Stakeholder maps for navigating complex organizations

Industry

CRM

SaaS

Country

Australia 🇦🇺

Timeline

Sep-Dec 2022

Platform

Mobile app

Web app

Team

Flutter developers

Project manager

UX Researcher

Product designer (my role)

Stringboard is a cutting-edge app that aims to change the way businesses approach sales by simplifying complex networking and visualizing vital relationships inside teams and organizations.

About

Stringboard is a tool that assists sales teams in navigating complex networks, managing influential individuals, keeping track of relationships, and understanding office politics.

By providing interactive visual maps of stakeholders, it enables teams to close high-value business sales deals with greater success and efficiency.

Challenges

Questions we had along the way:

How can we improve the functionality of the current app?
How might the sales team initially respond to the incorporation of a new app like Stringboard into their workflow?
What potential technical challenges could arise during the implementation and integration?
How can we ensure a smooth learning curve for sales team to use Stringboard proficiently?

✦ Process ✦

UX Review

We started by examining the current mobile app screens and noted a number of opportunities for improvement. The main goals were to improve the user interface and simplify the navigating process. We also tackled with certain performance problems and bug fixes.

UI Design

Then we defined components and styles and meticulously crafted the designs for both the web and mobile application. With attention to detail, we created user-friendly and visually appealing interface.

Wireframes

Since we were improving the existing app, we went straight to high-fidelity wireframes. The screens for the web and mobile applications were made simultaneously.

Landing page

The last task was to design a captivating landing page. By effectively communicating Stringboard's unique features and benefits and with clean design, it has the potential to boost sales.

Profiles

The user can enter various information for each individual. From fundamental details like their job position and LinkedIn profile, to their attitude, influence, intels, motivation, and relationships, to the groups and events they participate in, and strategies and things to do regarding that person.

Influence

The 2 most important things for the users about a person are their attitude and influence. Users should quickly scan these information pieces. A person with a "Blocker" attitude label could be a threat to the business and sales. “Champion”, on the other hand, could be our ally.

Color-coding these labels can help users quickly identify the person's potential impact, streamlining decision-making processes.

Another key component is the person's impact, which allows the user to determine how influential that person is in the decision-making process. Card size corresponds to the three levels of influence (big, medium, and small).

Relationship

Users have the option to designate the nature of relationships between individuals based on collected data. Options are "friendly", "unfriendly", "neutral", or "unknown". This feature assists in event planning and conflict prevention.

The connections between people are visually represented by strings of different colors, each color corresponding to a type of relationship.

Intels

Intels are information or insights about person. For example, users can add what are their hobbies, what they like/dislike, or any other personal details that may be interesting.

By having a centralized database of information, users can effectively manage their relationships and interactions with each person, making informed decisions and taking appropriate actions based on the available data.

Impact

Stringboard has the potential to revolutionize the sales process. The concept of using interactive visual stakeholder maps to navigate complex buying organizations, manage influencers, and understand office politics is innovative and addresses critical challenges faced in enterprise sales.

Usability testing and user feedback are needed to validate its impact, but based on its concept and features, Stringboard shows promising potential for transforming the way enterprise sales deals are closed.

Key learnings

Sales process is very complex. Especially in the enterprise organizations, where there are numerous stakeholders and extensive decision-making process. Understanding the dynamics of office politics and leveraging hidden influence are crucial for success.
Maps are powerful tools for managing relationships and visualizing interactions. Traditional CRM systems may not capture the vital data needed to close business sales deals. That involves recognizing the importance of building genuine relationships, understanding various customer journeys and gaining deep trust.