What is an interactive prototype?
By interactive prototype, we mean a functionally representative version of a future application or product. We make interactive prototypes to allow users to experience, test or validate the design and operation of an application. Before we actually build the application. In this way, the future user gets a good idea of the end product.
This also gives future users the opportunity to provide feedback on the design or product. In this way, the strengths and weaknesses of the design are identified. Subsequently, adjustments can be made before a lot of money and time has been invested.
Interactive Workshops
During the design phase, Blis always provides a number of interactive workshops. These workshops are very useful to get to the root of the problem and to come up with good solutions.
During the interactive workshop that we recently gave, we used paper post-its to collect ideas. But of course also from Microsoft Whiteboard to further develop the ideas that were there. The purpose of the first workshops is mainly to gather information. In this way, we can find out how the business processes work and where the current pain points are.
Diving right into technology during the design phase can be a pitfall. That's why we start by asking a lot of questions and, above all, listening to the customer. To prevent assumptions from being made too quickly, we take the space to discuss with each other why and how we work now. Only after all input has been collected will we start working with the technology.
Development of an interactive 'walk-through'
After all workshops have been completed, all input provided is categorized and we go deeper. We often see that end users find it difficult to imagine abstract technical ideas and how that can work for them.
At Blis, we therefore try to connect as closely as possible to the customer's experience and existing systems. Then, the ideas are made visual using PowerPoint or Photoshop. The choice of visualization is often determined per assignment.
At the customer where we recently went through the design phase, we worked close to the primary work process. For this reason, we chose an approach here where we started working directly in the Teams Application. Teams as a Platform is a common term. It is therefore important to explain to the customer why we work with Teams as a Platform and what the options are within.
Elaboration in a SharePoint site
For the customer where we recently completed the design phase, in order to limit the technical work, we did most of the development of the work environment in a SharePoint site. Here we set up the project in the form of a project list and overview pages that should provide insight into where the process is being worked on.
Within SharePoint, you can work with various options and solutions. For example, using Viva Connections (a Teams Application), you can load a SharePoint Site so that the created pages become available in Microsoft Teams.
In this way, we have also made the SharePoint pages available to our customer in Microsoft Teams, including an unambiguous login experience. The final architecture will look different, but for end users, this provided a clear picture of the new way of working.
For this customer, we also created a number of Teams using templates to provide the most real experience possible. In this way, in the demo, we were able to take all users into what the work process would look like if they had to work with the project portal. And more importantly, we stay close to the standard that Microsoft Teams already offers.
The wishes were different for the customer portal, where we used Figma for the prototype. Here, too, it is quite possible to share an interactive design with customers, but here the focus is more on the user experience, something the Project Portal focused more on in the standard options.
Why we use an interactive prototype at Blis
By setting up an initial design phase jointly with the customer in this way, the first steps with regard to adoption are taken. This way, end users get a feel for the future adjustments to their digital workplace and they also don't get the idea that they “will get another system”. Together, we can take quick steps and the design process within the organization is alive.
An additional advantage is that you can quickly provide a clear picture of the future situation and that we can transfer the whole thing to the project team, so that additional feedback can be collected internally from the customer.
As far as we are concerned, the project will be a nice one for our current customer. Fusion Development approach where a nice solution can be created with minimal customization.
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