Filtering for Business Intel

The product manager wanted to use a “slicer” style tool, looking at Qlikview and Excel. Ultimately we decided on following the Excel pattern because users were already expecting Apptio to be similar to Excel, and implementation was easier. In addition, the Qlikview pattern did not offer obvious affordances for users.

I prototyped the slicers in HTML and worked on the interaction patterns. A couple rounds of guerilla testing validated using a simpler, three state pattern than the four state pattern of Excel’s slicers.

In designing for accessibility I tried something novel: Used WebEx to stream the prototype to a remote co-worker while using the worst LCD projector in the organization myself. Between us we determined which color sets needed the most attention.

For the customer support team I gave a presentation on best practices in using the new BI tools: Don’t overuse them, keep them clear, remember that the interactions of the BI tools are data just like the data themselves.

At the end of the project a Fortune 100 customer asked for a more specialized filtering tool to handle their hierarchical organization, and they wanted it delivered within 8 weeks. I quickly prototyped the UI for the filter, created a click-through demo in Axure, and demonstrated it to the stakeholders. Once they bought off on the design, I worked hand in hand with the developers to pair design the new filter and push it through usability testing. We delivered the new filter to the customer 2 weeks before the deadline.