The Home Depot · Store Systems · Receiving · $14M+ product
Thirty screens to three — and $1.3M back
Receiving freight in a Home Depot store is operational UX: associates on a mobile device, on the clock, with trucks waiting on the decision. The existing application was a retirement candidate. I was the Senior UX Designer on the $14M+ Store Systems team building the replacement.
The problem
One workflow required associates to step through more than 30 screens on a handheld. The model of the work did not match how receiving actually happens. Extra screens meant labor, error, and distrust of the tool.
Role
Senior UX Designer embedded with a product team that had already cycled through six UX resources. Research in stores (including Sandy Plains and Morrow), prototype evaluation with receiving associates, and design that engineering could ship.
Strategy
- Test with receiving associates in stores.
- Collapse the workflow around the real unit of work (freight bill → PO actions).
- Keep design critique separate from personal critique so the team could iterate under shifting priorities.
Outcome
The same workflow ran in 3 screens instead of 30+. Workforce time dropped enough to translate into more than $1.3 million in first-year savings. The SVP of Engineering Operations used that example internally to explain user-centered software development.
She is hands down the easiest person to drop into an existing product team and get results. She is humble in her approach to teamwork and is clear in her role.
Rachel Modugno, Software Engineering Sr. Manager, The Home Depot