As the Global Digital Factory, we are always striving to create global solutions which can be re-used in several Allianz Operating Entities worldwide – but how do you make sure that solutions are appreciated by end-users across the globe and can be easily used as intended? How do you learn about those user needs that wildly differ across target groups, products, markets, countries and culture? How do you decide when to keep parts of a solution globally consistent and when to adapt to local user specifics? Conducting local UX research and asking users has always been part of the answer. Still, one of the largest risks when conducting local UX research is losing the global focus and to simply multiply research effort with each additional country. To address this, GDF’s UX research experts around Ramona Petzold and Micha Block refined UX research roles fit for a global UX research approach.
Local Product Perspective
Any local product team being experts on local business and technological requirements are supported by a local UX researcher. They make sure that the global solution is adapted to local needs making it truly customer-centric. Consequently, the local UX researcher plans, sets up and conducts all local UX activities and closely works with the local product team. Depending on scope and resource situation, local UX researchers can also be supported by external research agencies. When it comes to internal Allianz tools, a user panel coordinator supports any user involving activity by organizing recruitment, managing legal and workers’ council requirements and coordinating the panel of research participants from user groups.
Global Product Perspective
As you might have guessed, for global products a global product team has to be part of the UX approach as well. This team is responsible for creating the global product, fulfilling global business requirements and supporting solution roll-outs to local Allianz Operating Entities. In order to ensure a great user experience, the global product team works together closely with global UX experts to create and optimize global frontend applications by providing recommendations on how to cater for UX insights gathered locally and conduct quality assuring UX expert reviews.
Making the most out of UX Research
So depending on the number of products and Operating Entities, there’s quite a pool of UX experts supporting the global and local product development streams. To prevent that all UX researchers need to define their approach, methods, quality, guidelines and create all UX activities on their own – GDF comes into play. Living the role of global governance for Allianz group frontend design, GDF is responsible for UX quality and UX/UI consistency as well as creating synergies across teams. To achieve this, we added two different roles to the mix:
First, the global UX research strategist, who is dedicated to the overall approach enabling the project teams to re-use templates, guidelines, tool chain, best practices and global UX insights, meanwhile aiming for a high quality standard in UX activities. UX insights generated in local UX research are shared not only to enhance the UX of global product, but also to enrich and optimize the global Design System UX/UI libraries.
Second, the global UX research coordinator, who is in close contact with all UX researchers involved globally or locally, keeps an overview on continuous UX activities as well as fosters exchange and sharing across teams and Operating Entities. As local UX research insights are shared, the UX research coordinator extracts global UX insights and best practices and makes those insights available for all teams.
In the special case of B2B applications, the global UX research coordinator also briefs the local user panel coordinator in organizing potential UX activity participants that can only be recruited Allianz internally.
Now, we started filling these roles with real life people and are curious to learn if the UX re-search approach is up for the challenge!