Case study: A new, scalable structure for providers

The project

When our group switched to a new content management system, the 20+ provider websites we managed needed to be migrated from Sharepoint 2007 (that’s right, I said 2007!) to Oracle Web Center Sites. This was the perfect opportunity to rethink the mish-mash of architectures and dated designs to a consistently structured set of sites that would help users find information faster.

The Problem

Anthem’s Medicaid business consists of 16+ unique brands spread over 20+ websites. Although managed by one group, the existing ecosystem consisted of a mix of inherited properties, experimental layouts and a lack of overarching vision.

Additionally, there was a need to streamline the different sites to make it easier to manage from a development and content load perspective. But perhaps most importantly, making information easily findable for our providers!

Our objective

A family of responsive sites, intuitively-organized for the mental model of our users, (typically office worker types in doctors offices or hospitals) allowing them to find info quickly and efficiently (WITHOUT calling our Provider Services line for help!).

Top project goals include:

Prioritize top tools and functionality, making them easily findable
Set up an information architecture with component-based building blocks that will allow us to migrate our 20+ sites quickly, utilizing a css-only approach to scale from brand to brand and allowing for foolproof content management once the site is built.

My role

UX lead
Research & analysis
Information architecture
Wireframing
UI Design

Tools

Axure
Sketch
Google analytics

The Process

Step 1: Research

Several tools were utilized in the fact-finding mission:

User surveys
Reviewing google analytics
Conversations with Provider Relations reps and other stakeholders
Research from an outside vendor partner

The research made it clear that:

Alignment with commercial parent brand, where applicable, is crucial.
Top tasks needed to be easier to find.
Internal stakeholders wanted to know their goals were given priority.

Step 2: Create an architectural standard

We created an information architecture that housed 40+ densely populated pages that we could then apply to the 20+ provider sites we would be building.

Features include:

Simply-labeled navigation. Navigation labels utilize plain language so that users can easily intuit what might be included within a category.
Organized by priority.
Top-level nav organized in order of usage (forms, for example, has the highest usage of any page on site, so it’s parent category, Resources comes first, and within that section, forms is at the top).
Login included in top navigation. Logging in to Availity is how transactions get processed, which, in short translates to providers getting paid. Including login in the top navigation ensures availability wherever needed.
Internal linking strategy for ease of use.
In addition to features like the persistent login in the navigation, we included handy links throughout the body of the site in context. For example, users on the Claims page may be much more comfortable with paper forms (pdfs) than online transactions. Because we wanted all pdf forms to be housed on a single page, we included links from the Claims page to the Forms page.

The new layout

Organized and sustainable

A modernized structure that puts what users need where they need it

The new family of provider sites would be build upon with an architecture that would enable users to have information at their fingertips, as well as provide consistency for the sites we would be migrating.

Features of the final design include:

Simplified navigation based on recognizable categories
A set of tools containing the most-used items persistent on each page
Provider news placed front and center on the home page, to keep users informed of the latest updates
Area for highlighting resources that are important to business owners
A sub nav at the bottom of the page to help users get to what’s next on their list after a long scroll
A call-to-action area to highlight stakeholders objectives

Components & Visuals

Translating to multiple brands

Across brands, information that providers need is largely similar. There are some things unique to each market, but content could be largely the same from site to site. So, we set up a structure with the following features that would enable us to migrate quickly:

Component-based system that addresses the standard content needs that will be used from site to site.
A design that could be easily rebranded utilizing CSS only.
The components, once css is applied, would be used to build the site without any custom development (especially useful for brands with multiple markets).

As content outliers are identified, I, as a designer do not design and pass on to development. Instead, I work with the team to consider level of effort and return on investment, to ensure the “juice is worth the squeeze” so to speak. Very critical, in light of the aggressive migration schedule. We didn’t want to distract resources from the main goal unless absolutely necessary.