# Date the work was done
May 2021
# Overview
# Research goals and objectives
- Understand whether users see the value of the service we are proposing to provide.
- Evaluate whether the service would alleviate any existing pain points.
- Evaluate whether the design of the task list works for users, including examples of individual sections.
# Research participants
- We ran one-to-one research sessions with five project leads from different regions, with different levels of experience in managing academy conversion projects.
- The sessions were for concept testing rather than usability testing. Users viewed the prototype on their screens and spoke about how they would use it.
# Do users see value in the service concept?
# Positive feedback
- There was positive feedback about the overall concept.
- Users could see value in the service for managing time and projects.
- Users thought the service would reduce laborious tasks.
- Users thought the tool could help them save time.
# We need to consider
Pre-populated data will be helpful but won’t cover everything.
# user concerns
- Users wanted to know how this would work with other things like TRAMS and trackers.
- Users don’t want lots of different tools and want joined up systems.
- A couple of users were concerned about potential duplication.
- One user was concerned about how restrictive the system would be.
- One user didn’t want to edit HTB papers in an online system.
- One user was concerned that deadlines should be realistic.
- Experienced and novice users might have different needs.
“What you wouldn’t want to do is to have this and the Governance Tracker…running independently…then you are having to align lots of dates…” [P10]
“I’m worried that this [The Task List] might be restrictive because I’m used to writing my templates in Word” [P13]
# Task list design
# Usability
- The application form was one of the first things users wanted to see.
- A couple of users went to the project dates to amend the HTB date.
- Some users struggled to find the link to preview the HTB papers.
- Users wanted to be able to make amendments.
# Managing tasks
- Some users were positive about the step-by-step order.
- Users seemed positive about the task list helping to plan tasks.
# Data
- A couple of users were unsure about whether they needed to add data or not.
- Pre-populated data would be useful.
- One user wanted SCAP (school capacity for local authorities) data and queried the two performance sections.
- One user shared expectations of how the sponsor template would be pre-populated with certain data.
"One of the things that I found for the conversions in my early days here… is just getting that list almost, what do I need to do and in which order.“ [P10]
"I think it’s very logical, it’s lovely [the whole prototype]“ [P11]
# Broader insights
- Users appear to have some anxiety about the introduction of new systems. This is because they already use a number of different systems and can have barriers doing so effectively (lack of training, getting accounts, potential duplication of tasks).
- Organising and prioritising work can be difficult for users who work on different types of projects. Users could see some potential value in the tool for helping them to do this.
- Users can find getting the right guidance at the right time hard due to the amount available. Contextual help may be an effective way to do this.