Shukan app
Enhance your workday routines and habits
Welcome to your new best friend, the Shukan app. The one who shows you the naked truths, not the one who gives you a friendly pat on the back. Shukan is here to assist you with bettering your workday management.
Why Shukan, you ask. Well Shukan means habit in Japanese, and what better way to represent the methodic, clean and brain relaxing energy you want to bring to your life, than a Japanese word? So, let’s get you in a good Shukan.
A cluttered desktop or a disorganized email inbox can be stressful and frustrating at times. Why not place all of your desktop files in a different folder and cover it? Isn’t that the cure? How about all your important reminders in those colourful post-it notes? Foolproof, right? Until you lose one!
Shukan curates the best tips and tutorials on how to set up a system that will help you achieve your goals of being structured and organized during your work week. You’ll have more time in the end to reach important deadlines or stop missing that important dinner with your in-laws (now you’re wishing you hadn’t installed the app…ups. I’m joking).
Our tools will help you get customized recommendations for your specific challenges. You can either complete our “assessing your Shukan” survey or using the unclutter tool to take a photo of your struggle, and our sophisticated algorithm will be able to recognize your predicament and will provide the best suggestions and tips.
We also understand that working from home can be difficult at times: having a resting and working area in the same place can feel like going through Groundhog day. That’s why we’ve teamed up with some local small businesses to provide you with some fantastic workspace options.
You don’t have to be the victim of your environment. You can also be the architect of it
The Shukan app was developed for the University of California San Diego’s Interaction Design Capstone Project. The students were initially given three briefing options:
- Redesign the way we experience or interact with time.
- Create an app that makes it easier to alter one’s personal or social behaviour.
- Find people and build a personalized dashboard based on their requirements.
I chose the option to “Redesign the way we perceive or connect with time.”
Ideation
I’ve spent the last few years working with a variety of co-workers on various projects. One thing I learned is that everybody has their own system for organizing their day and workflow, and some people have none at all. They simply go with the flow. They prefer solutions or approaches that only work for a short time, akin to sweeping problems under the rug.
The issue with this strategy is that it not only makes them inefficient, but it also makes their team ineffective. When you work like this, certain time-sensitive tasks take a huge toll.
I’m almost convinced that disorganized people don’t want to be this way; they just don’t know where to begin to become a better version of themselves. “I’ll check that tomorrow,” they’ll claim.
Shukan’s idea came from there: an app that curates the best available information to help people be more productive and organized at work. Shukan will have the answer and explain what to do and how to do it.
Storyboard & paper prototype
A colleague and friend of mine inspired the storyboard. He’s the perfect person for this app. The app itself must be simple and approachable without being overburdened with options.
The unclutter tools were one of the main features I wanted to introduce with Shukan. Initially, it consisted of a camera tool that allowed the user to take a picture of their problem, and a sophisticated algorithm would be able to recognize their predicament and provide the most helpful suggestions and tips.
The camera tool was moved to a second plan due to the implementation complexity at this stage. As a result, the “Assessing your Shukan” survey was implemented in a more low-tech manner to provide suggestions and tips.
Low-fidelity wireframe & navigational skeleton
The low-fidelity wireframe was modelled after some input from the initial paper prototype. The philosophy remains the same: clear and approachable.
Navigational skeleton & first prototype version
Most of the brand elements I designed or defined were already present in the V1 prototype: logotype, tag line, colour scheme, and typeface. Since I have a graphic design background, the Look & Feel is an important phase in my creative process for me.
Adobe Illustrator was used to create the logotype, and Sketch was used to create the prototype.
The app’s name has also been changed to Shukan. I wanted a name that was more appealing and easy to tell. Shukan is a Japanese term that literally translates to “habit.”
The home page tiles consisted in: Unclutter tool, Suggestion of the day, work from, and about Shukan.
In-Person and A/B testing
For the in-person testing, the prototype V2 was used.
There were a total of three people who took part in the experiment.
The feedback and observations obtained were important for the V3 implementation.
During the in-person test, I discovered that two users took some time to locate the assessment survey tool. I was afraid that these users’ experience were not uncommon, and that would be shared by many others. As a result, I updated the app to include an assessment survey on the home screen. The original design was the A test in the A/B testing where the assessment survey could be found under the unclutter tools (first tile in the homepage). In the B test, the assessment survey was placed in the home page (Third tile in the homepage).
Final prototype
Based on the four-person study, the layout B appears to be the best option, taking into account the Task’s metrics as well as the video analysis.
Likewise, based on Task’s metrics as well as the video analysis, the proposed reviews were:
- The final prototype should be based on Layout B.
- “About Shukan” was renamed as “What’s Shukan” to serve as a jumping off point.
- Tiles on the home page to be in a different order: Today we recommend, What’s Shukan, Assessing your Shukan, Unclutter tool, and Work from. It becomes more visually balanced, making it easier for users to find what they want.
- Create a landing page for the “Unclutter tool” that explains what it is about
Final prototype can be found here:
https://www.sketch.com/s/987a0d82-a025-47a1-bc81-33c748f1415c/a/jgbGA4G/play
Videos
Final thoughts
Overall, I had a great time learning about interactive design. More than the final app, with which I’m pleased, it was the journey itself that I found particularly enjoyable.
Shukan proves to be a successful concept. From friends and colleagues to user reviewers, the app and the idea have received a lot of positive reviews. The majority of them stated that they would definitely use this app.
Perhaps it can be more than just a capstone project? Let’s see!
I’d also like to say a few things about the course itself:
The course is well-balanced and covers a range of subjects. It is, however, beginning to show signs of wear and tear. The curators, in my opinion, should be more on top of things. I discovered a few dead links, some instructions are vague and mediocre (It’s ironic, given that the course is about user experience.), and the majority of the examples are outdated (Examples for 2012: A lifetime in the UX/UI world).
I would recommend the course, but there are some caveats.