My Roles
Research, Interaction Design, UX Design
Problem Space
For the summer of 2013, I was a design intern at Booz Allen Hamilton. My main task while there was taking the analog Leadership Challenge Simulation (LCS) and designing it for an iPad app, the Digital Leadership Simulation Challenge (DLCS). The LCS is a collaborative board game that Booz Allen uses as part of 2 day event to develop leadership for clients. The simulation has multiple parts that develop and test the player’s leadership skills. The simulation crafts a very specific experience that is reflected on during debriefing sessions. My task was to help design that same experience for the DLCS. The implementation of an iPad created obstacles that we overcame, but also opened new avenues that allowed us to take advantage of the technology.
Booz Allen Digital Leadership Challenge Simulation
The Digital Leadership Challenge Simulation is an iPad app that allows clients to work through scenarios to build leadership skills
Process
The DLCS marked my first time working a development team. The team consisted of a visual designer, game developer, instructional designer, an additional design intern, and myself. We worked hand and hand to develop each section of the game. The first steps were to design the main screen and player card, where players could find all the information about their development. Shown here is the design work of the “Development” screen. This section allowed players to level up their competencies to increase their chances of doing things successfully in the simulation. First, we would work through the section with whiteboard sessions to develop a set of sketches. Then, the other intern or I would develop wireframes. These were handed off to the visual designer, who added visual consistency and then passed his assets to development.
Additional Roles
In addition to my tasks as helping design interactions of the DLCS, I had additional tasks that helped the internal efforts and development. Each section of the simulation had sketchstates. This allowed us to show the interactions of the interface. This paired with flow diagrams and the visual assets allowed us to hand the developer a whole package to develop from. This passage of information also kept our channels of communication open which helped with development as a whole.