This research began with the question of, “How might we better understand the existing Veteran experience when applying for disability compensation online?”

1. UNDERSTAND //
INSIGHTS: EBENEFITS 526EZ
10/ 06/ 17 | REPORT BY LAURA COCHRAN

2. ABOUT THIS REPORT
This research began with the question of, “How
might we better understand the existing
Veteran experience when applying for disability
compensation online?”

4. “Right now, my head just
hurts.”
— DAVE

5. TODAY’S OBJECTIVE
Share the findings from the eBenefits disability
compensation baseline usability sessions.

6. CLUSTERINGSESSION DOWNLOAD
FINDINGS &
OPPORTUNITY RECOGNITIONRAW DATA CONCEPTS
PRIOR RESEARCH
THEME ONE THEME TWO
THEME THREE THEME FOUR
OPPORTUNITIES
FINDINGS
INTERVIEWS
CONCEPT 1
CONCEPT 2
CONCEPT 3
THE METHOD

7. WHAT WE DID
3
300MINUTES WITH
FUTURE APPLICANTS
EXTREME USER
TYPES
3USE EBENEFITS
WEEKLY
30+PAGES OF PREVIOUS
QUALITATIVE & QUANTITATIVE
RESEARCH
5IN-DEPTH USER
INTERVIEWS
1CERTIFIED
OFFICER

8. OUR FINDINGS
The opportunities are in what’s missing — signals that
provide transparency, feedback and show empathy.
This creates an uncomfortable, anxiety inducing experience.
This leads to more misinformation and over sharing.

9. OUR FINDINGS
The physical activity required to locate information is
not acknowledged by the system and the system is
not designed in a way that lets the Veteran know it is
ok and expected to step away.

10. 75%*WOULD SAVE AND EXIT
OR SKIP UPLOADING EVIDENCE
75%*WOULD GOOGLE
THE SPELLING OF TINNITUS
100%CHECKED THE BOX
WITHOUT READING THE TERMS
100%WOULD NOT KNOW
SPECIFIC DATES
OUR FINDINGS

11. BUSINESS VALUE
These findings provide a framework:
To identify future products or feature enhancements that will increase
self-service adoption;
To create experiences that map to the mental model of the Veteran,
focusing on the human experience first.

12. CONTENT

13. FINDING 1
The Veteran wants to build a rapport, begin a relationship, so they
can get the help they need. But, they feel they’re immediately thrown
into a courtroom.
Terms like “building a story,” “assembling” and “present a case” were used to describe the role of the applicant.
13
“Thought you would pump the brakes kinda like open enrollment.”
BILL

14. “Will this hurt me later?”
— DAVE

15. FINDING 2
When you do talk to me, I cannot tell if we are friends.
Feedback from the system throughout the application is confusing or non-existent.
15
“This is giving me anxiety, because I don't know what these things mean, if your
[my] application might not move forward.”
GABE

16. FINDING 3
The longer this relationship continues, the more uncertain I become
about where it is headed.
The “weight of the process” increases with every minute invested. Veterans move quickly through the initial stages
of the form then slow down more after each stage, becoming less confident in their ability to provide the right
information.
16
“I feel the weight of the process even as Herman [the persona].”
DAVE

17. FINDING 4
While effective, the “workflow” is overwhelming when shown all at
once.
People that read everything, recognized the navigation immediately, while your typical “scanner” only noticed
either the left or top navigation.
17

20. Scrolled through entire list until he found sleep apnea, missing the typeahead completely.
Typed “tin” then “ten” and stopped. Then, he went to Google to search for “Tinnitis” so he knew how to spell it.
Said tinnitis and paused. He said he would Google it or look at his medical records.
Searched for “ringing in the ears” first and found it. Then, searched for “tinnitis.” After finding both said they
were the same and that one was a symptom of the problem while the other was a diagnosis.
Typed “migraines” and no results were given. Had to be prompted to type “migraine.”
Tried to select another condition to add instead of going back to the “Disabiilties Overview” page again.
WHAT PEOPLE DID ALONG THE WAY

22. FINDING 5
Tension between speed, trust and control climax at adding evidence
People want the process to be fast, but they also want it to be accurate. And, this “sounds like a real chore.”
22
“I feel like this is a dead end, because it hasn't pulled, I said yes [been to a VA
medical center] but now none of the information is visible.”
BILL

23. TAKEAWAYS
While the interface certainly can be
improved, it was never a blocker to
completing tasks.

24. TAKEAWAYS
The anxiety came from the unknown and the
disconnect between the real world activities
and virtual activities necessary to complete
the application.

25. FINDINGS SUMMARY
The Veteran wants to build a rapport, begin a relationship, so they can get the help they need. But, they feel they’re
immediately thrown into a courtroom.
When you do talk to me, I cannot tell if we are friends.
The longer this relationship continues, the more uncertain I become about where it is headed.
While effective, the “workflow” is overwhelming when shown all at once.
Tension between speed, trust and control climax at adding evidence

26. THANK YOU. QUESTIONS?