BlueShark
Design Challenge
A busy e-commerce warehouse receives hundreds of orders every hour, creating a whirlwind of activity as staff work to keep up with demand. I had four hours to create a low-fidelity solution to this design challenge, showcasing my ability to ideate quickly, think systematically, and deliver a user-centered approach. The specific problem focused on bridging gaps in worker communication by designing an intuitive app that fostered real-time collaboration and resource sharing.
Impact
BlueShark won 2nd place and prize funding for solving a complex warehouse problem, with judges praising its clarity, scalability, and potential to streamline workflows and communication.
Role - UX Designer
Timeline -January 2024 (4 hours)
Tools - Figma, Figma Slides
Prompt
The warehouse runs nonstop, but communication was fragmented across pickers, packers, and shippers. Existing tools like Slack and Trello weren’t built for the fast pace of e-commerce, focusing on tasks or inventory rather than real-time, cross-department collaboration. This gap created an opportunity to design a simple, role-based system that integrated live updates and shared communication to reduce miscommunication and improve efficiency.
Research
In exploring the problem, I learned that the warehouse processed over 100 orders per hour across expedited, normal, and canceled workflows. Tablets were the most common devices on the warehouse floor, making them the natural context for design. Observations revealed that workers valued fast, clear communication tailored to their department tasks, as well as systems that minimized unnecessary complexity.
How might we...
Improve communication across pickers, packers and shippers?
Design for speed while maintaining clarity and role-specific functionality?
Ideation
The design direction for BlueShark was built on simplicity and flexibility. I established a calming blue-and-white palette to reduce cognitive load and paired it with standardized interface elements such as buttons, cards, and modals to ensure consistency across screens. The overall structure centered on a dashboard that clearly presented updates while providing role-specific tools for each department.
Design
Solution
Reflection
The success of this project lay in its ability to address fragmented communication through a system that combined real-time updates with role-based messaging, offering a solution that felt both practical and scalable. Working under intense time constraints also brought out the best in my team, as we quickly aligned on priorities and divided responsibilities to build a cohesive product in a matter of hours.
This project taught me how to approach complex, multi-factor problems with limited time, forcing me to prioritize the most impactful features instead of trying to design for every scenario. I also gained valuable experience designing for non-traditional, high-pressure environments, which challenged me to think differently than in consumer-facing projects.
Emily Jennett