Inclusion-focused hackathon project
I competed in an internal Expedia Group hackathon where I worked with a team of designers, software engineers, and product managers over two days to create a product that helped travelers from diverse groups have a more inclusive travel experience. Our project placed in the top of 10 of over 220 teams. We presented to the company’s CEO and other leaders. I can only share broad details about this internal work.
Quick info
Timeline: July 2020
My role: Content designer and prototype video editor
Problem statement
Underrepresented travelers encounter negative and discriminatory situations during travel.
Design question
How can we make travel more inclusive and safe for underrepresented travelers?
Objectives
Understand what makes travel a good or bad experience for underrepresented travelers
Create clear and inclusive content that helps users easily navigate through the experience
Create an experience that meets user needs and stands out from the other hackathon projects
My journey
Discover/define
Since we only had two days to design an experience from concept to prototype, we didn’t have time to conduct in-depth user research. I conducted secondary research using online articles to gain insight into the unique experiences of travelers who experienced discrimination while traveling. I also conducted a competitive analysis to learn what solutions other companies and organizations used to address the issue. Next, I analyzed the feedback submitted by travelers related to discrimination. I also interviewed members of the Inclusion and Diversity team to gain their expertise in the inclusive travel space. We triangulated these methods to define pain points and needs.
Using these insights, we determined what design solution would best meet user needs.
Develop
First, we created user flows to identify the tasks that users would take through the experience.
I applied my learnings from the user research and Expedia Group content guidelines to create the content for our design solution. Inclusive language was critical to ensuring users felt respected and understood. I worked closely with the Inclusion and Diversity team to ensure I was following Expedia Group’s inclusive language guidance.
I also applied content design best practices, so new users could easily navigate the experience. Banners with link text were used to make users aware of the new feature. We used tooltips to define language that users may not be familiar with.
We mocked up the layout of content using Figma. The UX designer worked on the layout of the experience and the software engineers implemented our solution.
After we finalized our prototype in Figma, I used Camtasia video software to create and edit the video for our hackathon presentation.
Deliver
We advanced through multiple rounds of the hackathon and addressed questions and critique from the audience.
Results
We advanced to the final round and presented our hackathon project to the Expedia Group CEO. Our project placed in the top 10 of over 220 projects.
Challenges
The hackathon was virtual, so my team was spread across multiple countries and time zones. We hadn’t met prior to the event, so we weren’t familiar with each other’s working styles. Clear communication about expectations were essential to making progress. Each morning we held a meeting where we divided up the work and discussed what barriers we encountered. I developed a list ahead of the meeting that summarized what I accomplished and problems with potential solutions.
Virtual meetings are sometimes a challenge because it can be difficult to identify the non-verbal cues that indicate when someone is going to begin speaking. This led to group members talking over others who had a quieter voice. In these situations, I made sure that the person who was interrupted also had a chance to share their thoughts and ideas. I believe a group is most effective when everyone is respected and valued.