Floats

Empowering collaboration in remote workspaces

Overview

Braid-It, an AI startup that helps businesses create high-ROI marketing content, sponsored a 14-week speculative entrepreneur competition at School of Visual Arts, alongside Goldman Sachs and Deloitte.

With two product designers, we invented Float, an AI-powered web app that enhances employee bonding and productivity in remote work environments.

The project was awarded “Most Potential Product” among six competing concepts.

My Role

User research workshop leading

Quantitative / Qualitative Research

UI Design / Prototyping

User Testing

Motion Design from concept to production.

Solution Preview

Float, an AI-based platform designed empowering employees to discover, connect, and bond, ultimately improving both work productivity and mental health.

Process

Desk Research

Quantitative/Qualitative Research

01

HMW Workshops

Affinity Mapping

Problem Statement Definition

02

Hi-Fi Prototyping

Motion Design

Concept Video Producing

Business Modal Creation

03

Wireframing

Ideas Evaluating

Design Critique

UI Exploraitons

User Testing

04

The Problem

As the pandemic disrupted traditional work environments, employees faced difficulties in maintaining productivity and engagement during online or hybrid meetings.

The lack of casual interaction, chances to grow, and the sense of belongings in remote working reduce employees’ productivity in work. These also lead to mental issues and high turnover costs.

Discover

Desk Research

By collaborating with Braid-It AI experts, we gained valuable insights into workspaces and AI technology through the lenses of sociology, psychology, economics, and science.

Research areas encompassed:

  • What and how does remote work impact human mentally and physically.

  • How do existing platforms for teamwork utilize AI tech.

  • Logic of LLM/NLP

  • How does low working efficiency impact the US economy

Quantitative/Qualitative Research

To gather objective insights, I interviewed employees from various tech companies, ranging from small-scale startups to large corporations. These participants included junior employees, senior managers, and CEOs. My goal was to uncover the challenges they faced in remote work environments and synthesize these findings to inform our design decisions.

Key Insights

After synthesizing our findings, we concluded that remote work weakens employees’ sense of belonging, leading to lower well-being, reduced performance, and increased business costs.

Workspace Interaction

  • Casual interactions and connections are essential for a fulfilling and engaging work experience but are often lacking in remote settings.

  • This lack of interaction limits opportunities for inspiration, support, and growth.

Employee Well-beings

  • A strong sense of belonging boosts job performance by 56%, reduces turnover risk by 50%, and cuts sick days by 75%.

  • 47% of leaders identify relationship-building as the biggest challenge in remote and hybrid work.

Business Costs

  • 84% of employees feel lonely and isolated at least part of the time, with 17% feeling this way all the time.

  • Loneliness and isolation are the most frequently reported concerns among remote workers.

Define

User Persona Spectrum

Junior

Engineering Intern

  • Builds connections with the team and expand professional network.

  • Requires support and guidance from colleagues.

  • Desires opportunities to learn from coworkers.

Senior

Marketing Manager

  • Has an established close bond with teammates.

  • Prefers to engage in casual interactions with colleagues.

  • Values staying updated on company news and discussions.

Executive

CTO

  • Has an extended professional network beyond the company.

  • Balances family responsibilities and has limited time for daily social interactions with colleagues.

HMW improve employees’ well-beings by refilling the lack of casual interactions in remote workspaces with AI technology.

Solution Brainstorming

After brainstorming tons of solutions through workshops, we evaluated ideas based on user needs and potential impact.

Evaluation Metrics

  • Casual interactions

  • Mutual support

  • Sense of community and belonging

  • Fostering collaboration and team trust

  • Opportunities for growth (learning and mentorship)

Final Solution

An AI-powered desktop app that creates a casual digital workspace, enabling employees to discover, connect, and bond with their coworkers.

UI Exploration / User Testing

I initiated the information architecture and low-fidelity concepts for primary use cases. After receiving approval from stakeholders on the mockups, we conducted usability tests with the low-fidelity designs. We then iterated multiple times based on design critiques and user feedback to ensure the product was user-centered and intuitive.

Testing Insights

  • Understanding how a new tool works is essential for onboarding.

  • Personalization boosts user engagement.

  • A sense of control is crucial in a workspace.

  • Iteration 1

  • Iteration 2

  • Iteration 3

  • Iteration 4

  • Iteration 5

Deliver

Float, an AI-based platform designed empowering employees to discover, connect, and bond, ultimately improving both work productivity and mental health.

01 Enter

Onboarding and building the data pool for AI

As a new service, we used conversational onboarding to guide users and show them how Float works.

It’s also a step for the AI modal and seamless in-app experience.

02 Enter -> Engage

Explore and connect with peers

Employees can explore, meet, and interact with each other through the digital space and profiles, with those sharing common interests or topics positioned nearby.

This approach makes asking questions, meeting, and bonding more seamless and natural.

03 Engage

Interact through natural, secure, and spontaneous chats

Joining a chat is as easy as walking by coworkers in the office, with a highly interactive UI that fosters easier bonding.

Users can also make temporary chats private to ensure greater privacy.

04 Engage

You ask question, AI helps you find the answer

With AI suggestions, employees can easily ask questions, and the AI will recommend the best person to answer, fostering a culture of support and collaboration.

05 Engage

Build connections through fun and casual events

Employees can easily join events to learn, have fun, and build connections, with related events suggested for better engagement.

06 Extend

Balance “do-not-disturb” mode with social connections

Focus Mode enables employees to easily switch between focused work and social activities, boosting productivity in casual digital workspaces.

Market Size

The online working platform has immense market potential. By presenting this project and its market prospects to the judges, we won the Most Potential Product Award among six innovation teams.

is the expected amount of money for the video conferencing market by “2026”

Global Market Insights Inc. 2020

will spend the budget on video conferencing

Pepperland Marketing 2021

Takeaways

Simplicity and clarity are strength

It’s easy to be drawn to trendy, out-of-the-box designs. We must always remember the “why” — our goal is to understand the user, their problems, and create solutions that truly address them, especially when introducing new technologies to the product.

Seek out feedback early and continually

Many of us prefer the comfort of praise over the value of constructive criticism. However, involving stakeholders and users early on and testing solutions—whether paper, low-fi, or hi-fi—can guide us through a more effective design process.

Prioritize and setting constrains

Setting constraints based on user insights and prioritize impactful solutions help make the solution more focused and to the point.

Components