MAS-Getting started

This was an exploratory research project I led at IBM. The high level objective was to understand and improve the user experience for customers when they start using the Maximo Application Suite (MAS). MAS is an enterprise asset management tool.

Research kit

These are the tools I used to conduct this research.

EnjoyHQ

Research tool. I used this to transcribe interviews and tag data to extract themes.

Webex

Video conferencing tool. I used this to conduct user interviews.

Mural

Digital whiteboard. I used this to synthesis data from the interviews and work collaboratively with stakeholders.

IBM Sheldon

Internal repository. I used this for secondary research.

Box

File storage system. I used this to store information like the research plan and secondary research findings.

Calendly

I used this to schedule user interviews

Research background & goals

After customers install Maximo Application Suite to manage their assets, they often reported challenges with setting up the suite and using it. This research set out to understand Maximo customers experiences, expectations and motivations post-installation into getting started with the suite.

Goal 1

Understanding customer expectations when they start using MAS.

Goal 2

Understanding the challenges user face when getting started with MAS related to understanding the licensing model and how application points within the suite work.

Goal 3

Understanding how to improve the experience for new customers related to understanding the licensing model and managing app-points when they start using MAS.

Goal 4

Understanding what prevents customers from using other functionalities of the MAS.

Methodology

This research was conducted in 2 phases. Each participants was interviewed for 45 minutes.

Phase 1- 1-1 interviews with 7 internal stakeholders.
The participants interviewed where reliability engineers, product managers and customer success managers.
Phase 2- 1-1 interviews with 8 customers.
The external participants were recruited through the IBM internal list of research participants