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28 May Rx for Excellence: Leveraging Workflow Pain Points

Posted at 13:40h in featured, Industrial Design by

Identifying and addressing pain points in a workflow is an integral component of Key Tech’s product development process. Most critical and impactful in early stages, but valuable throughout, it ensures a user-centric approach and prevents the need for redesign later into a project’s schedule.

In the context of product design, a “pain point” refers to any instance of the user experience that causes frustration, inconvenience, or dissatisfaction. For example, an interface or feature may be overly complicated with system controls, leading to confusion and difficulty in accomplishing a specific or multiple tasks. Steps that are time-consuming or repetitive can also be a source of irritation. If certain tasks are challenging or prone to error, they can disrupt a user’s workflow, decreasing productivity. Pain points can also be described as “use errors:” mistakes made by a user while utilizing a product, system, or technology. These can occur due to misunderstanding instructions, lack of familiarity with the product, or unintentional misuse. Pain points can occur at various stages, from the initial interaction with the product through ongoing usage.

Key Tech utilizes various methods to identify pain points depending on the stage in product development. Many times, the first step is to conduct thorough user and use environment research. Through interviews and surveys, observational studies, and contextual inquiries we develop a comprehensive understanding of who and where we are designing for. Hearing from healthcare professionals and patients in real settings allows the design team to gain insight into users’ unique perspectives and environmental considerations. This is essential for building empathy among the team and sets the course for our user-centered design process.

Workflow Diagram

With this intimate understanding of the user and use environment, the next step is often to create a workflow diagram or journey map. These diagrams document a user’s experience with a product or system, from the first point of contact (sometimes even before first contact) to the end of their journey, again often past last contact. They help to communicate and summarize findings from research activities in easy-to-understand visuals. Depending on the situation, we add call outs such as interpersonal interactions, physical and digital interactions, different environments, emotional impact, amount of time taken, decision points and exits. We identify specific steps where we learned users encounter difficulties or inefficiencies and then use the diagram to share findings and recommendations with the rest of our team and external stakeholders.

Another way we identify paint points is through a Use Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (uFMEA): an exercise integrated into our regulatory process. A uFMEA is a systematic approach for identifying potential failure modes or issues that could occur at each step of the workflow. These may include errors, delays, or misunderstandings. The analysis also evaluates the severity of each failure mode, critical tasks, and the effectiveness of an existing design. A uFMEA and workflow analysis complement each other to ensure that a product meets both safety and usability requirements.

Once we’ve identified paint points, we can leverage them as design opportunities to improve a product. We can prioritize which issues post the greatest risk to the workflow and require attention, and then brainstorm solutions to address them effectively. These solutions may include physical design modifications, process improvements, modified training, or the implementation of new protocols. We can streamline complex or cumbersome steps to reduce cognitive load and minimize the risk of errors. We can look for opportunities to simplify tasks, eliminate unnecessary steps, automate repetitive processes where possible and ensure the user interface is intuitive and accessible.

Key Tech excels using our user-centered design approach and adherence to medical regulatory standards. Identifying and addressing pain points throughout the development process promotes better solutions, enhances the user experience, and ultimately increases the likelihood of delivering a successful and excellent product to market.

Alli Shears
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