Get review case study - 2022
A web platform to help the product design aspirants to get feedback on their work/case studies
Role
UI/UX Designer
Industry
EdTech
Tools
Figma, Notion
Duration
3 weeks
Project type
A Web-based SaaS application
Taget Audience
Product design aspirants
Why Reviewing Design Work is So Complex
The process lacks a specific structure.
There's no convenient system in place for reviewers to assess work according to their own schedules.
Securing one-on-one time with industry experts proves to be difficult.
Moreover, mentees often switch mentors or disengage, which can demotivate mentors and diminish their involvement.
Design Process
Project Breakdown
Our Motivation
We undertook this case study because, as new product design aspirants, we ourselves were navigating the challenges of receiving precise and constructive feedback on our work. Recognizing this gap, we saw an opportunity to create a solution and decided to collaborate on this project.
Team members:
Nishi: I took the lead on UI and visuals, transforming our concepts into user-friendly designs, and provided support on the UX aspects.
Divya: She concentrated on the UX work, focusing on enhancing our project's usability and user-centric elements.
Together, we aimed to develop a system to make design feedback more accessible and effective for designers like us.
The Gap: Realities of Case Study Creation
We have conducted an in-depth analysis of the case study creation process, detailing each step involved. Ideally, a designer would utilize online resources and some external guidance to complete their case study. Yet, the actual experience often differs. Below, we compare the expected scenario with the real-life challenges that product design aspirants face when creating case studies for their portfolios.
Expectations VS Reality 👇
Hearing Directly from the Field: What Newcomers and Experts Are Saying
7 product design professionals were interviewed
3 were newcomers looking for their first job in the field
And 4 were accomplished designers who had previously established themselves in the domain
The goal of the interview was to learn what helped the designers break into the design field, which could benefit freshers who are struggling to break into the field.
Some Snippets from the Interviews
“Shared case studies with people in the industry for feedback. I used to connect to several people on LinkedIn. And would ask them for feedback as well. That helped me to great extent”
Mayank, Product Designer
“Finding a mentor was a game-changer for me. Having someone experienced to guide you, challenge your decisions, and provide insights into the industry can accelerate your growth tremendously.” Tom, Recently Established Designer
Neena, Product Designer
“Because I am a beginner- i did not understand where to start at. Portfolio making wasn’t easy, drew out inspiration from other case studies. once first case study was done other case studies became easy. more exposure is needed, get feedback from peers and senior designers will be helpful working backwards took some time talking to mentor helps in finding the loopholes”.
Rohit, Aspirant
“When I iterate I do not understand what to keep and what not to keep. I take more time than expected ending up thinking if this piece of work is worth putting out”.
Kalyani, Aspirant
Insights: A Call for Mentorship and Community in Design
User Persona: Understanding the Aspiring Designer
Value Proposition Canvas: Aligning Solutions to Designer Aspirations
Mapping the Experience: Tracing the Designer's Journey
Addressing the Feedback Gap: How Can We Make It More Impactful?
HOW MIGHT WE help product aspirants receive constructive feedback which can help with their case studies💡
Market Analysis: Where Current Platforms Fall Short
Dribble, Behance:
Primarily focuses on UI case studies.
Lacks a standardized method for feedback.
LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram:
People are more reachable on these platforms.
Typically, slow response times.
Time-consuming to establish connections.
Serves as an alternative method for getting a feedback.
Feedback from Industry Experts:
Often used to get more people to join their cohort or followers
The feedback is mostly overarching and not that actionable
ADPList:
Primarily for reviewing portfolios as a whole rather than detailed case studies.
Feedback is sometimes vague or unclear.
Feedback depends heavily on single conversations, as mentors are often busy and unavailable for follow-up sessions. This necessitates finding a new mentor for further guidance, complicating the process of systematically tracking and recording feedback.
Cohorts and Mentorship Programs:
Requires substantial time and commitment.
Not accessible on-demand, which restricts flexibility.
Due to the large number of students in each cohort, one-on-one sessions are limited and brief.
Additionally, mentorship programs can be quite expensive.
Introducing a Better Way: Streamlining the Feedback Process
Upload a new case study for review
Give a detailed explanation while requesting the review
Customize it to request the suitable reviewers
Receive the detailed feedback from the reviewer
The reviewer can highlight a particular section in the case study
Make an informed decision before sending the request review
Access to the status of your case study
Reviewers can see the review requests received by them
Rethinking the Norm: Crafting Standards for Design Reviews
Standardize the case study review system
A system that brings designers at different levels of career together to help each other.
Aspirants get to learn from seniors & peers through constructive feedback specifically on case studies
Peers & seniors get to make good use of their knowledge of the subject and practise leadership
Introducing a New Toolkit: Empowering Designers to Track, Enhance, and Finalize Their Case Studies
Upload Your Case Study: Begin by submitting your case study to the platform.
