Work's Projects

Pensions Management Software

The software used for managing the pensions of the government of Guatemala is becoming obsolete. After 18 years from its original design and development, there have not been any major improvements.  


The goal of this project was not only to design a new software that would meet up-to-date standards, but also to re-engineer the processes and align the different stakeholders that are part of this program.

Team  

6 members 


Roles

Process Design Expert, 

UX Researcher & Designer


Tools

Microsoft Office Suite, Visio (advance use) 

Length

12 months  


Year

2015-2016



Location

Guatemala City

Process

For this project, as a team we developed a plan that included nine stages that would allow us to deliver the documents and business requirements so that the IT department could develop the software, as well as implementing the final solution into the different organizations that will take part of the program. 

We also developed a more detailed plan that included tasks, resources, beginning and ending dates, people responsible, and deliverables. Because the information is confidential I am not able to share details of this plan.  

1

Process   architecture

At this stage, I gathered the initial information that would allowed me to understand the business and to identify the main stakeholders that would be included during the design stages. 

a. Documentation review

I identified and reviewed the documents applicable to the government agencies such as: laws, regulations, procedures, manuals, and forms.  

b. Stakeholder analysis

I identified all the different government agencies that participate in the process, including responsibilities and products delivered. 

c. Interviews

I performed the first round of interviews with employees that executed some activities throughout the processes including: the head of the departments, supervisors, pension analysts, and receptionists. 

d. Process architecture design

As a deliverable for this stage, I designed the process architecture that included the identification of roles, inputs and outputs.  

Sample of documents produced

Scope

Process architecture A

Process architecture B

2

Current processes review


At this stage, I reviewed all the documentation available, identifying the different scenarios that the processes and new software should incorporate into their design. 

a. Interviews

Once I had some understanding of the processes, I performed a second round of interviews that allowed me to ask more in depth questions. 

b. Use case examples

I identified some of the common use case scenarios with the help of the Pension Specialists.  Each case was documented with real life examples. 

c. Observation 

I performed some observation sessions where the Pension Specialists explained step by step how they analyze the documents and what information they type into the software. 

d. Case scenarios 

At the end of this stage, I consolidated the case scenarios that the process and software should include. 

Sample of documents produced

Type of pensions

56 scenarios

Information update

45 scenarios

Status update

24 scenarios

3

Business Analysis 

At this stage, I identified all the different issues to be corrected as well as the opportunities for improvements for both the processes and software. 

a. Process analysis 

I performed a more in depth analysis of the current processes that the organizations followed, identifying flaws and opportunities for improvement. 

b. Software analysis

I experienced first hand the software, identifying current components, UI, flaws and opportunities for improvement. 

4

Process Design

At this stage, I prepared a proposal for the improved processes that should guide the organization's operations, including visual representations of them. These documents were validated and communicated with the different stakeholders. 

a. Narrative 

I wrote the first draft of the improved processes as well as created additional processes that were required for the full redesign of the software. 

b. Process flow diagram 

I designed the new flow diagrams for each process using Microsoft Visio, identifying the activities and positions responsible for them. 

c. Validation 

I held weekly meetings with the different stakeholders, where I presented the proposal, answered questions, and modified the processes based on the stakeholders' feedback. 

d. Communication 

I maintained constant communication with the team, stakeholders and authorities, informing them about the progress of the project.

Sample of documents produced

1. Process sample.pdf

Process narrative

5

Enabling processes

To guarantee a smooth transition to the new software, I also developed the processes and strategies that would prepare the organization and its different departments to avoid delays and major issues. 

a. Data cleansing

During the analysis of the software, I identified mistakes in the data collected and other issues that should be addressed before a migration of the software. 

b. Business Strategy

Because for this project there were different organizations involved, as a team we defined the strategy to move forward with the project, which included the scope of the project and deliverables. 

c. Strategic alliances 

As a team, we suggested to the organization the need to establish strategic alliances with the organizations that:

6

Software Design

With the processes that I proposed, the Software Design Specialist designed the first mock-ups for the software proposal, which were presented and analyzed with the stakeholders.    

Unfortunately, we were not able to complete this project due to some challenges described bellow.  After much consideration, I was not able to continue working for the organization, especially when living abroad. 

Major Results

Some of the benefits obtained were:

Challenges

Some of the challenges that we encountered during this project were:

©  Efrain Rivera 2022