New account portal Usability test

Project name

Usability test and advice for the new accounts portal

Project description

The group Collaboration, Devices and Applications (CDA) in CERN IT Department provides a big number of services which are very visible to the end-user, under-going continuous development,while ensuring top quality availability and support.

The Authentication/Authorisation development team wishes to improve the new version of the web portal, via which users can manage their accounts. 
 

This project will measure user reaction and make usability recommendations to the development team via the following method:

  1. Talk to the development team to get familiar with the application.
  2. Examine the current portal (see References' section) and identify functional views and navigation paths to keep or avoid.
  3. Parse functionality requests, if any, submitted by users so far.
  4. Take a random sample of users to measure End User Experience with the new portal.
  5. Set-up a simple screen recording - face recording - voice recording session for observations' post-processing, (see here a list of tools) or use loop11 or Zoom for moderated tests.
  6. Foresee tests of the new views, specifically for mobile devices and observe the testers' gestures on the smartphone screen.
  7. Make a list of issues and proposals for improvement, based on what this usability exercise revealed.
  8. Use an Open Source mock-up and image editing tool (e.g. Inkscape) to suggest more functional views and/or navigation paths.
  9. Discuss the list with the developers, suggest concrete steps and finalise it with their commitment.
  10. Prepare a summary report, containing a sine-qua-non and a nice-to-have part, based on what this usability exercise revealed.
  11. Evaluate the relevant documentation chapters for clarity and completeness.
 

Output of the project

 
All tests, analysis and recommendations uploaded on https://indico.cern.ch/event/978230/
 

Required skills

Expertise in web usability, optimal web navigation patterns, organisational and reporting skills, video recording and editing skills.
Very good english (B2 CEFR level).
Project can start a.s.a.p, given the status of the development process. Minimum duration is 1 month. Maximum is 6 months. This type of Internship contract offers 1.500 CHF/month. 50% work (2 days per week and 3 days per week the following week) is possible.
Please contact Maria.Dimou@cern.ch, with CV, recommendation letters and university grades.

Learning experience

Thanks to the vast variety of users who have CERN computer accounts and their very different technical profiles, the student will gain technically (set-up of the process and analysis of the results) and organisationally (emails, newdles, web pages, reports, contact with the developers).

Project duration

1 month

Project area

Data Analytics Learning

Contact for further details

Maria Dimou

References

  1. Old accounts management portal (currently in use - to be phased out): https://account.cern.ch/account

  2. New accounts management portal (to test for usability and improvement): https://users-portal.web.cern.ch

  1. Contacts:
    1. Maria Dimou <maria.dimou@cern.ch> for project planning.
    2. Hannah Short <hannah.short@cern.ch> for accounts portal internals.
  2. Previous reports from usability evaluation exercises (CERN internal access only):
    1. First report about the Indico Room booking module (with no help by external experts) HERE. Check notes and minutes on the event.
    2. Report about the CDA Jekyll site HERE
    3. Report about the Indico Room booking module HERE
    4. Report using card sorting for CERN Library applications HERE
    5. Report from the Invenio RDM Usability study HERE.
    6. Report from the Indico Peer Review and Edit Usability study HERE.
    7. Older Indico usability reports HERE.
  3. Mira Buzanszky in smartrecruiters (accessibile via smartrecruiters.web.cern.ch, access restricted).

CERN group

IT-CDA

Status

Accomplished Submitted by Maria Dimou on Tuesday, November 3, 2020 - 12:35.
Student info
Student name

Mira Buzanszky

University

Haute Ecole de gestion de Genève - Filière Information documentaire - Campus de Battelle

CERN supervisor

Maria Fava

Thesis
Thesis type
Bachelor
Project started 23 Nov 2020
Project finished 15 Dec 2020
Defence status
other
Tuesday, November 3, 2020 - 12:35