Fixing the DDaT Capability Framework

Our users (primarily civil servants in other government departments) hated the DDaT (Digital, Data and Technology) Capability Framework. The framework was a comprehensive listing of all of the DDaT roles recognised by the Civil Service as the focus of efforts to improve its ability to deliver digital improvements.

 

At 450 pages, this online resource was hard to navigate, badly structured and hard to understand. 

 

Moreover, the team in charge of managing this information hated being associated with a product that caused so much bad feeling. And there had been challenges that meant that previous content designers had been blocked from making much-needed changes.

 

As the team’s senior content designer, I was tasked with finally fixing the framework.

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What I did

• I actively engaged in stakeholder management with the team, to help build trust and get support for my work.

• I analysed the existing pool of research and wrote a series of problem statements, outlining the challenges faced by users. I negotiated with the product manager to get sign-off on the top 5 usability problems. 

• I created a Google Data Studio dashboard to provide insight on how our users were currently navigating the site.

• I wrote a strategy summarising the problems that had to be addressed and outlining the approach I thought we should take. I then made a presentation to the team (including the DD). The DD signed off on the strategy paper.

• I designed 2 new prototypes, using Github.

• We carried out moderated usability tests, so we could observe how users interacted with and responded to the new prototypes. We involved a range of different users – civil servants working in DDaT Profession roles, civil servants outside the profession and people working in similar roles outside government. 

• I made iterations based on what we learned, and then tested the prototype again with our users. This is what I used as the basis of my conversion work.

• I converted 450 pages into 45 well structured and easy-to-navigate pages. Other improvements included a shorter wayfinding page, and better navigation to related content.

• I then gave presentations to our user groups at professional meetings, and wrote a blog summarising the improvements.

The results

The results were dramatic - on the day we launched the new Capability Framework, the bounce rate dropped from 78% to 13%. 

 

A week later, all of our engagement metrics were up - people were spending longer on the site and were navigating in the way we had expected. 

 

Our user base for this content expanded beyond the borders and we had feedback from them that this was now a useful resource.