | UX/UI
Following on from the review of abuse in state care in New Zealand, I lead a project for a Public Sector client who wanted to review and refresh the content and design of their online sensitive claims process to create a better experience for survivors wanting to report abuse they had experienced.
They asked us to help them understand how they might improve the experience for survivors wanting to submit a claim accessing information or services through their website. They were aware of concerns around a lack of responsiveness and transparency in their online presence; contributing to a broader, existing mistrust in the systems and processes in place for claimants to seek redress.
Understanding survivor experience to make informed decisions about the redesign of the process of engaging with the sensitive claims process online
Early on, we identified that our focus on exploring the ways the sensitive claims team could integrate learnings from the enquiry into abuse in state care to update and refresh the content on their website to better meet the needs of claimants with a focus on:
Transparency
Accessibility
and
Building trust between claimants and the organisation
This work would then ultimately inform the development of a mid-fidelity prototype that would be the blueprint for a refreshed website, focused on addressing any gaps in the information claimants expect or need at any stage in the claim process.
I lead the project, working with 2 other designers from ThinkPlace and a core team of client SMEs including team leads, content designers and business analysts with support from the web design team.
Note: Some of the project outputs cannot be included and identifying information has been redacted.
Approach
In order to design a survivor-centred experience, I developed an approach that drew on the vast body of evidence and testimony from the Enquiry, incorporated feedback from SMEs who interacted with survivors on a regular basis, and collaboratively developed the flow and content for the new site design with the clients internal teams.
Research & Interviews
2. Workshops
3. Prototyping
Research & Interviews
Drawing on experience from a previous project I had been involved in, I gathered and synthesised insights relevant to the specific context of sensitive claims to share with the core design team to give them some early insights into the current experience for survivors interacting with the claims process across theirs and other organisations. This created a foundation of knowledge for us to build from and formed the basis of an intent setting workshop where we agreed on non-negotiables and overarching design principles for how we would make decisions going forward and what we should be striving to achieve.
We also interviewed a range of SMEs (Subject Matter Experts) who could speak to the survivor experience through their work with survivors and claimants. This included lawyers, Education regional office employees, Disability specialists/advocates and accessibility advisors. These interviews highlighted the importance of creating content and providing information that was accessible and responsive to the needs of claimants who often had learning difficulties, disabilities and where trust in the state and the sensitive claims process as a whole was low.
2. Workshops
We also conducted a series of workshops to build and share in a stronger collective understanding of the claimant experience. The core design team used the compelling experience framework to map out the different points in claimants' journey as they moved through the claim process starting by identifying what goals or tasks they might have and then focusing on how they might be feeling at each different stage.
Having synthesised the insights gathered from the interviews conducted, we then overlayed them with the experience outlined in the initial workshop to inspire and inform the development of an ideal future state.
KEY INSIGHTS
Manaakitanga
Manaakitanga should be central, with the team aiming to provide a positive, healing experience even if a claim is ineligible. The current process imposes a high burden of proof on survivors and this needed to be managed in a way that didn’t leave them feeling dismissed or unheard.
Claimants often prefer more personal interaction initially, especially when in distress, and may require support throughout the process due to a variety of factors such as discomfort with or distrust of technology.
Timely responses within 48 hours are critical to build trust and reduce frustration, minimising the need for claimants to repeatedly recount their stories.
Transparency
The process needs to address the inherent power imbalance at play by providing more information and helping claimants feel For claimants, transparency was crucial for them to understand and trust the process and those interacting with the claims process wanted to understand assessors' actions and the process timelines.
The website should clearly articulate available counselling, offer efficient digital form submission options with clear indicators of what was required of them and how information would be used, and provide upfront information on eligibility criteria to ensure clarity.
Accessibility
Engaging with disability groups in the development of their online tools was recommended, to not only strengthens relationships so information flows through to support people/advocates but also help inform the design of inclusive pathways tailored to claimants complex and diverse needs.
