About the project
Skilltech is a utility contractor delivering metering and field support service to some of the largest gas, electricity and water companies in Australia, such as Essential Energy, SA Water and Western Power. These significant partnerships meant handling substantial quantities of meter reading data to be processed, as well as managing the employee data of a sizeable workforce.
I was brought on to rebuild their web-based platform and customer portal that had been in use for many years, using .net with Bootstrap styling. Given the choice to use whichever technologies I wanted, I decided to use this opportunity to teach myself the React framework. This transition brought several advantages, including improved performance, enhanced user experience, and easier maintenance. By modernizing the technology stack, I ensured the application could meet current and future business needs efficiently.
In addition to rebuilding the web application, I undertook a complete user experience overhaul. This involved analyzing and understanding user requirements and pain points, and redesigning the application's interface to provide a more intuitive and enjoyable user experience. By focusing on usability and accessibility, I was able to enhance the overall satisfaction and engagement of the application's users.
The original system was very dated, clunky and visually unattractive.
My brief was to design and develop a new, bespoke software suite to improve the processes of the business.
Development Process
In this role, I was the sole developer, meaning I was to take on full accountability for the project. I was my own designer, front-end and back-end developer, quality-assurance, and support technician. After taking time to understand the technical side of this multifaceted business, I begun the redesign, creating a contemporary brand guideline and new visual feel for each existing interaction.
Using the Sketch application, I turned the user stories I had formulated into wireframes and mockups to be approved by the product owners before I would scope out how much time each new system segment needed. I built the entire user interface from scratch, using React to create reusable components that would reflect a consistency through the system, while ensuring no duplicate code logic. I also implemented all of my own APIs through Express, a Node.js web application framework.
The new timesheet UI.
Despite working within my own team, I put a lot of emphasis on communication with other departments within the company, such as the Data Analysts, whom I was able to work closely with due to my well- established experience with SQL and database architecture. Additionally, I spent time with many Admin and Operation managers - the system’s intended end users - to better gauge how their typical protocols and processes worked. At each iteration of the project, I took note of all the stakeholders’ expectations, and tried to recreate all the familiar functionality of the older application, but this time with an intuitive interface and seamless flow for a system that was actually enjoyable to use.