SWITCHY
Energy-Saving Schedule Planner App in Collaboration with EDF
Project Overview
This project was an industry collaboration with EDF (Électricité de France) which I was joining a design challenge. EDF is a major player in the global electric utility sector, known for its focus on sustainability and renewable energy.
My team and I assisted EDF in developing products, services, and systems that leverage life course changes to encourage energy-saving investments and behaviors.
My Responsibilities
UX research, Wireframing, UX/UI design
Timeline
May 2024 - Aug 2024
DEFINING
EDF suggested that our team focus on target users who are "changing their job," specifically young professionals starting out in their careers.
Through this process, we narrowed our focus to individuals transitioning from office-based work to remote work at home.
Our hypothesis:
Targeting individuals transitioning to remote work could be a promising direction for this project. This group tends to spend significantly more time at home, leading to potential changes in residential energy consumption. For EDF, whose goal is to encourage energy-saving investments and behaviors, this group represents an opportunity to influence energy habits and promote more sustainable practices.
Behavioral changes are inherently challenging to achieve. However, life events that bring about significant lifestyle shifts—such as transitioning to working from home—can create entry points to foster new habits.
SECONDARY RESEARCH
Defining the Research Questions
We began by listing key questions about our target users—people transitioning from office-based work to working from home. Our goal was to gather data to better understand this group and validate our assumption that remote workers could be a high-potential audience to engage with.
Some of the questions we explored included:
How many people in the US and UK work from home, and what is their average age?
What is their relationship with the environment?
Are they interested in saving energy?
How knowledgeable are they about energy-saving practices at home?
How does working from home impact household energy usage? (e.g., does electricity consumption increase?)
Key Findings
Remote work Statistics
The age group most likely to work remotely is 25–34 years old.
38% of the population (approximately 120 million people) work from home at least some of the time.
Environment Concerns
60% of Gen Z and Millennials feel anxious about the environment, and 70% actively make changes to their routines to address these concerns (Deloitte Survey, 2023).
83% of Gen Z renters would request their landlords to install greener energy solutions, such as air-source heat pumps, if given the option.
Gen Z (ages 16–27) frequently make eco-conscious decisions in their daily lives.
Home Energy Use
Remote work has led to a 7–23% increase in residential electricity consumption on work-from-home days (Crow & Millot, 2020).
Conclusion: Remote workers are indeed a valuable target group and present a promising entry point for encouraging changes in energy consumption habits.
METHODOLOGY
After identifying our target users, we conducted primary research through interviews and diary studies to gain a deeper understanding of their energy usage habits, uncover opportunities to change their behaviors, and understand their needs.
Interview
Through interviews, we aim to learn:
Changes in life before and after users start working from home
Concerns & difficulties
Energy beliefs and behaviors
Diary Study
Through diary studies, we aim to understand:
Get insight into the unconscious behaviors of users
Get authentic day to day behaviors of remote works
INTERVIEWS
Key Findings
Work life balance
Participants had difficulty finishing their work passed their scheduled hours, and they felt they had no choice but to keep going.
Energy usage
Participants felt guilty about using more energy than housemates when working from home.
Participants with smart meters were unaware of their consumption and did not take action to save money.
Remote work experience
Home workers struggle with focus due to lack of dedicated, distraction-free space.
Many need off-screen time, opting for recreational activities.
Journey
Based on the insights gathered from interviews, we identified four stages that users go through when transitioning from office work to remote work. Our findings indicate that the 'Beginning' stage presents the most pain points, offering a greater opportunity for intervention. By addressing these pain points, there is potential to influence users to adopt more energy-saving behaviors.
Therefore, we decided to focus on the pain points in this stage and explore solutions that integrate the remote work experience with encouraging energy-saving investments and behaviors.
KEY FINDINGS FROM DIARY STUDY
Routine: Separating Work and Rest for Better
Balance
Participants want to find ways to separate work and rest areas.
"Made lunch, I ate it in the kitchen to try to keep my breaks and workspace separated"
Routine: Guilt Over Standby Appliances
Participants kept multiple appliances on standby.
“I often feel guilty about using the computer so much during my day.”
