Improving feature discoverability in Power BI
Evaluating the compact view’s usability for easy content readability and customization for novice users
Data-driven design | Data visualization | Desktop
Focusing on Compact View, a new addition to Power BI’s interactive data visualization tools.
In this Microsoft-sponsored study, we focused on Power BI's ‘Metrics’ module, which centralizes KPI and goal tracking for team visibility. We examined the ‘Compact View’ that condenses information so users can access metrics without scrolling, focusing on how users find the ‘compact view’ and customize columns within ‘Metrics’.
Impact: 3 feasible, data-driven suggestions based on usability tests.
Based on the usability test findings, my team and I came up with design recommendations that resulted in:
9
usability tests which revealed an initial average SUS score of 72.
85.7%
reduction in clicks to enter edit mode for customizing content (from 7 to 1).
2x
increase in user rating for ease of finding the button to change views (from 3/5 to 5/5).
jump to solution
Overview:
Duration
3 months (2023)
Tools
Figma, MS Office, Zoom
Collaborators (4)
UX designer + analyst: Ak (me)
1 UX designer
2 UX researchers
My contributions
Usability testing (scriptwriting, moderation, note-taking)
Analysis (Affinity mapping)
Prototyping (hi-fi)
Setting the scope
Exploring discoverability and readability in compact view
The study’s purpose was to assess and improve discovering, finding, and customizing views within Power BI’s ‘Metrics’.
We worked with a Microsoft UX researcher to identify key features to explore during the usability testing, including Compact View and Edit Mode.
01
Evaluating ‘compact view’ discoverability
Assess how users find and understand the Compact View feature.
02
Understanding ‘edit mode’ findability
Determine if users can easily find and enter Edit Mode to customize columns.
03
User expectations for customization options
Discover best practices to meet user expectations for customizing column settings.
We conducted moderated, task-based usability tests combined with semi-structured interviews
The tasks were derived from the research questions and centered around the findability of the features.
Finding 1
Issues in changing views
Switch between list view and compact view is unclear.
Severity ranking 3 (Minor) as it impacted several users causing minor levels of frustration and increasing time to complete tasks.
Before
Design recommendations
Finding 2
Issues in customizing columns
The ‘edit mode’ is not discoverable.
Severity ranking: 1 (Critical) as it prevents users from entering edit mode to edit column information.
Before: A clip of a user trying to locate the edit button.
Design recommendations
The entry to column settings is confusing.
Severity ranking: 2 (Major) as it prevents users from editing column information.
Before
Design recommendations
Measuring success
So, what’s the impact?
Presented the design recommendations to the MS design leadership.
Born from the users' frustration, we presented these findings and solutions to 30+ designers and researchers at Microsoft and got very positive feedback.
“Super awesome work! I think you did a great job at laying out your findings in a methodical and easy to understand way. They will be very instrumental in us improving this feature!”
Principal Design Manager @Microsoft
If I had more time, I would...
01
Recruit participants from a diverse demographic pool
Due to time and resource constraints, the study was limited to novice Power BI users in Seattle. I would also talk to users from varying expertise outside of Seattle for more nuanced suggestions.
02
Observe users use the tool, rather than give only tasks
Although we gained valuable insights, the task order we provided may have influenced users' perceptions of the compact view feature. In real-life usage, users might interact with the interface differently to achieve their own goals, rather than the objectives of our test.
