The Flemish government’s social housing department VMSW helps individuals to rent, buy and renovate a home, including support for taking out loans. To extend their social mortgage services, VMSW was considering to develop an online portal. Together with Peel, they explored how this would fit in their full service offering.
User-testing Assumptions and Concepts
We started with a field research of the current service as it was provided by VMSW and its partners, and the experience and needs of the target audience. Based on the findings, we developed persona’s, customer journeys and prototypes of service artefacts to find opportunities for improvements and test assumptions with representatives of the target group.
Balancing User Needs, Business Requirements and Technical Possibilities
Next, we proposed a service map with a refined concept for the portal and a number of suggestions for improvements to existing tools, roles and procedures to enhance the overall service experience. Additional technical recommendations and budget estimates allowed us to set priorities and define a roadmap for the implementation.
Throughout the project, we worked with the VMSW management team, domain experts, and representatives from partner organisations and the target audience. The Peel team consisted of two service designers, a business architect and a user experience designer.
