United Mobile App

United Mobile Revamp

Accessibility first mobile app

Position: Sr UX Interaction Designer

Project Timeline: 7 months

Platform: Mobile

Tools: Bohemian Sketch, Voiceover (iOS), Talkback (Android)

Links: iOS App Store | Google Play Store | Amazon App Store

Notable mention: United App, 2021 Webby award

United Mobile Revamp Accessibility-First Mobile App

As one of United’s lead A11y designer, I helped the digital team further incorporate inclusivity and accessibility into the design and software cycles. My largest project included a mobile revamp across the airline’s iOS and Android apps. As the leader of the "Continuing Improvement — Mobile" Pod, I collaborated with a cross-functional team, spearheading the interaction flow process. My responsibilities included: 

Documentation

As there is no visual documentation history for any mobile products since there's no federal mandate for apps at this point compared to the web. Because of this, our digital team did not have any resources of information to refer back on. I was able to spearhead a Design Accessibility dictionary within our internal system for all users from business analysts, designers, development, and Quality Analyst. Compromising of over sixty global and 100 pod focused examples in our app using both iOS and Android Material design examples, I wrote every interaction between different states and flows that would be in our app.   The accessibility features would include the following areas:

  • Voice accessibility using voiceover and talkback.

  • Haptic feedback for tactile accessibility 

  • Dynamic text for a low vision disabiliy

  • Language usage for cognitive and hearing loss disability


Design

I partnered with different designers from the pods that may have had a design that was not visually accessible and created a better design that better fit the flow. We had to navigate using both native material design and iOS design system. For example, form fields designed did not follow native components; I advised to ensure that they were compliant to our mobile design system. At the end of many workcycles, I reviewed and annotated for pod designers to focus on those screens that did not follow so they could incorporate into the new work sprint.

Collaboration

Since we have Eleven different pod/groups that focus on various sectors of United Processes from searching and purchasing tickets to the day of travel, among other vital areas of our customer experience journey. I worked with each pod designers to make sure that when it came to the handoff stage that they had appropriate accessibility documentation for voice technology for our blind customers. We would focus on specific screens that would be important to annotate for our Business Analyst, Developers/Engineers, as well as the Quality Assurance Engineers, to understand by creating accessible stories, coding, and testing for any issues. 

Education

Because our development and QA team were not advance in this type of coding and testing, I frequently traveled between headquarters to ensure that the development team was able to follow the guideline and reduce the stories' acceptance criteria rejected by our Quality Analyst team. 

Conclusion of this project

I was part of this project for about five months within four workcycle sprints that I was involved in. At the end of the project:

  • We covered over 100 screens that had accessibility documentation and user stories. 

  • We averaged about 94.3% rate between seven different pod success stories that passed Quality testing.

  • The Design Accessibility dictionary will be combined within the comprehensive design system that also includes the web.

I am especially proud of this project because I followed the AA level guidelines for our accessibility as well as other guidance from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the Department of Transportation (DOT). I had to push back from many people, but in the final results, we have a product that will be accessible to our low vision and blind users.