Scheduling
Mobile App
Field Operations
Streamlining Technician Scheduling for Faster Job Assignments
Designed a mobile-first scheduling experience that enabled technicians to view, manage, and adjust jobs on the go. Improved scheduling efficiency, reduced coordination delays, and increased technician productivity by ensuring real-time updates and seamless task management.
Process Highlights
Project Explanation
My Team
1 Product Designers
1 Product Manager
2 Engineers
Responsibilities
UX Research
Journey Mapping
Wire-framing
Prototyping
Usability Testing
Design Systems
Handoff
Disciplines
User Experience Design
User Interface Design
Product Design
Interaction Design
Motion Design
Tools
Figma
FigJam
After Effects
Background
Our iOS users lacked a scheduling feature entirely—while Android users had access through a PWA, the experience was clunky and outdated. This created a gap: dispatchers and technicians on iOS couldn’t manage schedules in the field, while Android users struggled with a less-than-ideal tool.
“By analysing CRM data and platform gaps, we understood how dispatchers and technicians managed jobs today, and where competitors offered stronger solutions.”
That insight led us to design SmartScheduler, a unified scheduling experience built natively for iOS and upgraded on Android. More than just filling a gap, our goal was to create the best scheduling tool in the market, turning it into a differentiator against competitors and a USP for ZenFire.
Double Diamond (with Lean UX)
Methodology
1
Discover
Platform matrix analysis (iOS gap and PWA issues)
CRM user insights (dispatchers & technicians)
Competitive benchmarking
Identified scheduling pain points
2
Define
Experience principles: real-time, simple, flexible, reliable
Core user journeys (dispatcher - technician)
Feature prioritisation
Alignment with product & engineering
3
Develop
Hypotheses for key flows (drag & drop, rescheduling)
Low: high fidelity prototypes
Quick usability tests & stakeholder reviews
Iterations based on feedback
4
Deliver
Unified Scheduler (iOS and improved PWA)
Integrated into design system for scalability
Post-launch adoption tracking
Positioned as USP against competitors
Research
Discover
Problem Statement
Scheduling in the field was fragmented and inefficient. iOS users had no scheduler, while Android PWA users relied on outdated flows. Technicians struggled to schedule jobs properly, and managers had no visibility into technician calendars or live locations. This led to double bookings, idle time, and poor job assignments since dispatchers couldn’t assign tasks to the nearest available technician. Without a unified, real-time scheduling system, productivity and customer response times suffered.
Research
A platform matrix analysis revealed gaps between iOS, PWA, and competitor tools. CRM data showed recurring issues: missed scheduling opportunities, technician delays, and poor workload distribution. Competitive benchmarking highlighted real-time features such as live location tracking and manager visibility as baseline standards in the industry. These insights made it clear: a cross-platform, real-time scheduler with live tracking was essential to improve efficiency and create a USP for ZenFire.
Requirement Gathering From Stakeholders
To build hypotheses and define priorities, I conducted stakeholder research with people across functions. This included technicians, managers, back-office staff, and internal stakeholders (onboarding, account management, product). I also reviewed backlog requests related to scheduling.
Technicians: Ability to schedule jobs directly from the field, update status in real-time, and avoid double bookings.
Manager: Visibility into technician schedules, live location tracking, and tools to assign the right job to the right person instantly.
Back Office: Reduced scheduling conflicts, easier coordination between teams, and fewer manual updates.
Internal Stakeholders: Parity across iOS and PWA, consistent design system, and competitive differentiation.
Total participants: 10, selected to ensure balanced insights before moving forward.
UNDERSTANDING FIELD SCHEDULING WORKFLOW
While analysing the scheduling process, we identified critical inefficiencies that directly impacted technician productivity and manager decision-making. Here's what we found:
Technicians on iOS had no scheduling option, forcing them to rely on manual communication with managers.
Android PWA users faced outdated scheduling flows, making updates slow and error-prone.
Managers had no visibility into technician calendars unless shared manually, leading to scheduling overlaps.
The lack of live location tracking prevented managers from assigning jobs to the nearest available technician.
Dispatchers often spent additional time resolving conflicts and reassigning jobs, which delayed service delivery.
“These insights highlight critical inefficiencies in the estimation workflow, directly impacting customer retention and revenue growth.”
Platform Data Insights - From ZenFire
Current scheduling flows were inefficient and underutilized. Drop-offs above 40–60% showed the PWA wasn’t solving technician or manager needs. Without iOS support and live tracking, scheduling was fragmented and costly.
High drop-offs in scheduling flows
47% of users dropped after ticket creation without reaching the scheduler.
On the assignment list view, ~67% dropped before completing scheduling.
Engagement gaps
Only ~11% of users who reached the scheduler actually navigated to the ticket list.
23.5% of users dropped completely from the flow after reaching scheduler or assignment lists.
Platform-specific gaps
iOS: No scheduler available, managers forced to rely on back office.
Android (PWA): High failure and error-prone flows, with majority of users abandoning before completing a schedule.
Competitive benchmarks
Most competitors offered real-time scheduler + live technician tracking.
ZenFire lacked both parity and differentiation on iOS and Android.
Competitor Analysis
I analysed leading scheduling tools (Jobber, Inspect Point, House Call Pro) to benchmark features and identify opportunities to differentiate ZenFire’s Scheduler.
Workflow Efficiency
Multiple calendar views (day, week, month, map).
Quick job creation via slot selection or add button.
Real-time sync across devices.
Reduced steps to assign or reschedule jobs.
User experience
Clear, simple interfaces with calendar-based navigation.
Technician-friendly mobile design (minimal taps, strong visibility).
Map-based job assignment for proximity scheduling.
Visual cues for visit frequency and job status.
Feature Set
Live technician tracking and location-aware job assignment.
Visit details (name, location, status, recurring jobs).
Past/future visit history.
Integrated notifications for dispatchers and technicians.
Market Differentiators
Competitors provide strong baseline features but lack consistency across platforms.
Few tools focus on real-time visibility for managers in the field.
My opportunity: design a unified iOS + PWA scheduler with live tracking, positioned as a USP.
Inspection Agent
ZenTrades CRM