“So what are you going to do when you graduate?”: Navigating JACK as an HKS student
How can we leverage user-centric design to improve JACK, increase the ease of use for HKS students, and most importantly, make sure those who want a job can get one?
But first: let’s think about what the user wants
When a user enters JACK, they are most often looking for the next step they can take on their journey to get a job. The user will likely have varying levels of information about their needs. They may have a clear idea of a specific job they are aiming for, they may know just the industry they are interested in, or they may know nothing at all. There are various customer jobs they are using JACK to complete: job searching, employment, and networking. Through this process, all JACK users — both students and alumni — share the same pains and gains. The most common pains are those related to the job search: they don’t know how to reach a company they’re interested in, they don’t know what jobs are out there, and they aren’t sure how qualified they are. They have a lot to gain from an effective JACK system. They can gain access to employers, interview and resume coaching, and a renewed sense of purpose or interest in their career.
The JACK site and user experience involves several stakeholders, each of whom influence the role and design of the site.
The User Journey
First, a typical user goes through the site
The user logs onto JACK with hope to be able to complete these jobs, remediate pains, and experience some gains. The first thing they see is an entry page asking them to “Discover JACK.”
Beneath this are upcoming events — something a user may be interested in, but is likely not the first path on their user journey. Once the user clicks into Discover JACK, they’re directed to a sort of table of contents for the site, but with very little direction on how to get to those places.
Already, the user is likely feeling confused, a bit overwhelmed, and not sure where to start. Thinking that uploading their resume might be the best next step, they navigate over to the My Documents tab to add in their resume.
The user may think they’re all set on this part, at least — until they receive a message that their resume has been rejected for somewhat unclear reasons.
At this point, the user may be feeling frustrated and not sure what the next steps are. In order to get a sense of how JACK will work for them, they will likely poke around and try to complete their profile. Here, they will run into another roadblock — they can’t add in years of experiences or desired job level, so all jobs returned will be of all levels.
Despite this, the user may go to see what kinds of jobs are available through the system. On the Jobs Postings side, there is a helpful module that suggests jobs based on jobs that have been interacted with by the user. However, the suggestion tool is pretty rudimentary, so it ends up suggesting jobs posted by Daybook, another job sourcing platform — any posts from Daybook could then be promoted, regardless of relation to the original post interacted with. This can be confusing for the user and discourage them from exploring further.
The user may now feel tired of navigating the complexity and decide to come back to JACK another day. The various obstacles — resume rejection, inability to put in years of experience, general information overload — can be too much.
The Solution
We can make this system easier — and showcase the tools JACK has!
Each of these parts of the user journey involves some level of uncertainty and promise. The user is not always sure what exactly they are supposed to do next, but they can see that all these various steps do hold intrinsic value. However, the information overload, site density, and general roadblocks prevent the user from taking further action. To make the system easier, we need to start with a new hypothesis: JACK can put customer needs first by more clearly communicating the benefits and tools of the platform.
This looks like an initial page that acts as a dashboard for the user with two key components: a user to-do list and a progress portal. In addition to the homepage, similar changes can be made within the JACK site, particularly the job search portal.
First, this new homepage would have a to-do list to get started (i.e. resume upload, profile fill out, contact 3-5 employers) with checkmarks that indicate when these steps are completed. This list would be constantly updating in response to steps the user takes. If the user contacts an employer, the to do list would update to reflect that the user needs to follow up to schedule a meeting time, for example. This would significantly alleviate pains users feel from being unsure of the next step to take on JACK to get started on their job journey.
Second, this new homepage would have a progress bar that updates with the jobs the user is currently in the running for. The page would show which jobs are in the interview stage, which require more materials, and which the user has been accepted or rejected from. This tool would be an extension of the current JACK model, which does not necessarily track all of these actions. It would represent a significant gain in the user experience in that the user would have a better understanding of how they can complete their goal of getting a job.
And finally, in the job search portal, the user should be able to filter for jobs by years of experience and also get suggested jobs more closely similar to their needs. Ideally, there would be a search bar where a user can type in their main priorities — i.e., digital government, 5 years of experience, New York City — and the platform would produce jobs that match their needs. From there, the user can save those jobs, and they will be introduced to the progress bar platform. Users will be reminded to take next steps on jobs they are interested in.
In combination, these three updates encourage user accountability and platform transparency. They encourage the user to stay on the site and take the next necessary step to get employed.
The basic tools held within JACK are highly valuable, but the user just needs help getting there.
JACK has some key surface problems in how it communicates to users. But beyond those initial issues, the tools within the platform are highly valuable.The platform has jobs that a lot of users are interested in and offers a method for users to get in touch with companies and recruiters that they would not otherwise meet. For students less sure of what they are interested in, the resume banks offers a unique opportunity for employers to find them based on their needs.
Access to these tools is the highest priority for users. By reformatting the homepage to include two modules that track internal and external actions, users will more clearly know what their next step is and will be able to access potential jobs with greater ease.
