Youth Connected Program

A user-friendly online portal simplifying the onboarding process for foster parents, making it easier than ever to join the Youth Connected Program.

Background

The Youth Connected Program (YCP) is a pioneering foster care agency committed to providing a nurturing and supportive environment for teens in Orange County. Our unique approach combines academic excellence at Samueli Academy with the warmth and stability of a home environment.

We seek compassionate individuals and families who are passionate about making a positive difference in the lives of young people. If you're ready to open your home and heart to a deserving teen, YCP offers a rewarding opportunity to foster growth and development.

The Problem

The current onboarding process for resource parents is a lengthy and analog process that can be frustrating and daunting. Potential resource parents often expressed frustration with the numerous forms they needed to complete and the significant amount of time it took to gather all the necessary documents. Many participants mentioned feeling overwhelmed by the process and unsure of their progress.

The Discovery Process

To gain a better understanding of what potential and current resource parents expect from the onboarding process, how to gain a list of all required forms and docs specific to the resource parent and how to upload them, discover current or potential pain points, determine notification/reminder methods, and how to incorporate a dedicated point of contact.

Strengths

  • Clean site/easy to navigate.

  • Well established.

  • Accommodates all required services.

Weakness

  • Clean site/easy to navigate.

  • Well established.

  • Accommodates all required services.

Strengths

  • Clean site/easy to navigate.

  • Established.

  • Has dedicated services.

  • Pre-application process.

  • Strong use of CTA’s.

Weakness

  • Not alot of information .

  • Constant emails.

Strengths

  • Main source of information.

  • Offer more classes.

  • More resources for placement.

  • Higher approval rate.

Weakness

  • Site hard to navigate.

  • Extraneous pre-application process.

  • Longer wait times for approval/certification.

User Interviews

After researching the competition, I conducted interviews with 5 users to gain insights into their goals, needs, frustrations, and motivations for becoming a Resource Parent. All participants shared a common theme: they were new to the process and wanted guidance to bring home a child. The main objective of the online portal is to provide a central point of access for everything related to the Resource Parent process.

User Interview Summary

  • Interviewed existing applicants and stakeholders regarding the process.

  • Applicants wanted to be guided through the onboarding process.

  • Ability to reach out to someone if they had questions.

  • Want to track the process and progress.

  • Simplify the process and reduce the amount of forms needed.

User Journey Summary

The user journey map is based on the current onboarding process along with the strengths and weaknesses that will potentially illuminate areas of opportunity for the new onboarding process.

User Journey Map

User Flow

Next I used the insight obtained from the journey map to help me get organized and determine what screens would need to be built to accomplish the goals.

The flows helped me visualize what steps and interactions would be taken to create a new club or search for a club and what screens would need to be built.

Sketches

Sketches were instrumental in visualizing how the onboarding process could be improved. By exploring different layouts and interactions, we were able to identify potential pain points and refine the design.

Lo-Fi Wireframes

Based on the insights from our user research, I created lo-fi wireframes to visualize how the onboarding process could be streamlined and made more user-friendly. By iterating on different layouts and design concepts, I was able to identify potential pain points and refine the application process.

Hi-Fi Wireframes

Based on the insights from our user research and lo-fi wireframes, we created high-fidelity wireframes to refine the design and visualize the final product. Key decisions during this stage included adding a login screen for enhanced security and bifurcating the onboarding process to accommodate new and existing applicants. Through an iterative process, we refined the wireframes to ensure a visually appealing and user-friendly interface.

The decision to add a log in screen was made to ensure the users information would be safe and secure.

To accommodate new and current applicants the decision to bifurcate the onboarding process was made. This allows previous applicants who already completed to forms to skip the step by step process and just upload their forms.

Usability Testing Planning

Objective

  • Test the overall usability of the Youth Connected Program onboarding portal with 4 adult participants.

  • Evaluate the ease of completing forms and scheduling training classes.

  • Identify any pain points or usability issues within the design and onboarding process.

Logistics

  • Duration: 1 hour

  • Platform: Video Conference

  • Recruitment Criteria: Participants were recruited from a pool of potential resource parents.

Testing Tasks

Participants were asked to complete the following tasks:

  • Complete the initial application forms.

  • Schedule a training class.

  • Navigate through the portal to find necessary information.

Prototype

High level walkthrough the Resource Parent application process.

Key Findings

Our usability testing revealed that participants found the Youth Connected Program onboarding portal to be clean, simple, easy to use, and organized. The streamlined process and clear layout facilitated easy navigation and completion of tasks.

Key findings include:

  • Positive User Experience: 90% of participants rated the overall user experience as positive or excellent.

  • Ease of Use: Participants found it easy to complete tasks such as creating an account, scheduling training classes, and navigating through the portal.

  • Clear Design: The design was praised for its simplicity and clarity, with participants noting that it was easy to understand and follow.

While the testing revealed no major pain points, some participants suggested adding a progress bar to provide a visual representation of their progress through the onboarding process.

What I Learned

  • The importance of components and how they create a reusable cohesive style guide.

  • A lot of information upfront can be overwhelming and frustrating. Breaking down and rearranging information enforces the hierarchy and helps the user digest what’s needed in each section of the process.

  • Understanding WCAG standards and the importance of its use is an asset for businesses, organizations, and other entities who want to make their digital content accessible to all people.