Business challenge
Dive was a modular call-center platform used by banks, insurers and utility providers across Central Europe. It had been in production since 2018 and offered more than 30 modules, but customers struggled with steep onboarding, fragmented workflows and an outdated interface. Agents often had to dig through hidden settings, change their status manually and jump between multiple screens just to create a single ticket.
New agents needed months to become productive, which slowed down the whole team. The support team also faced a heavy load of UI-related tickets, while supervisors lacked clear visibility into team performance and SLAs. The product needed a simpler, more consistent interface. Our goal was to help agents finish tasks faster, reduce UI support tickets and give managers better real-time visibility into the team.
If we strip the product down to what people actually use and give them a guided, consistent experience, we'll dramatically cut onboarding friction and boost productivity.
M., Product Manager, Client
Understanding the User
Research Approach
I ran a mixed-methods research study with 139 agents and admins who filled in a survey, interviewed 9 people in depth, and ran 4 journey mapping workshops with users. The goal was simple: understand where the system slows them down and what they actually need every day.
Key User Groups
Petar
Agent
- 80% of users
- 30 y.o., 2 years of experience
- Goal
- Solve customer problems quickly without system friction
- Key Pain
- Too many fields, I don't know what is important
Ana
Supervisor
- 20% of users
- 25 y.o., 4 years of experience
- Goal
- Configure system and monitor team efficiently
- Key Pain
- I do not understand the system logic
Top 4 Insights from Research
- Too much jumping between screens
- Agents have to switch between 5+ modules for one task
- Hard to learn without help
- After months I noticed the copy option — feature discovery fail
- Manual work everywhere
- Agents manually enter data the system already has
- No real-time visibility
- Supervisors can't see who needs help NOW
User Journey Maps
We mapped 4 critical workflows to identify friction points and opportunities.
1. Inbound Communication Flow
Petar, Agent: From receiving call to closing ticket
- Main problems
-
- Agent forgets to change status manually
- No customer context when the call arrives
- Must search across 5+ screens during an active call
- What we can improve
-
- Auto-update agent status based on activity
- Show unified customer view with history, open tickets, and recent communication
- Add a contextual knowledge base inside the call interface
2. Supervision and System Management
Ana, Admin: From initial setup to performance analysis
- Main problems
-
- Settings scattered across modules without clear connections
- Cannot see which agents need help in real-time
- Must wait for vendor support for basic changes
- What we can improve
-
- Create unified configuration hub where all related settings live together
- Build real-time monitoring dashboard with alerts
- Add templates and cloning for quick setup
3. Ticket Management
Petar, Agent: From ticket creation to resolution
- Main problems
-
- Not sure which fields are required vs optional
- Have to manually enter data that's already in the communication
- Afraid of missing critical information
- What we can improve
-
- Auto-populate ticket fields from communication context
- Add smart categorization based on conversation content
- Show completion checklist so agents know they're done
4. Agent Help Request and Supervisor Response
Petar and Ana: From problem recognition to resolution with learning
- Main problems
-
- No integrated 'Request Help' button in the interface
- Supervisor doesn't see the request in real-time
- Agent has to explain the context all over again
- What we can improve
-
- Add contextual help button that shares current screen and ticket info
- Send priority alerts to supervisors when agents need help
- Enable shared view mode so supervisor sees what agent sees
View detailed journey maps with all phases
User Empathy: Voice of Users
Petar, Agent
"When first I saw these fields, that was like: what I am going to do? It takes time for me to fill in all these fields. My main job is to help clients."
Main conflict
- Petar wants to help customers quickly, but the system is too complex and slows him down
- He needs clear guidance, but the interface does not explain what to do next
- Fears supervisor will judge delays
Ana, Supervisor
"There are some parts that could be easier to understand. It is not user friendly. Sometimes we do not understand what possibly means what."
Main conflict
- The system covers almost all needs, but it still takes months to discover some basic features.
- She wants to react to agents quickly, yet she has to switch between several programs all the time.
- She would like to change settings on her own, but often has to wait for vendor support.
Affinity Diagram: Pattern Analysis
Research notes were synthesized into 4 primary action clusters.
1. Too many screens and unclear structure
Users have to jump between modules to finish one task. Settings are scattered, and it's not obvious how modules depend on each other.