Publish for Review: Make your case study available to receive insights and evaluations.
Receive Detailed Feedback and Ratings: Obtain comprehensive reviews and ratings to understand how your work measures up.
Track Your Progress: Monitor your growth and improvements over time using the platform’s tracking features.
Access Curated Resources: Leverage a collection of carefully selected resources that can aid in further development of your skills and knowledge.
User's Role in the Feedback Ecosystem:
From Submission to Improvement
Users can get feedback for their case study
As a user, I want to upload my case study so that I can receive feedback on it
As a user, I want to request feedback(1-1 call, audio, video, detailed document) so that it helps me with iteration and identifying improvement areas
As a user, I want to get notified of every feedback so that I can keep a track of the comments received
As a user, I want to comment on other case studies so that I could share my thoughts
Review a case study & submit the review
As a user, I want to review the case study so that I could share my insights and help the aspirant to improvise
Submit the review
As a user, I want to submit my review through audio
As a user i want to submit my review through video
As a user, I want to submit my review through a detailed report
As a user, I want to submit my review through 1-1 call
Access curated resources
As a user, I want to get categorized references for my case study so that I can tailor my project according to the relevant domain
Aspirant’s Profile
As a user, I want to create my profile as an aspirant so that I can give some background information about myself
Reviewer Profile
As a user, I want to create my profile as a reviewer so that I can give some background information about myself
Track my growth
As a user, I want to see the status of my case studies so that I can gauge my progress (uploaded/requested for review/under review/complete comments/approved)
Feedback format
As a user, I want to standardize the feedback format so that it's relevant and holistic to the aspirant
From Ideas to Interfaces - Aspirant's view
From Ideas to Interfaces - Reviewer's view
Defining the Visual Language
Constraints of the Solution
How to encourage reviewers to give feedback?
How to ensure the quality of the feedback?
Features for Future Scope
Detailed subscription plans
1-1 calls as an add-on feature
Bookmarking the references
Discussion Forums amongst peers
Templates for beginners
Direct Messaging
Insights Gained: Key Learnings from the Project
Design is an iterative process, and it can be challenging to resist the urge to perfect every detail initially. Instead, we need to embrace rapid iterations and agile methodologies, allowing user feedback to guide our refinements.
Other projects
Get review case study - 2022
A web platform to help the product design aspirants to get feedback on their work/case studies
Role
UI/UX Designer
Industry
Edtech
Tools
Figma, Notion
Duration
3 weeks
Project type
A Web-based SaaS application
Taget Audience
Product design aspirants
Why Reviewing Design Work is So Complex
The process lacks a specific structure.
There's no convenient system in place for reviewers to assess work according to their own schedules.
Securing one-on-one time with industry experts proves to be difficult.
Moreover, mentees often switch mentors or disengage, which can demotivate mentors and diminish their involvement.
Design Process
Project Breakdown
Our Motivation
We undertook this case study because, as new product design aspirants, we ourselves were navigating the challenges of receiving precise and constructive feedback on our work. Recognizing this gap, we saw an opportunity to create a solution and decided to collaborate on this project.
Team members:
Nishi: I took the lead on UI and visuals, transforming our concepts into user-friendly designs, and provided support on the UX aspects.
Divya: She concentrated on the UX work, focusing on enhancing our project's usability and user-centric elements.
Together, we aimed to develop a system to make design feedback more accessible and effective for designers like us.
The Gap: Realities of Case Study Creation
We have conducted an in-depth analysis of the case study creation process, detailing each step involved. Ideally, a designer would utilize online resources and some external guidance to complete their case study. Yet, the actual experience often differs. Below, we compare the expected scenario with the real-life challenges that product design aspirants face when creating case studies for their portfolios.
Expectations VS Reality 👇
Hearing Directly from the Field: What Newcomers and Experts Are Saying
7 product design professionals were interviewed
3 were newcomers looking for their first job in the field
And 4 were accomplished designers who had previously established themselves in the domain
The goal of the interview was to learn what helped the designers break into the design field, which could benefit freshers who are struggling to break into the field.
Some Snippets from the Interviews
“Shared case studies with people in the industry for feedback. I used to connect to several people on LinkedIn. And would ask them for feedback as well. That helped me to great extent”
Mayank, Product Designer
“Finding a mentor was a game-changer for me. Having someone experienced to guide you, challenge your decisions, and provide insights into the industry can accelerate your growth tremendously.” Neena, Product Designer
“Because I am a beginner- i did not understand where to start at. Portfolio making wasn’t easy, drew out inspiration from other case studies. once first case study was done other case studies became easy. more exposure is needed, get feedback from peers and senior designers will be helpful working backwards took some time talking to mentor helps in finding the loopholes”.
