Lisa and Sebahat are interns and were both involved in the product development of the new Onboarding app, but from completely different perspectives. Sebahat focused on users, while Lisa was directly involved in the technical and content-related design and development. I spoke with both of them about their experiences. Follow my two-part blog post to find out more about the background of the product development.
Hello Lisa. What valuable insights were you able to contribute to the development of the app, based on your own experience?
Lisa: Since I’m an intern myself, I’m part of the target group. Many of the questions that I had at the beginning of my internship have been incorporated in the app content. In addition, we also surveyed other potential users in the company to find out which needs the app had to cover. And we had extensive interaction with the Onboarding Squad, in which other students are doing their internships. So to a certain extent, you could say the app is “by interns, for interns.”
What was it like when you got started at the company? Do you wish you had an app like this?
Lisa: My mentor and my predecessor did a very good job with my onboarding. Nonetheless, during my first days at work, I often had questions for which I lacked a simple first point of contact. Everything is somewhere and there’s a right contact person for everything, of course – but it’s more motivating when I have the opportunity to find out for myself. That’s what the Onboarding app is for. What I really like about it: The onboarding journey in the app doesn’t start on your first day at work, but instead beforehand. During the “preboarding” phase, new employees gain initial insights into Deutsche Telekom, so they can optimally prepare for their first day at work.
That sounds good, especially since everyone knows how intense the onboarding time can be. How does the app simplify onboarding?
Lisa: The app is a reliable guide. It has an integrated checklist, for example, that gives interns a structure for the first days and weeks. Even more important: The app will help us improve networking among the intern community! On their first day at work, app users receive an invitation to a chat group where they can connect with their peers and exchange information in a simple way. The chat group can also be used to organize meetings and informal gatherings.
To what extent were you able to incorporate the skills you’ve learned during your studies in the everyday work on the app?
Lisa: Project management skills definitely helped me to set priorities and keep track of the big picture. It wasn’t always easy to manage the two perspectives simultaneously – admin and user. It showed me how valuable it can be to interact with the target group and collaborate on interdisciplinary teams.
Thanks, Lisa. You’ve really given us some interesting insights. It’s great to hear that you, an intern, have contributed so much to the experience of future interns. In the second part of this interview, you’ll find out how Sebahat experienced the Onboarding app as a user and how it made her onboarding process easier. Stay tuned… 😉
The second part of the interview, in which Sebahat gives insight in user experience topics, you can read here.
