BEAR
Department of the Interior’s (DOI) Business Enterprise Acquisition Reporting Application product for the day-to-day needs of the contracting acquisition staff.
Problem
Users lacked a way to organize their daily work and track progress toward their goals. The plan was to design a dashboard solution that gave them the ability to focus on their day‑to‑day tasks, and plan effectively as well as view their overall performance.
No central place to organize daily tasks.
Difficulty prioritizing what needed immediate attention.
Limited visibility into overall progress and performance.
Lack of structure to support goal‑setting and achievement.
Need for a clear, actionable format that motivates users without overwhelming them.
My Role
I was the lead product designer. I partnered with a frontend developer who had some UX experience, but the design responsibility was primarily mine.
Challenges
What started as a straightforward dashboard quickly turned into a much larger initiative. The scope expanded to include multiple views, complex graphical components, and a constant need to balance design priorities with technical realities. Without a dedicated product manager, I had to step into multiple roles to keep the project on track while navigating stakeholder expectations and tight timelines.
Scope creep turned a simple dashboard into a complex, multi‑view project.
No product manager, so I balanced design with facilitation and planning responsibilities.
Stakeholders lacked product planning experience, requiring me to educate and advocate for design thinking.
Tight timelines meant I had to clearly explain trade‑offs and keep the project moving.
Discovery & Research
The hierarchy made discovery difficult since managers made decisions but weren’t actual users. I had to find creative ways to gather insights. I built a strong relationship with the product owner, who became my go‑to contact. I held multiple sessions with her, reviewed customer feedback data collected through the application, and interviewed a small group of stakeholders to gather input and perspectives.
Solution
As the project expanded, consistency became harder to maintain. The most effective approach was to organize content into tabs based on user credentials. This gave individual users a clear, focused experience with a My Tasks tab for daily priorities and a My Performance tab for tracking progress. Managers had additional tabs designed specifically for team activities and performance.
Divided content into tabs based on user credentials for clarity and focus
Designed My Tasks with a card‑style interface showing daily priorities, announcements, and task progress at a glance.
Built My Performance to highlight quarterly goals, allow drill‑downs, and show completed items for motivation.
Kept the overall experience streamlined so users could stay organized and confident in their workflow.
Summary & Reflection
This project pushed me to adapt quickly and step into roles beyond design. It reinforced how critical communication is and showed me how much stakeholders value patience and clarity when navigating complex projects.
Learned to balance design with facilitation and product management responsibilities.
Strengthened adaptability by managing shifting priorities and project bloat.
Earned stakeholder appreciation for insights, education, and patience.
Reinforced that clear communication is the key to moving work forward.