What we did
- Grouped related functions by real user tasks, not by technical structure
- Created a unified configuration hub where all related settings live together
- Added short tooltips that explain what each setting affects
- Reduced the number of clicks to key actions like ticket creation and status change
Result: 45% faster task completion.
2. Too much manual work
Agents have to re-enter data that already exists in the system. Admins recreate similar configurations again and again.
What we did
- Built smart search with auto-fill from customer context
- Added templates and cloning for configurations
- Created completion checklist so agents know they're done
- Enabled bulk operations for common admin tasks
3. Hard to learn without help
The system has lots of features, but new users take months to learn them. Even experienced users discover important features by accident.
What we did
- Created step-by-step wizards for key tasks like first call and ticket creation
- Added contextual tooltips that explain why each setting matters
- Built searchable help center inside the app
- Added discovery hints when users do things manually that could be automated
4. No real-time visibility
Agents can't see queue status or their own stats. Supervisors piece together the picture from different modules, which delays responses.
What we did
- Built role-based dashboards: Agent Home shows my queue and tickets, Supervisor Home shows team KPIs and alerts
- Added persistent status bar that shows agent availability and updates automatically
- Created unified view that combines communication, ticket, and customer history on one screen
- Implemented priority notifications for supervisors when agents need help or SLA is at risk
View full affinity diagram with research notes
Research Insights
- System is powerful but hard to use
- The system supports most of what agents and supervisors need, but it became too complex over time. We decided to keep the most important options visible and hide advanced settings behind simple, step-by-step screens.
- Audiences with different needs
- Agents need fast, guided flows under time pressure; admins need full control and clarity of the system model. Adapt UI depth and defaults by role, permissions and experience.
- Teams work in real time under pressuret
- Both roles work in a live, high-pressure environment. Even a small delay can affect customer experience and KPIs. To help them, we added clear signals about queues, agent availability and alerts so they do not need to open extra screens.
- Hard to learn and share best practices
- Most best practices live in people's heads, not in the interface. We needed to add tips and in-product guidance so new agents can learn faster and rely less on their colleagues.
Our plan
Quick wins
0-6 months- Add tooltips and contextual help in key flows
- Create guided flows for inbound calls and ticket creation
- Redesign agent and supervisor dashboards with real-time data
Medium-term
6-12 months- Smart form auto-fill and status automation
- Templates and cloning for complex configurations
- Visualize connections between skills, tickets, and IVR
Long-term
12+ months- Explore predictive analytics for queues and staffing
- Personalized training based on agent performance
- Improve mobile access for supervisors
What happened
Next- We ran usability tests with agents and admins on prototypes that addressed the top pain points
- Aligned with product and operations leaders on impact vs. feasibility
- Started shipping in cycles, beginning with high-impact items like contextual help, quick-start flows, and unified dashboards
- Established baselines for handle time, time-to-proficiency, configuration accuracy, and agent satisfaction
Design challenge
The main challenge was to unify the interface across 30+ modules without breaking existing integrations. We had to figure out which modules agents actually use every day, simplify onboarding, and create a clear design system that would work for the whole product family.
We also needed to translate both quantitative survey data and qualitative journey maps into concrete UI patterns and roadmap items. The tricky part was designing for two very different audiences: agents who need fast, guided flows under time pressure, and admins who need full control and transparency of how the system works.
Story
I took part as the UX researcher, designing and carrying out a mixed-methods study that combined a questionnaire answered by 139 respondents, 9 in-depth user interviews and 4 customer-journey maps. The research identified the 7 modules that agents used most frequently and highlighted the biggest sources of friction in the existing workflow. Most users were young, tech-savvy and relied heavily on a handful of modules — yet the UI forced them through unnecessary theme tweaks, manual status changes and disjointed ticket creation.
I translated the research findings into a clear product roadmap, prioritising the seven high-impact modules for the MVP. The components I created were added to the shared React library, making them instantly reusable across the entire Dive suite.
Supervisors received a unified dashboard that displays real-time KPIs — average handling time, queue length, escalation count — and lets them drill down to any agent or ticket with a single click. A robust notification engine pushes alerts for status changes, SLA breaches and escalations, all configurable per role.
