Roo
a web platform for veterinarians
a web platform for veterinarians
Year
2018
2018
Agency
Perpetual
Perpetual
My Role
Research
UX / UI
Research
UX / UI
The wonders of a niche market! Working with Roo provided me an opportunity to dive into the relief veterinarian space and get to know its users.
Over the last decade or so, there's been huge shifts in the veterinary field: less and less vets are opening or buying their own practices and instead are seeking out more flexible job opportunities. Also about 80% of vets are now female, which means there are opportunities where vets will need to take a leave of absence in their career. Out of these two points arises the demand for relief vets: vets who fill in or work flex hours at various animal hospitals in their region.
A survey of current sites and companies that offer vet placement found the industry lacking. With Roo, vets and hospital admins can easily and quickly get matched with quality counterparts. As part of this project I designed their responsive landing page and the new-to-market Roo platform.
Over the last decade or so, there's been huge shifts in the veterinary field: less and less vets are opening or buying their own practices and instead are seeking out more flexible job opportunities. Also about 80% of vets are now female, which means there are opportunities where vets will need to take a leave of absence in their career. Out of these two points arises the demand for relief vets: vets who fill in or work flex hours at various animal hospitals in their region.
A survey of current sites and companies that offer vet placement found the industry lacking. With Roo, vets and hospital admins can easily and quickly get matched with quality counterparts. As part of this project I designed their responsive landing page and the new-to-market Roo platform.
competitive analysis
Many sites put the power in hospitals' hands: there seemed to be no penalty if hospitals took a long time to respond to shift booking requests.
Long onboarding process: most companies required vets to go through interviews with hiring reps prior to even getting on the platform.
Poor user experience across the board: little attention paid to making the process easy for vets and hospitals.
Long onboarding process: most companies required vets to go through interviews with hiring reps prior to even getting on the platform.
Poor user experience across the board: little attention paid to making the process easy for vets and hospitals.
1.
To start, I created an outline of relief shift sites that already exist, the features they have, what fees they charge, and noted how much manual effort was needed to use the site. Findings included:
2.
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user research
The vet techs in charge of scheduling would create a color coded calendar with each doctor's shifts for that month, noting if the workload was expected to be heavy for each day.
Vets talked about how current scheduling and shift software is really old and difficult to use.
Vets expressed concern over not having enough information about a hospital or shift prior to filling in as a relief vet.
Vets talked about how current scheduling and shift software is really old and difficult to use.
Vets expressed concern over not having enough information about a hospital or shift prior to filling in as a relief vet.
1.
As part of our client kick-off meeting, I was able to visit an animal hospital where I talked to vets and vet techs about their workflows and experience with finding relief shifts. Findings were:
2.
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Hospital Admin Dashboard
As a hospital administrator, users should be able to see an overview of shifts they've added, as well as the vets who have booked them.
Pulling from my animal hospital visit, I designed a color-coded schedule to be featured on the main dashboard.
Users can see at a glance if a shift is pending, requested, booked, or expired. As shift requests come in, admins can view the vet's profile or confirm them right from this screen. A countdown has also been introduced–hospitals have a certain timeframe in which they need to confirm a vet's request.
Pulling from my animal hospital visit, I designed a color-coded schedule to be featured on the main dashboard.
Users can see at a glance if a shift is pending, requested, booked, or expired. As shift requests come in, admins can view the vet's profile or confirm them right from this screen. A countdown has also been introduced–hospitals have a certain timeframe in which they need to confirm a vet's request.
Creating Shifts
With each shift they add to the platform, users can easily input if a shift is a full or half day, how many appointments are expected, and what kinds of procedures a vet may need to do.
Throughout user testing, I received feedback as to what information vets would need or want to know prior to booking a shift. Using that feedback, I added specific fields in regards to surgery and when breaks could be expected.
Vets are able to see a quick list of these details on their version of the site, and hospitals can later see summaries of all shifts so they can spot trends in hospital needs.
Throughout user testing, I received feedback as to what information vets would need or want to know prior to booking a shift. Using that feedback, I added specific fields in regards to surgery and when breaks could be expected.
Vets are able to see a quick list of these details on their version of the site, and hospitals can later see summaries of all shifts so they can spot trends in hospital needs.
User Profiles
When users sign up to the platform–vets or administrators–they answer a series of questions about their experience, personality, and work habits.
Prior to booking a vet, admins can view a user profile that surfaces details like the vet's core competencies, animal types they regularly treat, and what kind of teams they prefer to work on.
One of Roo's core pillars is bringing transparency to a process that, in the past, had been largely left to hiring agencies and middlemen.
Hospitals are very attuned to vets' bedside manners. In a business where people can visit just once a year, if an appointment goes unpleasantly, that pet and owner may not return to that hospital.
By capturing and surfacing a snapshot of each vet, Roo wants to alleviate the stress and concern that surrounds bringing a new person onboard.
Prior to booking a vet, admins can view a user profile that surfaces details like the vet's core competencies, animal types they regularly treat, and what kind of teams they prefer to work on.
One of Roo's core pillars is bringing transparency to a process that, in the past, had been largely left to hiring agencies and middlemen.
Hospitals are very attuned to vets' bedside manners. In a business where people can visit just once a year, if an appointment goes unpleasantly, that pet and owner may not return to that hospital.
By capturing and surfacing a snapshot of each vet, Roo wants to alleviate the stress and concern that surrounds bringing a new person onboard.
Vet Shift Search
Vets can search for shifts based on their location, as well as a specific date range. With each group of results, vets can get a run-down of each shift along with the payout amount.
In testing, vets stressed the desire to see surgery information, so I made sure to surface that right on the results page.
Testing also helped validate the card UI pattern used on this page. Users found it was easy to scan and that high-level details quickly stood out to them.
In testing, vets stressed the desire to see surgery information, so I made sure to surface that right on the results page.
Testing also helped validate the card UI pattern used on this page. Users found it was easy to scan and that high-level details quickly stood out to them.
Ratings
Once a shift is complete, vets and admins are asked to rate their experiences. This feedback is kept anonymous, so users can feel a bit freer in being honest with their reviews.
© shawna rabbas, 2022