Energy Consumption: Balancing Convenience
with Sustainability
Participants felt guilty about using energy-intensive devices and recognized the need for sustainable habits.
“ I prefer to always have my work phone charging for client calls”
Energy Consumption: Energy Reduction vs.
Device Reliability
One participant worried that consuming less energy would affect device operation during work hours.
“I don’t know how I could have reduced the energy use without risking not having my work phone or laptop working properly”
PERSONA
Based on the findings from our secondary and primary research, we developed the following target user persona
REFINING AND NARROWING PROJECT GOALS
Opportunity
How might we?
Vision Statement
We chose to design an app because it provides a convenient and accessible way for users to manage their energy use, fostering a better work-life balance and reducing energy costs.
IDEATE AND DESIGN
Brainstorming initial concepts
Social Boost During Peak
Energy Hours
Encourage users to engage in social activities outside the home during peak electricity usage periods
User Pain Points and Needs
- Too much screen time
- Poor work-life balance
- Loneliness and lack of social connection
*Routine planner: Smart
Energy Scheduling for W.L.B
Help users optimise their work and rest schedules by analyzing electricity usage habits, screen time duration, and peak/off-peak energy periods.
User Pain Points and Needs
Some participants admitted feeling guilty about the energy-intensive devices they used and recognized the need to adopt more sustainable habits.
Switch Off: A Routine for
Better Work-Life Balance
Encourage users to switch off devices at the end of their workday to create a clear boundary between work and home life.
User Pain Points and Needs
Too much screen time
Poor work-life balance
Lack of meaningful social interactions
Product goals: This app helps users establish a healthy routine by balancing work and personal life while optimizing energy use during off-peak hours.
Design Principles
Selecting Features
We categorize the app's key features into "Must have", "Should have", "Could have", and "Won't have" categories, ensuring that we prioritized the most critical functionalities.
Must Have
AI assistant energy shift recommendations
Live updates / event notifications
Day scheduler
Should Have
Be able to set notification preferences
End of day recommended 'shut off' relaxation task
Weekly roundup of energy and working routine
Could Have
Social / community elements - 'To do' list
Timer for tasks, displayed live. Monthly schedule
Energy saving suggestions beyond shifting, through educational tips.
Won't Have
Forced shutdown
Direct punishment for not doing intended behavior.
Don't want to cause conflict with others in the house through using the app.
TEST IDEAS
Storyboard
Zooming in on the use stage of the customer journey and the experience of the user we created this storyboard, which highlights the user's journey using the Switchy app to improve his/her work-life balance. We used this storyboard as a part of our user testing.
Wireframes
Wireframes not only served as a tool for the team to communicate and ensure alignment in understanding, but they were also used for user testing and gathering feedback.
User Feedback
We conducted tests with three participants to collect their opinions. Here are the key insights we gained from the interviews, which we incorporated into the subsequent interface designs.
Avoid making users feel punished
"I think flexibility is key. It's important that the AI adapts to my schedule. For example, if I need to work overtime for specific reasons and can’t do laundry during off-peak hours as suggested by the AI, I shouldn’t feel penalized for it."
Empower Users with Control Over AI
It would bother me if I couldn’t adjust the details of the AI’s suggested schedule.
KEY FEATURES
Personalization
Onboarding
Through a few simple questions, AI understand the user's preferences to provide personalised suggestions.
Setting
In addition to regular account management, we also provide more personalised options, for example, users can choose their preferred AI tone.
AI Routine Planner
AI suggestions
AI will combine a variety of factors (user preferences, schedule, time, weather, energy...) to provide users with personalized activity suggestions at different times.
Peak time indicator
On the left side of the schedule, we use shades of color to indicate peak time of electricity consumption.
Events
We use different styles of cards to display events in different states.
Dashboard
Various charts are provided to allow users to intuitively understand their electricity consumption/saving behaviour and screen time.
Users can also learn about electricity consumption/saving behavior trends over a longer period.
Roundup
We designed this mechanism and interface to help users regularly review their electricity and screen usage through engaging characters, encouraging them to adopt eco-friendly behaviors while maintaining a healthy work-life balance.
Additionally, shareable card designs enhance social media influence, providing users with a sense of accomplishment while inspiring others to raise their environmental awareness.