Given the barriers faced by disabled individuals, it's crucial to implement accessible website features and personalised communication methods like phone calls for those with limited digital access. This approach includes using plain language, avoiding acronyms, providing clear navigation cues, and offering formats such as Braille and easy-read versions, addressing the diverse challenges claimants may encounter.
The team should focus on creating a clear and straightforward claim submission processes that caters to both digital and non-digital users.
3 FOCUS CONCEPTS
The workshops surfaced a wide variety of issues the team could look to address to create a more desirable experience for claimants accessing information and services online. Ultimately, we narrowed our focus to 3 key areas of development to be designed for in the development of a digital prototype/blueprint. Within the areas for improvement identified, we distilled 3 key concepts to be taken forward that were the highest priority based on the value and impact they would have on the claimant experience, addressing key pain points around transparency, clarity and accessibility.
1.
Process visibility
A more comprehensive and transparent overview of the sensitive claims process, with easier to understand information and tools to support people explaining to claimants what was expected of them.
2.
Eligibility tool
An online tool to help claimants navigate the complex criteria was needed so where they were not eligible, they could be pointed in the right direction rather than going back and forth with different government organisations.
3.
Online claim submission form
The sensitive claims online application functionality (currently downloadable form that had to be submitted via email) needed to be digitised and made more user-friendly.
PROTOTYPING
We develop the 3 key pieces identified in smaller groups with members of the core design team each paired up with 1 ThinkPlacer. ThinkPlace were responsible for working with members of the core design team to drive ideas forward, helping them draft and develop information and building a mid fidelity prototype that demonstrated the layout and overall flow for users accessing the website. ThinkPlace also collected and shared feedback from those who were not going to be able to participate in the final workshop in person for them to be able to have their say.
In the final workshop, each team shared their ‘concept’ and members of the wider group reviewed them collectively, adding to and refining content and design features in person on printed wireframe flows.
The group also referred back to the desired future state to help achieve collective agreement on how to approach certain elements and assess whether the design met the needs of claimants. This interactive, detailed feedback session resulted in a highly resolved prototype with maximum input from the wider group which formed the final deliverable.
ThinkPlace also worked with and consulted the web team throughout the project to ensure alignment of the final output with their way of working and any requirements they had to ensure there was little ‘translation’ required at the end and that there would be a smooth transition when the time came to hand over the work.
Concept 1. The Claims Process
The design of the claims process overview was focused on providing the right level of detail and communicating what claimants should expect and what was required of them in an easy to understand way, using plain language and non-technical terms.
A big win for this specific piece was the work done with the legal, content and comms teams to provide information that was previously unavailable.
Concept 2. Eligibility Tool
The eligibility tool took what was a previously knowledge held by the sensitive claims team with no documentation or online guidance avaiable - and turned it into an interactive stepper which allows claimants to enter information to determine, broadly, whether sensitive claims is the right team for them to contact about their complaints.
Concept 3. Online Claim Submission
The development of the online claim submission tool is the concept I was most heavily involved in, working alongside claim specialists and comms experts to craft the messaging and flow to ensure all the information required as requested in a way that was supportive and mana-enhancing.
Outcome
The Impact
The benefits of this work were twofold: A renewed and deepened understanding of the claimant experience and current pain points surrounding the sensitive claims process and; A clear, survivor-centred website design the team could implement to better meet the needs of claimants.
Myself and the team effectively advocated for and communicated these needs throughout the process and helped create an awareness of the key principles of developing online content for claimants through survivor-centred language and accessible, transparent information.
This project allowed me to combine several of ThinkPlaces existing and burgeoning areas of expertise in a valuable and exciting way. We had tackle disparate mediums and areas of expertise simultaneously; bringing digital prototyping and written content into physical settings (workshops) and innovative methods for enabling this were required to achieve what was needed. This format can now be used and developed further in future work on digital projects with ‘non digital’ teams where we must bridge the gap between the two areas.