Close teamwork ensured that the design intent was accurately implemented in code and that the design system was adopted consistently.
Results *
- 290s
- Average Handling Time
- 33s
- Ticket creation
- 22d
- Onboarding time
- 55%
- Less UI support tickets
* All since 2019.
By using real user data to guide product priorities and building a clear, component-based interface, the Dive platform changed from a complex group of modules into a simple, user-focused call-center solution ready for the future of customer service. The clear improvements in onboarding time, support effort and management insight lead to higher agent productivity and lower costs for Dive's business clients.
Appendix
Research Methodology
- 9 in-depth interviews (6 agents, 3 admins)
- 139 survey responses
- 4 journey mapping workshops
Group of Personas
Call Center Agents
The main user group is frontline call center agents who handle incoming and outgoing customer communication. They work both remotely and from offices in Croatia and make up about 80% of all users. Their daily tasks include answering customer questions, creating and updating tickets and using multiple channels such as phone, email and chat. Most agents have higher education, 1–3 years of experience and an intermediate level of IT skills focused on everyday tools.
Call Center Administrators/Supervisors
The second group includes administrators and supervisors. They configure the system, monitor agent performance and keep operations running smoothly. This group represents about 20% of users and usually has 3–5 years of experience and advanced education. They are confident with IT tools, including presentations, conference calls and complex software. Their role combines technical configuration work with team leadership.
Persona 1
Petar is motivated by career growth and the feeling that he really helps customers. Financial stability matters to him, but he is just as driven by learning new skills and moving into a supervisor role. He wants to know the system well enough to support and coach new agents.
Petar is communicative and proactive and he is not afraid of difficult tasks. He prefers to speak in his native language and values efficiency in his work. He approaches problems step by step and tries to give each customer a clear and complete answer. At the same time he feels strong pressure to work fast, keep quality high and deal with a complex interface. When the system does not explain what to do next, he quickly becomes frustrated.
- Petar
- Agent
- 30 years old, Croatia
- Primary Goal
- Promptly solve customer problems while maintaining high service quality standards.
- 2 years in call center operations
- Higher Education
- Representative of 80% of system users (agent role)
- Full-time, hybrid work environment
- IT Proficiency level: intermediate
- Desktop workstation, smartphone
- Actively uses smartphones, Smart TV and internet technologies for both work and personal use
- 30% of users in this role work from mobile/tablet
- Professional Goals
-
- Advance to admin/supervisor position within 2-3 years
- Improve communication and decision-making skills
- Master the Dive system comprehensively
- Earn competitive compensation
- Quote
- Sometimes I want to know what is the average time for opening tickets. It takes time for me to fill in all these fields. My main job is to help clients. I use notes usually. I need to see clients information about products and services that they have in use.
Pain points
- Time pressure
- Must juggle multiple information sources (customer data, ticket history, scripts) while on active calls, creating anxiety about response time
- Steep learning curve
- The interface complexity makes it difficult to understand proper workflows initially
- Performance anxiety
- Concerns about supervisor evaluation and meeting metrics are amplified by system inefficiencies, such as fragmented information spread across multiple screens and excessive clicking
- Limited system guidance
- The application doesn't provide contextual help or suggest next steps, forcing agents to rely on memory and supervisor support
Typical operations in Dive
- Inbound communication handling
- Receives customer calls/emails, accesses customer history, resolves issues and creates/updates tickets as needed
- Ticket management
- Creates new tickets, updates existing tickets with customer communication details, assigns tickets to appropriate categories
- Supervisor collaboration
- Requests assistance from supervisors for complex issues, communicates through internal chat
- Knowledge base usage
- References scripts, FAQs and product information during customer interactions
UX goals summary for Petar
- Quickly receive all needed information about callers
- Know actual information about rush hours and status online
- Create ticket during call
- See both call and ticket statuses
- Receive notifications in time
- Find critical info quickly
Persona 2
Ana is communicative, proactive and has strong leadership skills. She likes to see clear results from her work, such as better team productivity and higher customer satisfaction. Career growth is important to her and she aims for senior operations or management roles. She also enjoys teaching agents and feels successful when they improve and become more confident.
