Tax Research Search Wizard

Stage Two

Assumption to be Tested, a potential solution (product) with an assumed value that a customer would be willing to pay for (value proposition).

Objectives & Key Results

Validate the user journey and synthesize the results into prototypes and a site structure.
- Prototypes
- Site Structure
Identify the final target customer(s) from existing personas.
- Personas
Synthesize research results to define the information architecture.
- Information Architecture
Determine the product's singular core concept and
- Concept
… related features and functions.
- Features
Create all necessary documentation for the Minimum Viable Product (MVP).
- Documentation

Success Metrics

Quantitative

Survey Respondents

25
Interviews Conducted

8

Qualitative

Wireframes & Lo-Fi prototypes

9
Site Structure

✓
Personas

2
Hi-Fi & Clickable prototypes

5
Information Architecture

✓
Product Concept

✓
Product Features

5
Documentation

✓

Through market research, customer and/or subject matter expert (SME) interviews, a single proposed solution was to be identified and validated worthy of becoming a minimum viable product (MVP).

Process & Results

Product Themes and Ideas

Identifying a product's value

By grouping like concepts together and counting the frequency that those frustrations were voiced, a pattern emerged - themes. These themes connect users and their journeys with specific pain points.

This provides an initial glimpse of what drives a user's overall satisfaction and the features and functions of a solution. Over the next series of steps the themes are narrowed down to just one core product concept and a minimum set of features required. A minimum product offering with significant value to develop a customer base.

From Stage One's Problems to Solve, the features that our product might offer were categorized into 5 key themes containing a total of 30 ideas.

Relationship Management
- Needs
Common customer relationship management (CRM) features for tax research to build effective client relationships.

5 ideas addressing pain points
Visual Mapping
- Accuracy
- Transparency
Multiple ways to visualize data to make content easier to digest and understand.

9 ideas addressing pain points
Flexibility
- Needs
Flexible search to accommodate a user's preferences and their complex research needs.

6 Ideas addressing pain points
Customization
- Change
- Needs
Customizable settings to keep everyone up to date on the information most pertinent to their needs.

4 ideas addressing pain points
Automation
- Accuracy
- Change
The tools to keep track of client communication and tax goals, alerting users of changes to any relevant data.

6 ideas addressing pain points

Through ideation sessions and/or interviews, the product themes and ideas were reviewed to determine the minimally-required features and functions the product should offer.

Lo-Fi Prototypes

User Journey

validate, sequence & assign pain levels
- Validate search method preferences, required steps, & key variables.
- Identify common process deviations and where in research process deviation occurs.
- Sequence all steps taken and associated painpoints per user.
Flexible Search

the moment and criteria to proceed
- Review common collections of steps taken for research goals.
- Determine all research subjects and their processes that share a group of steps.
- Identify checkpoints within processes that provide a logical fork in the research path.
Organizational Structures

insight management & documentation
- Collect approaches taken by tax researchers to organize research findings.
- Identify team collaboration and client communication requirements within a tax research project.
- Determine triggers for returning to previous research findings, documenting updates or adding new insights gained.

Research Bias Averted

An A/B/C test of user search method preferences had indicated the suggested solution was minimally (<10%) desidered. SMEs preferred the search methods that was NOT the suggested option, addressing the unwritten project goal. Additionally, this validated the innovation process as a trustworthy analytical tool within the organization - que the ominous music.

Site Structure

Personas

RE: search tools and data visualization for clearer search results pointing to relevant sources.

… it has no direct answers; you have to continuously depend on other sources …

Tax Attorney
RE: customer relationship management for tax projects, supporting effective team/client communication.

… it's hard because every client has different wants and specific tax needs to address …

Compliance Officer

The product themes and ideas, having been used to create the Lo-Fi prototypes and interview materials, validated the user journey, defined the site structure and identified our target customers.

Concepts, Features and Associated Functions

Research focused on the following 3 product concepts and their features, with a total of 11 functions.

Guided Search using Wizard
- Needs
Research methods for complex research needs.

3 functions addressing pain points
Filter Search Results
- Accuracy
- Transparency
- Needs
Search preferences for a clear understanding of the results.

4 functions addressing pain points
Recent Updates
- Accuracy
- Change
Research that remains up-to-date to ongoing regulatory changes.

4 functions addressing pain points

The key product features and associated functions were incorporated into presentation materials for the next set of SME interviews.

Hi-Fi Prototypes

Guided Search using Wizard

methods for complex research
- Multiple research paths supporting a range of preexisting subject knowledge.
- Search queries built over a sequence of questions, following common research methods.
- Questions that progress from the broadest to the most narrowly focused criteria.
Filter Search Results

surfacing results and refining search criteria
- Search queries representing logical and hierarchical research subjects.
- Tools to broaden, narrow or reuse search criteria.
- Standard methods, categories and terms simplifying complex tax law and research tasks.
Recent Updates

keeping up-to-date on regulatory change
- Maintain continuous regulatory awareness with update notifications.
- Historical references documenting previous determinations and research sources.
- Research tools supporting effective collaboration and communication.

Documentation & Takeaways