Unlocking Flexible Workspaces Globally
Hotdesk is an app that enables employees and companies to book coworking spaces or meeting rooms on-demand. We identified key problems through user feedback and analytics
Company
Hotdesk
Role:
Senior Product Designer
Industry:
Co-working Spaces and Hybrid Work
Preview
hotdesk.com
My Focus
I led the end-to-end design process from research and ideation to prototyping and delivery, working closely with cross-functional stakeholders to ensure a seamless launch.
Overview
Scope
UX Design
Illustration
Planning & Prioritization
Facilitation
Tools
Figma
Asana
Google Meets
Slack
Duration
8 weeks
The Problem
Employees and companies were frustrated by the complexity of the onboarding flow and the lack of guidance to explore features like multi-location bookings and workspace recommendations.
Additionally, users who completed a booking had little motivation to return, and we needed to test ways to encourage repeat usage.
Research & Insights
I started by collecting quantitative and qualitative data:
User interviews
Spoke to frequent and churned users to identify friction points in the flow.
Usability testing
Conducted tests on the existing onboarding flow to uncover why new users dropped off.
Analytics deep dive
Discovered users were more likely to return if they booked spaces with amenities like free coffee or parking, which weren’t emphasized during the flow.
Key Insights
Users need clear guidance through the onboarding journey to make their first booking quickly.
Recommendations for amenities based on location could increase engagement.
Users preferred a mobile-first design, but desktop users required access to custom enterprise solutions.
Exploration & Ideation
Using the insights, we explored several divergent ideas to solve both the engagement and onboarding issues:
Onboarding: Three Concept Directions
Progressive Onboarding: Step-by-step guidance only revealing relevant features during use.
Instant Booking Demo: A first-time use walkthrough that mimics a real booking experience.
Personalized Setup: Asking users key questions (like location preference) upfront to tailor recommendations.
Chosen Path
I combined Progressive Onboarding with a Personalized Setup, ensuring users see relevant spaces and amenities right away, implementing Smart Recommendations first as it aligned with business goals and reduced cognitive load on users.
Design Process
Wireframing
I created wireframes in Figma to map out new user flows. The goal was to make onboarding intuitive, with progress indicators showing users how close they were to their first booking.
Visual Design
& UI Iterations
I prioritized accessibility by testing color contrasts and ensuring text legibility across devices.
Prototyping & User Testing
Created interactive prototypes in Figma and conducted user testing sessions with 8 users from different segments.
Challenges & Decision Points
Overwhelming experience
Initial feedback showed that some users still felt overwhelmed by too many options in the booking flow.
I simplified the booking screen by prioritizing relevant recommendations at the top and moving less frequently used features.
User needs alignment
Aligning product goals with user needs. The business wanted to push enterprise features, but users cared more about amenities.
I found a middle ground by integrating enterprise features into the Personalized Setup, surfacing them only when relevant (e.g., group bookings for teams).
Onboarding Flow
Booking Flow
Final Design
Impact
Onboarding Completion: 20% increase in users completing their first booking within 24 hours.
Engagement: 15% uplift in repeat bookings within the first month.
Smart Recommendations Adoption: 30% of bookings used the recommended spaces with key amenities like parking and coffee.
We also rolled out A/B tests to further optimize engagement strategies, testing the impact of badges and personalized emails, with promising early results.
Reflection & Learnings
This project was a valuable lesson in balancing business objectives with user needs.
User empathy is critical: Deep research and iterative design help build user trust.
Collaboration is key: Regular syncs with engineering and product teams ensured smooth implementation.
Experiment and learn: We continuously tested new ideas to discover what resonated most with users.
If given the opportunity to lead a similar project again, I would allocate more time for ongoing experimentation to further leverage AI and personalized recommendations.