Ana is detail-oriented and takes responsibility for both system setup and team performance. She wants to understand the system well enough to change configurations on her own without always asking vendor support. In her daily work she monitors dashboards, checks reports and supports agents with complex cases. At the same time, she often feels that the system logic is unclear, settings are scattered and it is easy to miss important information. This creates extra stress, especially when agents need quick help during live calls.
- Ana
- Supervisor
- 25 years old, Croatia
- Primary Goal
- Ensure agents and the system work correctly together, maximizing operational efficiency and service quality.
- 4 years in call center management and administration
- Higher Education + specialized training
- Representative of 20% of system users (admin/supervisor role)
- Full-time, dual roles of administrator and supervisor
- IT Proficiency level: advanced
- Desktop workstation, multiple monitors for dashboard viewing, tablet for mobile supervision
- Actively uses smartphones, Smart TV, internet technologies, conference calling platforms and presentation software
- 30% of time spent on mobile supervision
- Professional Goals
-
- Grow into a senior administrator or operations manager role
- Improve team productivity with clear, measurable results
- Gain deep system knowledge to configure settings independently
- Mentor agents effectively and shorten their onboarding time
- Create useful reports that clearly show team performance
- Quote
- There are some parts that could be easier to do and understand. The system is not very user-friendly, and sometimes we do not understand what certain options mean. The system covers almost all of my needs, but I still spend a lot of time supervising dashboards and working with CPM, Phone, Email and other modules. This is what I usually do every day.
Pain points
- System complexity
- Important features are hard to find, which slows down daily work.
- Unclear system logic
- It is not obvious how modules and settings depend on each other.
- Fragmented configuration
- Settings live in many places, so setup takes time and mistakes are common.
- Limited real-time visibility
- Supervisors cannot always see agent status and help requests in real-time.
- Multi-program juggling
- They have to switch between several programs and dashboards, which makes it easy to miss important details.
- Dependency on vendor support
- They often wait a long time for vendor support to change settings or fix issues.
Typical operations in Dive
- System configuration
- Creates and manages skill groups, ticket groups, IVR settings and user permissions
- Agent supervision
- Monitors agent activity in real-time, responds to assistance requests, evaluates communication quality
- Performance reporting
- Generates reports on agent productivity, communication statistics and system performance for management review
- Training and support
- Reviews agent workflows, provides guidance on complex cases, approves emails and sensitive communications
- Dashboard customization
- Configures custom dashboards with relevant gadgets to monitor specific aspects of operations
UX goals summary for Ana
- Access all related settings in one centralized location with clear flow connections
- View all important KPIs and statistics on a single comprehensive dashboard
- See contextual tooltips explaining what each setting affects and how configurations interconnect
- Access main workflows in one place for training and reference purposes
- Receive real-time notifications when agents need assistance or critical issues arise
- Quickly locate and filter specific agents or groups for monitoring
- Generate custom reports directly from dashboard data without external tools
User Empathy Map
Petar
AgentMain frustrations
- Afraid of spending too much time on a task
- Worried the boss may be dissatisfied
- System does not guide him through steps
- Overwhelmed by many fields; unsure what matters most
What would help
- Tips and cues about what each part of the system does
- All needed information on one screen
- Easy communication with the supervisor
Ana
SupervisorMain frustrations
- Afraid to miss agent status or requests for help
- Long setup times and waiting for vendor answers
- Juggles multiple programs and worries about missing something
- System logic is unclear
What would help
- Quick and accurate customization without vendor help
- Full view of system and agent information in one place
- Tutorial for quick answers to common questions
User Journey Maps
Journey Map 1: Inbound communication flow
Petar
Agent
Goal
Handle incoming customer communication efficiently from preparation through resolution.