Rohit, Aspirant
“When I iterate I do not understand what to keep and what not to keep. I take more time than expected ending up thinking if this piece of work is worth putting out”.
Kalyani, Aspirant
Insights: A Call for Mentorship and Community in Design
User Persona: Understanding the Aspiring Designer
Value Proposition Canvas: Aligning Solutions to Designer Aspirations
Mapping the Experience: Tracing the Designer's Journey
Addressing the Feedback Gap: How Can We Make It More Impactful?
HOW MIGHT WE help product aspirants receive constructive feedback which can help with their case studies💡
Market Analysis: Where Current Platforms Fall Short
Dribble, Behance:
Primarily focuses on UI case studies.
Lacks a standardized method for feedback.
LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram:
People are more reachable on these platforms.
Typically, slow response times.
Time-consuming to establish connections.
Serves as an alternative method for getting a feedback.
Feedback from Industry Experts:
Often used to get more people to join their cohort or followers
The feedback is mostly overarching and not that actionable
ADPList:
Primarily for reviewing portfolios as a whole rather than detailed case studies.
Feedback is sometimes vague or unclear.
Feedback depends heavily on single conversations, as mentors are often busy and unavailable for follow-up sessions. This necessitates finding a new mentor for further guidance, complicating the process of systematically tracking and recording feedback.
Cohorts and Mentorship Programs:
Requires substantial time and commitment.
Not accessible on-demand, which restricts flexibility.
Due to the large number of students in each cohort, one-on-one sessions are limited and brief.
Additionally, mentorship programs can be quite expensive.
Introducing a Better Way: Streamlining the Feedback Process
Upload a new case study for review
Give a detailed explanation while requesting the review
Customize it to request the suitable reviewers
Receive the detailed feedback from the reviewer
The reviewer can highlight a particular section in the case study
Make an informed decision before sending the request review
Access to the status of your case study
Reviewers can see the review requests received by them
Rethinking the Norm: Crafting Standards for Design Reviews
Standardize the case study review system
A system that brings designers at different levels of career together to help each other.
Aspirants get to learn from seniors & peers through constructive feedback specifically on case studies
Peers & seniors get to make good use of their knowledge of the subject and practise leadership
Introducing a New Toolkit: Empowering Designers to Track, Enhance, and Finalize Their Case Studies
Upload Your Case Study: Begin by submitting your case study to the platform.
Publish for Review: Make your case study available to receive insights and evaluations.
Receive Detailed Feedback and Ratings: Obtain comprehensive reviews and ratings to understand how your work measures up.
Track Your Progress: Monitor your growth and improvements over time using the platform’s tracking features.
Access Curated Resources: Leverage a collection of carefully selected resources that can aid in further development of your skills and knowledge.
User's Role in the Feedback Ecosystem:
From Submission to Improvement
Users can get feedback for their case study
As a user, I want to upload my case study so that I can receive feedback on it
As a user, I want to request feedback(1-1 call, audio, video, detailed document) so that it helps me with iteration and identifying improvement areas
As a user, I want to get notified of every feedback so that I can keep a track of the comments received
As a user, I want to comment on other case studies so that I could share my thoughts
Review a case study & submit the review
As a user, I want to review the case study so that I could share my insights and help the aspirant to improvise
Submit the review
As a user, I want to submit my review through audio
As a user i want to submit my review through video
As a user, I want to submit my review through a detailed report
As a user, I want to submit my review through 1-1 call
Access curated resources
As a user, I want to get categorized references for my case study so that I can tailor my project according to the relevant domain
Aspirant’s Profile
As a user, I want to create my profile as an aspirant so that I can give some background information about myself
Reviewer Profile
As a user, I want to create my profile as a reviewer so that I can give some background information about myself
Track my growth
As a user, I want to see the status of my case studies so that I can gauge my progress (uploaded/requested for review/under review/complete comments/approved)
Feedback format
As a user, I want to standardize the feedback format so that it's relevant and holistic to the aspirant
From Ideas to Interfaces - Aspirant's view
Defining the Visual Language
Constraints of the Solution
How to encourage reviewers to give feedback?
How to ensure the quality of the feedback?
Features for Future Scope
Detailed subscription plans
1-1 calls as an add-on feature
Bookmarking the references
Discussion Forums amongst peers
Templates for beginners
Direct Messaging
Insights Gained: Key Learnings from the Project
Design is an iterative process, and it can be challenging to resist the urge to perfect every detail initially. Instead, we need to embrace rapid iterations and agile methodologies, allowing user feedback to guide our refinements.