RedHat Executive Deck Redesign
The Executive Deck was an internal RedHat tool that allowed Directors and Managers to get high-level snapshots of ongoing projects.
Summary
Project Context
Red Hat needed a tool for high-level project overviews.
Inspired by their previous executive web application.
Focused on clear information architecture.
Design Process
Reviewed current product pain points.
Created optimized IA and wireframes.
Iterated through high-fidelity designs.
Visual project timeline at the top of each page.
User Benefits
Quick understanding of project classification, description, and goals.
Improved internal process flow and readability.
Feedback Management
Managed diverse feedback from stakeholders, the CEO, the Creative Director, and the engineering team.
Accomplished design work within the target deadlines.
Red Hat had grown into a large corporation with over 30,000 employees to manage. With their expanding growth, they desperately needed a tool that allowed managers to have a high-level overview of projects without getting too far into the day-to-day of each project. Using Red Hat's previous executive web application as inspiration, we designed a tool that organized all of their communication and projects into a central source that highlighted key initiatives and statuses for leadership roles.
This project heavily focused on the need for clear information architecture (IA) and took advantage of my print design experience. I started that process by first reviewing Red Hat’s current product to understand its pain points. That allowed me to build a new IA where I mapped an optimized flow for page sequences. Using the approved IA as a guideline, we iterated through wireframe designs based on feedback from the RedHat project manager. This process of iteration continued further with higher-fidelity designs. Even when designs were approved, I was still part of the process as I helped QA and answered questions throughout the entire engineering process.
A design struggle for this project was concisely showing complex information. In the end, that struggle became the design’s greatest asset as the solution resulted in a visual project timeline presented at the top of each project page. The visual timeline allowed users to quickly understand the project’s classification, description, and goals. Additionally, I improved the flow of internal processes by grouping information into logical categories for improved readability and quick scanning of a page.
Throughout this design project, I managed diverse feedback from Red Hat stakeholders, my CEO, my Creative Director, and our engineering team. Although this feedback loop spanned many time zones, we accomplished our design work within our target deadline.