Scope of experience
Journey starts when agent is ready to receive communication and ends when communication and all related tasks are completed.
| Phase | Preparation | Decision Making | Communication Processing | Communication Ending |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| User Thoughts | "Focus on work, Ready for work, Start daily work" | "Activation of attention, excitement, I decide take communication, Makes a decision" | "View over past communication, Recognizes the last context, Know what client wants, What can I do for client?" | "Is the customer satisfied? I did a great job!" |
| Actions | View daily activity dashboard, Check personal status | Receives signal about incoming communication, Reviews communication information (who, what, why) | Acquainted with customer's problem, Looks for solutions (FAQ, tickets, scripts), Updates customer/company info | Reports decision, Ends communication, Creates/updates ticket |
| System Response | Shows main dashboard, Shows incoming changes, Shows current UACD status, Shows extensions | Shows incoming signal, Fixes fact of communication, Shows communication information, Shows known contact or placeholder | Action selection, System reacts on choice, Changes agent/communication status, Shows last client info, Shows possible solutions, Gives opportunity to change client info | Changes agent status, Saves communication content, Registers communication in system, Shows possible ways to complete task |
| Touchpoints | Personal Dashboard, Status (UACD), Extensions | Incoming message with action choice, System notifications, Contact recognition | Communication status view, Associated Records, Communication Actions, Search | Communication status, Associated Records, Communication Actions, Post-processing |
| Emotional State | 😊 Neutral-Positive: Prepared and ready | 😐 Neutral: Focused attention | 😓 Stressed: Information gathering pressure | 😊 Positive: Relief and satisfaction |
Pain points
- Agent status management
- Agent may forget to change status, missing expected incoming communications
- Time pressure
- Time pressure to resolve issues quickly while maintaining quality
- Lack of context and information fragmentation
- Lack of comprehensive customer context when communication arrives. Must search across multiple locations for relevant information during active call
- Process uncertainty
- Uncertainty about whether all necessary steps were completed
Opportunities
- Automated status management
- Implement intelligent status changes based on agent activity and schedule
- Quality checklists
- Post-communication checklist to ensure all required actions are completed
- Contextual information display
- Show all relevant customer information (history, open tickets, previous communications) in a unified view when communication arrives
- Integrated knowledge base
- Provide FAQ, scripts and solutions within the communication interface without requiring navigation
Journey Map 2: Supervision and System Management
Ana
Supervisor
Goal
Configure system settings, monitor agent performance and generate insights for operational improvement.
Scope of experience
Journey starts when admin needs to make system configuration and ends with analyzing results of those configurations.
| Phase | Initial Setup | Dashboard Configuration | Active Supervision | Reporting and Analysis |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| User Thoughts | "I want comfort work, want to set up my agents, Communication to the right agents, Tickets should go to right agent with specific template" | "I want easily see main KPI, Need understand what points are crucial for working process" | "Whom responsible for? work work good? What else is important for me?" | "I need to analyze previous and current statistics to improve company working process" |
| Actions | Create IVR, Create Skill Groups with agents, Create Ticket Groups with templates and fields | View dashboard, Customize predefined dashboard with relevant gadgets | Choose who to supervise, Monitor agent work, Respond to agent requests | Create Report according to existing dashboard, Analyze trends and issues |
| System Response | Shows wizard system, Shows agent search, Generates agent/group lists, Shows IVR tree, Shows communication channels, Shows automation options | Automatically shows gadgets according to skill groups, Gives opportunity to change settings, Shows notifications for important events, Allows dashboard sharing | Shows search where admin can choose whom to supervise, Shows notifications, Allows adding agents separately or as groups, Quick switch between dashboards | Shows CTA to create report, Gives opportunity to choose period and included gadgets, Allows sharing and editing |
| Touchpoints | Skill Group Wizard, IVR Wizard, Ticket Group Wizard, Search, Lists with groups and agents | Main Dashboard, Notifications, Dashboard Wizard, Dashboard Installer | Search, Personal Dashboard, Agent communication views, Notifications | Reports module, Dashboards, Export functionality |
| Emotional State | 😓 Frustrated: Complexity of configuration | 😐 Neutral: Configuration effort | 😊 Engaged: Active monitoring | 😊 Satisfied: Insights gained |
Pain points
- Feature discoverability
- 'After a few months... I notice that there is a copy options' - Feature discoverability issues
- Settings fragmentation
- Settings scattered across system without clear connections between related configs
- Configuration relationships
- Unclear how different settings affect each other (skill groups, ticket groups, IVR, automation)
- Agent management workflow
- Difficulty adding agents to system when creating skill groups (agents must be added separately first)
- Limited visibility
- Cannot easily see which agents need help or have requests pending
- Multi-program juggling
- Must work with multiple programs simultaneously, risking missed information
- Support dependency
- Long wait times for Asseco support when troubleshooting or making complex changes
Opportunities
- Unified Configuration Flow
- Create step-by-step wizard that guides through all related settings in logical sequence (agents → skill groups → ticket groups → IVR)
- Visual Relationship Mapping
- Show visual connections between settings (which agents belong to which skill groups, which ticket types connect to which groups)
- Template and Cloning System
- Allow admins to copy existing configurations and modify rather than creating from scratch
- Contextual Help System
- Tooltips and help text explaining what each setting affects and how it connects to other configurations
- Smart Agent Monitoring
- Dashboard that highlights agents requiring attention, pending requests, or performance anomalies
- Integrated Reporting
- One-click report generation from any dashboard view with customizable parameters
Journey Map 3: Ticket Management
Petar
Agent
Goal
Create, process and resolve customer tickets efficiently.
