The Problem
The accruals process is a legacy feature that needs to be updated to the new CounselLink UI. To create an accrual our users must go through a wizard process of multiple pages, that is not inline with the current standards of the application. When adding law firms or vendors to an accrual the user must use an outdated search method to select them.
The Goal
The goal of this project was to streamline the accruals process without losing current functionality, while also converting accruals to the new UI standard for CounselLink.
The Old
When creating an accrual the user must use an outdated wizard to create it. This process is clunky and out of sync with other pages within the application. Forcing users to scroll through multiple pages for this process is unnecessary. The accrual creation page was identified as a key pain point through user data.
Step two in the accruals process requires the user to set up the accrual table. Using a selector the user is able to select which columns they want displayed on the accrual overview page.
Key Pain Points
Through user data and client feedback we identified the process of adding an accrual period to an accrual. Users are copying accruals and re-entering the data to create an additional period. A user wishing to create a monthly accrual would have to complete this task 12 times.
Using Accruals as a container for accrual periods, cuts the amount of effort tremendously. The user can create an accrual and add additional periods from the overview page. The user can also transfer all information from the previous period to the new, with a click of a button.
Consolidating the three page creation process into a single create page reduces the amount of time the user spends while creating an accrual. The user no longer has to select which law firms to include during the creation process, and is now able to add them separately to an accrual period as needed.
Accrual duration and structure fields are automatically filled when selecting standard dates such as quarterly or monthly.
The accrual overview page now reflects other overview pages within the application. The user can now add an additional accrual period by clicking the link in the drop down under the periods section
Prototype
This prototype takes the user through the new accrual process. Overall we were able to achieve our goal of maintaining the current functionality while streamlining the process of creating accruals. Early user testing identified features that will be looked into in future iterations. The new accruals process has been well received during testing and client calls.