This document discusses customizing the user experience (UX) in PeopleSoft applications. It begins by defining UX and explaining that UX involves more than just aesthetics and includes how users interact with and experience an application. Common UX issues like unintuitive designs and too many clicks are described. The document also discusses how to assess when an application would benefit from a UX overhaul and the risks of customizations. Different levels of customization are presented from minor tweaks to full replacements. It highlights a case study of a successful UX redesign project at Cerner Corporation that improved the enrollment experience.

1. Spicing Up Your Vanilla With a Custom Look & Feel John Beretz, Rockridge Solutions Sherry Rogers, Cerner Corporation

2. Introduction Consultant at Rockridge Solutions Former PeopleSoft Technical Architect, Developer, Product Manager Specialties: Customizations that improve the user experience Complex custom functionality and integrations

3. What is User Experience? “UX” for short Commonly referred to as “Look and Feel” but UX is much more than look and feel Aesthetic of the application (colors, fonts, etc.) Organization of elements of a page Interactions between the user and the application How the user experiences the system

4. What is User Experience? Presentation Business Rules Data } ux

5. UX Myths “The users are just a bunch of whiners.” “If they can’t figure it out, maybe they shouldn’t work here.” “Usability is just a matter of opinion, and everyone has a different opinion.” “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”

6. Common UX issues Confusing/Unintuitive Too many unnecessary fields to sift through Next step action not clear “Clickiness” A sense that it shouldn’t take so many mouse clicks to accomplish the task Functionality related to single task spread out across too many pages and menu items

7. Good UX Infrequently used functionality is out of the way Minimal number of clicks required for most users User doesn’t need instructions, but help is readily available "No matter how beautiful, no matter how cool your interface, it would be better if there were less of it." -Alan Cooper

8. Good UX Seems to anticipate what user want to do Obvious how to get from point A to point B Obvious to users where they’re at in the process Puts user at ease “If we want users to like our software we should design it to behave like a likable person: respectful, generous, and helpful.” -Alan Cooper

9. UX Facts Good UX = Reduced training Reduced support call volume Higher productivity Fewer mistakes High utilization / less enforcement Happy, loyal users = $$$

10. Presentation Menus, Components, Pages Business Rules PeopleCode, Application Engine, SQR, COBOL Data Database } ux PeopleSoft UX Can Be Customized

11. Good candidates for a makeover Large number of users Large volume of support calls High training costs External-facing (e.g. recruiting) Low adoption rate Low morale among key users Module too confusing to roll out So confusing that considering best-of-breed

12. Customization Risk Upgrade Time How do we minimize “C”? Scenario A: Changes from Oracle don’t impact your customization Scenario B: Changes from Oracle make your customization obsolete. Solution: Disable the customization. Scenario C: Changes from Oracle conflict with your customization. Solution: Manually reconcile changes with customizations.

13. Customization Risk Managing Risk The riskiness of a customization has more to do with how the customization is implemented than the size of the enhancement Customize as few delivered objects as possible Make customization dependent on as few delivered objects as possible UX customizations are inherently less risky Only skin deep Delivered UX is there as a fallback position

14. Customization Risk Only way to avoid risk is staying pure vanilla But…this is neither realistic nor fiscally prudent, i.e. not maximizing investment in PeopleSoft So…customize but manage risk by making good technical design decisions

15. Tweak, Augment, or Replace the UX? What’s the right approach for you given: Extent of the UX problem? Resources available?

16. Tweak, Augment, or Replace the UX? Tweaking Relatively minor changes to a delivered navigation/pages Examples: Removing/adding/moving fields More useful tooltips Renaming/reorganizing menu Small impact on UX but low effort Upgrade risk proportional to number of changes Best for minor changes

17. Tweak, Augment, or Replace the UX? Tweaking Example

18. Tweak, Augment, or Replace the UX? Augmenting Present subset of delivered data and business logic in a new, more useful way Supplements delivered UX Examples: dashboards, work centers, “express” pages, wizards, pagelets Modest UX impact, low-to-moderate effort Low upgrade risk Best for reducing clickiness, providing missing data insight (summaries, metrics, exceptions)

19. Tweak, Augment, or Replace the UX? Augmenting Example

20. Tweak, Augment, or Replace the UX? Replacing Redesign the UX of an entire transaction and disable the delivered UX Moderate but decreasing upgrade risk (probably modifying delivered objects in small ways) Highest UX impact Significantly less effort than you’d think given impact Example: Cerner eBenefits

21. Architectural Options Create an external front-end application Non-PeopleSoft technology (e.g. Java Enterprise + Oracle’s SOA suite) Includes little more than presentation layer Talks to PeopleSoft behind the scenes for business rules and data Add new front-end to delivered application Stay in PeopleTools world Create custom UX using new and modified PeopleTools objects

22. Architectural Options Menus, Components, Pages PeopleCode, Application Engine, SQR, COBOL Database Add an external wrapper } ux External Web App