Scope of experience
Journey starts when agent understands that ticket is needed and finished when ticket is closed with issue resolved.
| Phase | Reason for Ticket | Ticket Creation | Ticket Processing | Ticket Finalizing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| User Thoughts | "How should I make out the information? Need to keep everything handy, Have I missed something important?" | "I want to finish the task properly" | "I am ready for communication, Work goes!" | "Needed information gathered, Customer issue resolved" |
| Actions | CTA: Create/add ticket, Gathers information during communication | Fill in required ticket info, Select category and type, Assign ticket | Update Status, Work with additional information, Communicate with customer, Add notes | Update final status, Verify resolution, Close ticket |
| System Response | Receives Activity Information | CTA save ticket, Validates required fields, Suggests categories based on communication | Shows ticket status, Allows status updates, Links to communication, Provides access to customer history | Confirms ticket closure, Saves all information, Updates statistics |
| Touchpoints | Communication interface, Ticket creation button | Ticket form, Category dropdowns, Customer/company links | Ticket status panel, Notes section, Activity log | Ticket summary, Closure confirmation |
| Emotional State | 😐 Focused: Information gathering | 😓 Stressed: Ensuring completeness | 😊 Engaged: Problem-solving | 😊 Satisfied: Resolution achieved |
Pain points
- Field clarity
- Uncertainty about which fields are required vs. optional
- Context switching
- Difficulty keeping communication context while filling ticket form
- Completeness anxiety
- Concern about missing critical information that could delay resolution
- Manual data entry
- Manual entry of information already mentioned in communication
Opportunities
- Auto-population
- Automatically fill ticket fields with information from communication (customer details, date/time, communication channel)
- Smart Categorization
- Suggest ticket category and type based on keywords in communication
- Inline Ticket Creation
- Create tickets within communication interface without losing context
- Communication Linking
- Automatic linking of all related communications to ticket
Journey Map 4: Agent Help Request and Supervisor Response Flow
Ana
Admin/Supervisor
Petar
Agent
Goal
Get timely supervisor assistance during complex customer interactions without abandoning the communication.
Scope of experience
Journey starts when agent realizes they need supervisor assistance and ends when issue is resolved and agent returns to normal workflow with new knowledge.
| Phase | Problem Recognition | Help Request | Supervisor Response | Resolution and Learning |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| User Thoughts | "This is beyond my knowledge, I need help, Customer is waiting, I don't want to look incompetent" | "How do I signal I need help? Will supervisor see it? How long will I wait?" | (Supervisor) "Which agent needs help? What's the context? Can I help quickly or need to escalate?" | "Did I handle this correctly? What should I remember for next time?" |
| Actions | Realizes issue is too complex, Attempts to find answer in knowledge base, Decides supervisor help is needed | Looks for "Request help" option, May use external chat/call to reach supervisor, Continues managing customer while waiting | (Supervisor) Sees help request notification, Reviews agent's screen/case context, Provides guidance via chat or takes over communication | Applies supervisor's guidance, Resolves customer issue, Documents solution, Returns to normal status |
| System Response | Shows knowledge base results (may be insufficient), No proactive suggestion to escalate, Customer wait time increases | Records help request (if feature exists), May not notify supervisor in real-time, Maintains communication connection | Shows agent context (customer, communication, ticket), Allows supervisor to view/share screen, Provides communication tools, Logs intervention | Updates ticket with resolution notes, Records time spent on help, Changes agent status back to Ready, May suggest related training |
| Touchpoints | Knowledge base search, Customer communication interface, Internal notes field | Help request button (if exists), External chat/messenger, Phone to supervisor desk | Supervisor dashboard, Agent monitoring panel, Help request queue, Screen sharing tools, Internal chat | Ticket notes section, Communication summary, Agent statistics, Knowledge base update |
| Emotional State | 😰 Anxious: Fear of failing customer, uncertainty | 😓 Stressed: Time pressure, visibility of struggle | 😐 Focused: Problem-solving mode | 😊 Relieved: Issue resolved, learning gained |
Pain points
- No integrated help mechanism
- No clear, visible 'Request Help' mechanism integrated into communication interface
- Real-time visibility
- Supervisor may not see help request in real-time if monitoring different dashboard
- Multitasking pressure
- Agent must maintain customer engagement while searching for supervisor
- Context loss
- Lack of context sharing — supervisor must ask agent to explain situation again
- No feedback loop
- No post-resolution feedback loop (what should agent have done differently?)
