🔒 Client Confidential: Name and logo of the app have been modified or redacted to ensure compliance with NDA agreements
Enable citizens to apply for benefit via self-service portal
Hats Worn
Lead UI Designer • Design Strategist
Client
Deloitte
Collaborators
UI/UX Designers, UX Copywriter, Manager
Timeline
1.5 years
Overview
During the COVID-19 pandemic, a state government agency faced a critical challenge: enabling citizens to apply for and manage benefits despite restrictions on in-person interactions with county caseworkers. As the lead designer at Deloitte, I spearheaded the creation of a self-service portal to simplify the application process, making it accessible and easy to use while fostering rapid adoption among the community.
Deliverable
Design a user-friendly, self-service platform that allows citizens to apply for benefits independently, reducing dependency on in-person support. The solution needed to address challenges related to accessibility, complex terminology, and inconsistent visual design while ensuring ADA compliance and building trust through transparent communication.
Timeline
Making Sense of the Work
Where Do We Begin?
At the start of the project, we needed to gain a deeper understanding of the problem space and the diverse needs of citizens applying for benefits. Our goal was to uncover pain points, build empathy, and identify opportunities for improvement. To kick off the process, we set up three key starting points:
Research and Understanding
The team conducted field research to understand the existing portal experience and challenges faced by citizens. This involved user interviews, stakeholder discussions, and heuristic evaluations to identify pain points.
Experience Design
Defining the design foundation through ideation sessions, establishing a visual direction that resonated with users. We created mood boards and visual explorations to ensure the interface felt approachable and trustworthy.
Accessibility and Consistency
To maintain visual consistency and meet accessibility standards, I led the creation of a design system, while ensuring accessibility compliance (WCAG 2.1) and adaptability across multiple languages and platforms.
Recognizing Project Constraints
Our project faced several challenges that shaped our approach and decision-making. Integrating modern UI components with legacy systems proved complex and time-consuming. Balancing ADA compliance with a clean, modern design required careful consideration. We also needed to address the diverse needs of users with varying levels of digital literacy and access, including rural residents and non-native English speakers. Additionally, coordinating with multiple stakeholders—the client, onsite teams, designers, and engineers—demanded extensive alignment to maintain a unified vision.
How might we design a self-service platform that enables citizens to easily apply for and manage benefits online while reducing reliance on in-person support and ensuring accessibility for diverse users?
Design Process
Understand The Territory
To understand the project territory, we adopted a user-centered design approach, viewing the project as a system of interconnected experiences that needed to be seamless and intuitive. By researching the needs of various user groups, including those who are not tech savvy, we identified key pain points and contextual elements to guide our design. We also reviewed existing design systems and accessibility standards, ensuring our approach towards creating the design system was aligned with ADA compliance and scalable for future needs. Embracing iterative prototyping, we explored design solutions and refined our ideas based on real user feedback.
Discover, Co-Design, Reframe
The Challenge
When COVID-19 restricted in-person interactions with county workers, citizens needed a new way to apply for critical benefits. The existing systems were characterized by:
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Rigid and monotonous structure
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Poor information hierarchy
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Confusing terminology and processes
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Lack of mobile access
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No save functionality
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Inconsistent notification system
The Framework
Research Framework
The team conducted primary research with state officials, community organizations, and citizens to understand user challenges. Secondary research helped us review best practices and accessibility standards to guide our design.
Collaborative Design
We worked closely with stakeholders and developers, using co-design calls to align on goals. Prototypes were iterated based on feedback to ensure usability and accessibility.
Iterative Refinement
User testing helped validate our design decisions, which were continuously refined based on feedback. We focused on making the portal intuitive, accessible, and user-friendly for our diverse users.
User Persona Spectrum
We identified 10 distinct user groups representing the diversity of benefit applicants. Mentioning some of them below:
Pen and Paper Client
Limited digital literacy and technical access
About Me
I value the personal touch when I manage my benefits. Ideally, all my interactions would be person-to-person. If I can't make it to the office, I will call over the phone to get my questions answered by a human. It is simpler for me to do it this way since I am not confident using the computer. Plus, I don't really trust providing my secure information, like social security number, over the Internet; I prefer to deliver this in person.
Pain Points
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I had difficulties determining if I was eligible for benefits and I received conflicting information from the portal. I decided to just go to the county to determine if I should apply.
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There is a lack of personal connection during the application process at the county and on the website. I want to be able to connect with a real person so they can understand my situation.
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I am uncomfortable sharing certain personal details with the government. I am also concerned that my information could be stolen.
Non-Native English Client
Language barriers
About Me
My limited English language skills make it challenging to understand where to click on the portal to accomplish what I need to do. I have very little knowledge of how benefits work and there is so much benefit lingo that I do not understand. The way the questions are asked, even after they are translated, do not make much sense to me. I am also very fearful that giving my personal information to the state and receiving benefits may affect my family's citizenship status. There is a lot of conflicting information that I hear from my friends and community members regarding benefit programs and it is hard for me to know what is true.
Pain Points
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The eligibility rules for benefits don't make sense to me. I'm not sure what information I need to provide, and I wish I would have known up front that I would need my green card for five years to qualify.