23. Architectural Options Add an external wrapper Pros Cons Complete UX freedom Minimal modifications to delivered objects (in theory...) Only as good as the PeopleSoft APIs GUI logic can’t be leveraged; must be rewritten Upgrade risk if you need to enhance APIs Performance? May not have technical skills in-house More complex environment, i.e. 2 different systems

24. Architectural Options PeopleCode, Application Engine, SQR, COBOL Database Modify existing application } ux Menus, Components, Pages Custom

25. Architectural Options Modify existing application Pros Cons Leverage existing IT skills Access to guts of app (PeopleCode, tables, etc.) Limited to PeopleTools (not as advanced as other web app tools) Some upgrade risk

26. The PeopleTools Toolbox Pagelets Small widgets that appear on the users home page Different pagelets available for each user or role User-customizable content Administrator can define required/optional pagelets Simple pagelets can be created with the Pagelet Wizard Custom pagelets can be created by building a component/page and registering it Check out HRMS Portal Pack

27. The PeopleTools Toolbox “PowerTools” Special reusable controls that add advanced web app features to PeopleTools Many use JavaScript executed from within HTML Areas Examples Multipane Real, non-scrolling toolbars Embedded popups Embedded documents Multi-value lookups Cross-DB mashups Ajax (e.g. type-ahead)

28. The PeopleTools Toolbox “PowerTools”

29. PeopleTools UX Tips & Techniques Delivered component, new pages Don’t remove delivered pages, just hide them Leverages all of the component’s logic and data Modify component so that it can be opened in either “vanilla” or “enhanced” mode for backward compatibility Add component PeopleCode to check for a parameter passed in the URL New or modified portal content registry item passes in parameter for enhanced mode Warning: Watch for PeopleCode on delivered pages

30. PeopleTools UX Tips & Techniques Component interfaces for cross-component pages Wrap delivered pages in CI and call from custom page Warning: Not every component is CI-ready Single transaction implemented as multiple components Use of Transfer statement as Break FieldChangePeopleCode behind buttons (not readily accessible) “If %CompIntfcName” code

31. PeopleTools UX Tips & Techniques Make sure the delivered UX still works! Make sure the app behaves as expected in the browsers used by the app’s users

32. A Successful UX Project Clearly-defined scope broken into stages Identify fallback positions Small design team with members straddling IT and business Too many cooks in the kitchen -> paralysis Steering committee with senior management representation Clearly-defined responsibility for making decisions when there’s no consensus

33. A Successful UX Project Mock-ups Capture complete user experience Gradually increasing detail until near-screenshot quality Finalized before programming begins Create mock-up, review, analyze feedback, update mock-up, rinse and repeat Parallel efforts: Technical: How does the app need to be modified to support a new front-end? Functional: What does it do, how will the user interact with it, what will it look like?

34. A Successful UX Project Seek honest, outsider feedback Marketing/Web team “Man on the street” demos

35. Cerner eBenefits Success Story

36. Cerner Corporation Overview Cerner Corporation is the leading U.S. supplier of healthcare information technology (HIT) solutions that optimize clinical and financial outcomes. Founded in 1979 World wide: 7800 associates Average age: 35

37. Where the story begins PeopleSoft customer since 1994 User of Ben Admin and eBenefits since 2003 Administered Open Enrollment via eBenefits for both U.S. and Canadian associates Forced Positive Elections – 99+% compliance Didn’t receive feedback one way or the other about app, but question volume was high

38. The Request We need a new application for enrolling in benefits.

39. Why? Consumer-driven health plan philosophy Wanted a consumer transaction feel to enrollment Number of plans were reduced, but appeared more complicated We’re a software company. We want a better user experience

40. Challenge Already in the middle of preparing for Open Enrollment Had no available technical resources Starting with a blank slate for design

41. Solution Brought in John Beretz Leveraged great mock-ups to quickly nail down design Utilized sleek new development techniques Worked our ____ off and completed new user experience (design to production) 5 weeks!

42. Let’s see it! Quick Enroll Demo

43. The Response CEO – “I actually did it myself … and did not complain to anyone … now that is simple.” Director of Planning – “I particularly appreciated seeing my current year elections / costs side by side with my 2008 elections. The presentation was very good and addressed my main questions – specifically, I didn’t need to go outside the 1-2-3 workflow. The color/scheme/layout was clean & cool.”

44. The Response Relations Specialist – “Kudos to whomever designed the website, it felt very slick and struck the perfect balance between giving me the information I needed without overloading me with ALL the detail. I was done in less than 5 minutes, even after comparing 3-4 different enrollment options” System Engineer – “Holy crap that was awesome! This is my 3rd time enrolling in Cerner benefits and I can’t express in words just how much it has improved.”

45. The Response 95% reduction in calls during Open Enrollment!

46. Questions & Answers John Beretz, Consultant john@rockridgesolutions.com Sherry Rogers, HRIS Manager srogers@cerner.com