- Training gaps
- Help requests not tracked for training needs analysis
Opportunities
- Contextual Help Button
- Prominent 'Request Supervisor Help' button within active communication interface that includes full context (customer, issue, what agent tried)
- Real-Time Supervisor Alerts
- Priority notification system that immediately alerts available supervisors with one-click 'View and Assist' action
- Shared View Mode
- Allow supervisor to instantly see agent's screen and customer communication without manual screen sharing setup
- In-Context Guidance
- Supervisor can send messages, links to KB articles, or scripts directly into agent's communication interface
Affinity
Research Question
How can we improve the Dive experience for agents and admins to help them resolve customer inquiries and manage teams faster and with greater confidence?Cluster 1. Information Architecture and Navigation
Users struggle to understand the product structure: they can't see relationships between screens or identify which information is critical. Fragmented architecture forces them to jump between modules for a single workflow, increasing cognitive load and slowing task completion.Sticky notes
- Too many fields, I don't know what is important
- Jump between modules to finish one task flow
- I did not understand the system logic
- Need settings in one place and in one flow
- Connections between Skill Groups, Ticket Groups, IVR and Automation are unclear
- Agent spends excessive time navigating between modules during active customer communications
- Settings scattered across multiple locations without clear connections
Action items
- Rebuild IA based on actual task clusters (not technical system structure): group related functions by Agent/Admin user scenarios
- Consolidate related settings (Skill Groups, Ticket Groups, IVR, Automation) into unified configuration hub with clear visual connections between entities
- Add inline contextual hints (e.g. 'This setting affects…') and dependency mapping between objects
- Reduce number of clicks to reach key actions (ticket creation, status change, customer search)
Cluster 2. Efficiency and Automation
Many key tasks are still manual. Agents often re-enter data that already exists in the system. Admins have to recreate similar configurations again and again. This slows down work and increases frustration.Sticky notes
- Create ticket quickly, minimal by hand, maximum automation
- System doesn't help in flow, doesn't tell what to do
- Have I missed something important? I want to finish task properly
- Admin spends a lot of time on settings; waits long for vendor support
- Similar Skill/Ticket Groups must be configured from scratch
- After a few months of adding user from zero I notice that there is a copy options
- Agents must manually enter information the system already has
Action items
- Smart search and auto-fill: When agent types customer name, automatically populate history, products, open tickets and suggest ticket category/type
- Templates and clone: For Skill/Ticket Groups, dashboards and IVR settings — enable users to copy existing configurations and modify
- Completion checklist: After call/ticket, display 'All required fields completed ✓' to eliminate anxiety about missing steps
- Bulk operations: Enable admins to perform mass actions on agents, groups and rules
Cluster 3. Learning and Onboarding
The system offers comprehensive functionality, but knowledge of "how to use it" isn't embedded in the interface. New users take months to reach productivity, experienced users accidentally discover useful features late. This creates dependency on colleagues and support, increasing load on supervisors.Sticky notes
- When first I saw these fields, that was like: what I am going to do?
