HARMONY
Platform Integration | Motorola Solutions
Role: UX Researcher & Service Designer (sole owner)
Scale: 6 U.S. states, 30+ mission-critical platforms
Impact: 60% efficiency improvement
Note: Details limited due to NDA
Outcome: Strategic transformation initiative saving $30 million per year
Compliance: WCAG, CCPA, GDPR, NIST 800-53, Texas Administrative Code 202
Bottom Line Up Front
This exploratory/generative research discovered what was previously an unknown user journey across data and device management systems, which revealed more than 30 tools within their process, instead of what was originally thought to be four.
This user journey informed stakeholders on key interdependencies, tool usage patterns, error rates, and critical workflow inefficiencies and redundancies that catalyzed a strategic digital transformation initiative that removed third party tool dependencies; provided a path to create, integrate, and streamline solutions in-house; and saved Motorola millions of dollars a year as a result.​
Challenge & Opportunity
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In mission-critical public safety communications, fragmented systems create risk. This environment of risk guided my research to:
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Transform 30+ disconnected provisioning tools into a unified, user-friendly workflow
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Map and synthesize complex user journeys across public safety organizations
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Identify high-impact integration opportunities
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Provide actionable, prioritized recommendations to guide a multi-million dollar transformation and integration initiative
The Research
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As sole researcher, I designed and executed the comprehensive exploratory/generative research:
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Created end-to-end research strategy and framework
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Developed hypothesis model with 12 key variables to test with end user groups
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Led multi-method research across 6 U.S. states
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Managed stakeholder relationships across engineering, product, and customer teams
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Translated technical complexity into actionable, prioritized insights
Research Design
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Methodology Selection & Rationale:​
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Secondary Research: Familiarize myself with the tools, existing reports/documentation, and the user language
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Internal SME Consultations (6+): Validate technical feasibility and explore history with the tools, organizations, and customers
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Focus Groups (4 sessions): Gather collective insights on user needs, perceptions, and attitudes
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In-depth Interviews (9 sessions): Understand mental models, pain points, workflows, and user needs
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Contextual Inquiry/Ethnography (5 multi-day sessions): Observe real-world usage patterns
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Journey Mapping: Identify and visualize the end-to-end user experience
Validation Framework:
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Cross-referenced patterns across user roles
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Validated technical constraints with SMEs
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Progressive stakeholder review cycles
Key Discoveries
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Identified critical workflow inefficiencies costing 60% of user time
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For example: with redundant tasks across numerous tools a day, due to there not being data automation, this required the manual input of hundreds and sometimes thousands of data points a week into clunky spreadsheets then again manually input into multiple systems; these redundant tasks were compensating for unreliable systems and unreliable data, resulting in data errors, requiring users to memorize data, manually override, transcribe into spreadsheets, and manually calculate for the system​
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Exceptionally low learnability
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For example: becoming adept with the systems and tools in the primary workflow took at minimum 3 years of daily interaction through trial-and-error, on-the-job training​
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Mapped previously unknown cross-system dependencies
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Uncovered informal knowledge-sharing networks
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Documented actual vs. reported tool usage patterns
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Quantified error rates and time consumption of tasks in multi-system processes
Strategic & Business Impact
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Research Influence:
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Guided priority integration points for platform unification
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Informed resource allocation across development teams
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Shaped 3-year technical architecture roadmap
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Established new user research practice
Business Outcomes:
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Reduced system verification time by 60%
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Streamlined workflows across major systems
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Created foundation for large-scale transformation
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Established user-centered decision framework
Successfully:
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Built trust with technical stakeholders
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Navigated complex organizational dynamics
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Turned ambiguous challenge into clear strategy
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Elevated research impact beyond UI/UX to system architecture
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Influenced cross-functional decision making