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I have a hard time understanding the Spanish translations on the portal. The language about certain programs are particularly confusing to me because I'm not familiar with how it works. There are many technical terms that do not translate.
New Client
First-time applicants with no prior experience
About Me
As someone with little benefit knowledge and experience, there is an overwhelming amount of information to learn. Understanding which benefits I may qualify for and the different eligibility guidelines and requirements is a daunting task. I don't want to waste my time applying for things I do not qualify for, but I also do not want to miss out. As a first-time user, the way the questions are worded and what information I am being asked to input is very unclear. My situation doesn't seem to fit into the fields, and I don't understand why most of these questions are being asked.
Pain Points
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The descriptions of benefit programs is unclear. There are no simple guidelines to know if I may be eligible or if I am way off.
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Understanding what I need to do on the portal is difficult. Explanations are wordy, and the language is confusing. I am overwhelmed by the amount of content.
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My situation is unique and does not clearly fit into the question format on the portal. There is no opportunity to explain myself.
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There are many technical terms (gross income, liquid assets, etc.) that are difficult to understand.
To sum it up, these were the key insights:
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Eligibility Confusion: Users struggled to understand specific criteria, creating fear and uncertainty
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Terminology Barriers: Program-specific language created obstacles to accurate application completion
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Deadline Management: Balancing multiple benefit timelines led to missed deadlines and benefit loss
Visual Design POV
*To ensure compliance with NDA agreements, I have not included the design system documentation. If interested, feel free to reach out!
Design Foundation
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Define tone of voice and visual direction
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Create mood boards to establish design principles
Design System Development
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Establish consistent component library
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Streamline collaboration between designers and developers
User Testing & Iteration
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Conduct usability and accessibility testing
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Incorporate feedback to refine the experience
Guiding Principles
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Utility: Providing effective tools in one place
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Simplicity: Creating intuitive interactions
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Transparency: Building trust in the system
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Empathy: Designing for users' unique circumstances
Key attributes
📱 Responsive, Mobile-First Design
From the heuristic analysis, the decision was made to make the portal a mobile-first platform, meaning handheld devices were at the forefront of both strategy and implementation of the design which led to a step towards responsive design. The users now could access the portal through their mobile as well as desktop devices.
↪️ Progressive Disclosure
As the portal had a lot of applications and processes to go through, progressive disclosure was introduced in the design in order to display advanced functionalities as the user interacts with the interface. This helped to reduce clutter, confusion, and cognitive workload.
This flow is asking user if they are new user, guest user or returning to finish their application
This flow is asking user basic questions to determine which programs they require and are eligible for
This flow is asking user if they know which benefit to apply for or if they require help in finding benefits for their usecase
👁️🗨️ Visual Communication System
As the terminology in the existing portal was very confusing to the users, the suggestion to use iconography and illustration was made. The use of visual cues, to support information displayed on the screen, instead of long text ensured that the website is comprehensible and relatable.
Design Implementation
The final solution was a mobile-first, responsive self-serve portal that allowed citizens to apply for and manage their benefits with ease. Key features included simplified navigation, iconography for accessibility, and a streamlined application process.
Homepage on mobile and desktop platforms
Registration module for the citizens to apply for their benefits
Benefit explorer module for the citizens to understand which benefits they qualify for
Impact Measurement
The true impact of our redesign extended far beyond aesthetics - it transformed how citizens accessed vital support during benefit application.
| ONE
Increased Access to Benefits
Our new portal welcomed over 20,000 new accounts in its first month alone—a 30% increase over the monthly average.
This meant thousands of families who previously struggled with in-person visits could now access food assistance, healthcare, and financial support during the height of the pandemic.
| THREE
Reducing Anxiety and Frustration
The 70% reduction in support calls translated directly to less citizen stress and frustration.
County workers shared that conversations shifted from troubleshooting basic portal functions to providing meaningful assistance with complex cases.
| TWO
Breaking Down the Digital Divide
The 75% mobile adoption rate among new users represented a fundamental shift in accessibility.
This mobile-first approach ensured that citizens without computers weren't left behind.
| FOUR
Building Trust in Government Services
Perhaps most significantly, the 83% reduction in account-related issues demonstrated that citizens were successfully navigating the system independently.
They see the portal as a reliable tool that works for them when they need it most.
Summary of My Contributions
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Led requirements gathering sessions with stakeholders, ensuring unified user experiences while meeting diverse program requirements.
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Created responsive interfaces and built interactive prototypes for benefits portal across desktop and mobile platforms, improving application completion rates and reducing user support requests.
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Established a design system for government service interfaces, improving development efficiency, ensuring ADA compliance and compliance with state digital service standards.
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Provided design direction across multiple work streams during platform modernization, maintained quality through transitions, and elevated user experience standards for public service applications.
Lessons Learned
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One of the key lessons learned was the importance of continuous user feedback throughout the design process. Early-stage testing provided valuable insights that helped shape the final product.
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Additionally, collaborating with diverse stakeholders, including those with different technical backgrounds, led to a more inclusive and effective design.
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Personally, I grew in my ability to manage complex stakeholder relationships and navigate constraints to deliver a solution that truly met users’ needs.