- Agent spends too much time understanding interface
- Some parts could be easier to do and understand. It is not user friendly
- Admin discovered important features only after months of use
- Need tips about what each setting influences; need tutorial for quick questions
- Long onboarding times for new agents slow overall service speed
- Heavy load of UI-related support tickets
Action items
- Wizard-driven onboarding: Create step-by-step wizards for key scenarios (first call, ticket creation, group setup) with progressive disclosure
- Contextual tooltips: Add tooltips explaining 'Why this matters' with examples of impact on related settings
- In-app Help Center: Build searchable FAQ, scripts and video guides accessible without leaving the system
- Feature discovery hints: Display unobtrusive notifications ('You can copy this setup' or 'Tip: use smart search here') when user performs action manually
Cluster 4. Real-Time Visibility and Monitoring
There's no single "source of truth": agents can't see their work context (queue status, statistics, ticket status), supervisors piece together the operational picture from different modules. This delays response to problems and reduces users' sense of control.Sticky notes
- Agent wants actual info about peak hours and line situation
- Agent wants to see call status and ticket status together
- Admin is afraid to miss agent status and requests for help
- Supervisor needs to see all important statistics at once; current dashboard fragmented
- Supervisors lacked clear visibility into team performance and SLAs
- Need to respond to agent needs immediately without jumping between programs
- Need to see all important information on a single unified dashboard
Action items
- Role-based dashboards: Create Agent Home (queue, my tickets, daily stats) and Supervisor Home (real-time KPIs, agents needing help, SLA alerts) as primary work interface
- Persistent status bar: Display UACD status (Ready/Break/On-call) with color indicator always visible, automatically updating based on context
- Unified view: Show communication status + related ticket + customer history on single screen without switching
- Smart notifications: Implement prioritized notifications for supervisors (agent raised hand, SLA breach imminent, escalation) with ability to act directly from alert
Key Findings
1. Too many screens create cognitive overload
Agents and admins struggle with information scattered across multiple places. Agents can't find customer details during active calls. Admins see settings distributed across the system without clear connections.
- This leads to
- Longer task completion time. More mistakes because people miss important info. Higher stress during time-sensitive calls. Longer onboarding for new users.
- What we did
- We redesigned the information architecture based on card-sorting exercises with real users. We consolidated related info into unified views and added contextual sidebars that show relevant data based on the current task.
2. Hard to learn without help
"When first I saw these fields, that was like: what I am going to do?" New users face a steep learning curve. Even experienced users discover features months later: "After a few months... I notice that there is a copy option."
- This leads to
- Months-long onboarding. Inconsistent use of features. Powerful features underutilized. Constant dependency on supervisors and colleagues.
- What we did
- We implemented contextual onboarding with progressive disclosure. Created interactive tutorials for key workflows. Added a persistent help system with search. Implemented 'discovery hints' that surface relevant features based on user behavior.
3. Too much manual work
Agents manually enter information during time-sensitive customer interactions. Admins recreate similar configurations repeatedly without templates. Ticket creation requires manual field entry for information already captured in communications.
- This leads to
- Longer average handle time. More data entry errors. Agent frustration and fatigue. Reduced capacity to handle customer volume.
- What we did
- We implemented intelligent automation. Auto-populate ticket fields from communication context. Provide configuration templates and cloning functionality. Suggest responses based on communication type. Enable bulk operations for common tasks.
4. No real-time visibility
Supervisors can't see when agents need help. Agents don't have visibility into queue status and peak times. Critical notifications get missed when working across multiple screens.
- This leads to
- Delayed response to agent help requests. Suboptimal call distribution. Missed SLA deadlines. Reactive rather than proactive management.
- What we did
- We designed a unified dashboard system with customizable widgets showing real-time operational data. Implemented intelligent notification system that prioritizes critical alerts. Created shared views that allow supervisors to see agent screens for troubleshooting.
5. System connections are unclear
"I did not understand the system logic." Admins struggle to understand how skill groups, ticket groups, IVR settings and automation rules interconnect. Changes in one area have unexpected effects in others.
- This leads to
- Configuration errors that affect agent productivity. Dependency on vendor support for routine changes. Longer time to set up new configurations. Risk of breaking existing functionality.
- What we did
- We created a visual relationship mapping tool that shows connections between configurations. Implemented 'impact preview' that shows what will be affected by changes. Provided pre-configured templates for common scenarios. Added validation and warnings for potentially problematic combinations.
