Client
Simply Smiles
Role
Design Lead
Team
1 Project Manager
1 Tech Lead
10 Developers
Timeline
October 2021 - May 2022
(7 months)
The current process of submitting expenses for parents and reviewing them for SS admin is time-consuming and prone to error
SS is opening a new home in South Dakota. With the rising amount of homes and parents, they need a more efficient way to keep track of their expenses, both for reimbursement and tax purposes.
Simplying the process of
Submitting expenses on the foster parent side
Reviewing expenses on the admin side
Solution
A budgeting iOS application for foster parents & an expense tracking web platform for Simply Smile accountant
💰 Spending conciously
Manage budget effectively with a visualized overview
Log expense in only 60 seconds
Notifications come only when you need them
🐙 Multiple accounts? Easy
Manage all households in the format that all accountants have known and love - Excel table
Export report in the format of your desire
Get notified about cost overruns in real-time
iOS Application
1. Review as you go
Cost overrun was the biggest problem in the current process. To limit this issue, parents need to be more aware of the remaining budget.
Putting the balance near the Continue button will allow parents to compare their spending with the budget without having to exit the flow.
4. Add expense with 1 click
Having the add expense button placed on the menu bar allows parents to log new expenses conveniently, no matter what screen they were on.
2. Customize notification
Budgeting apps don’t work because it's too easy to ignore the repetitive push notification
Since the parents only go shopping once or twice per week, they will only need to log expenses on those days
3. Review! Review! Review
Parents cannot edit the expense by themselves after they have submitted it. To limit data entry errors, it’s necessary to have a review step before submission
Admin Web
1. Match with the real world
Since the accountant is familiar with the table/Excel format, it’s best to maintain that design for the web view.
By doing this, the accountant won’t have to spend lots of time learning a new display and finding information
2. Flag budget overrun
When there is a budget overrun, the account listing will turn red and along with a warning icon in real-time
This will provide a clear visual cue for the accountant and mark the exact account that needs their attention.
iOS Application
1. Simplify budget view
The #1 feedback that we got is that the home page is too busy. Some information is not necessary and it does not help the parents make decisions quickly.
The new design clearly displays the budget status and flag overrun categories.
2. Edit receipt photo
When going shopping, parents do not only shop for SS, but for themselves as well.
Because of this, they will often need to make notes and crop the receipt photos so that the pictures only include SS expenses.
Admin Web
1. Improve color contrast
Adding a different color to the side menu helps make the layout of the page more distinguishable
SS accountants use an older Window display modal so the screen contrast is not prominent
2. Remove the card-view
SS accounts reviewed that they would not use the card view feature because it’s very hard for them to locate the houses and the information are spatial.
Reflection
Learnings
Overall, I think I did a good job at understanding the customer's needs and delivering the end result quickly and effectively. However, if I were to do the project again, I would be mindful to:
