access to data

Process understanding through UX research & journey mapping, 2025

Confidentiality disclaimer

The images displayed on this page are independently recreated replicas of the original project work, produced solely for portfolio purposes. No confidential information, original assets, internal workflows, or copyrighted material are shown.

Problem & goal

Problem

While users could quickly identify relevant data, getting approved access took weeks or even months. The process involved many roles, systems, and strict governance, making it complex and opaque. Its non-linear nature meant it couldn’t be captured in a classic, linear user journey map and required adapting the method to reflect real workflows.

Goal

My goal was to create a shared, holistic understanding of the access process by mapping both workflows and lived experiences. By involving all roles, I aimed to uncover real friction points and identify the best opportunities to speed up access without compromising data protection.

Context

This work was part of an internal research application that enables teams across research, development, and commercial functions to find and use specific data. As UX strategist, I supported the product team in improving how users access this data after discovery.

Research & mapping

Step 1: Building a foundation

I familiarised myself with the existing business process map and governance frameworks, and experienced the access journey myself by submitting dummy requests. To capture all perspectives, I conducted 14 user journey interviews with end users (scientists, directors, researchers), access managers, approvers, and those responsible for data provisioning.

Step 2: Analysing and mapping complexity

Interview insights were analysed in Dovetail and continuously translated into a growing journey map. The map evolved alongside my understanding, layering roles, jobs to be done, pain points, systems, user quotes, dependecies and timelines.

Step 3: Validating reality

To ensure accuracy, I reviewed the journey map with the key users involved in the process. Their feedback helped me to confirm my assumptions, fill in the gaps and refine the map, ensuring that it reflected real-life experience rather than just analysis.

Step 4: Creating role snapshots

In addition to the journey map, I created concise role profiles that summarised problems, responsibilities and desires. These acted as artefacts that could easily be shared with stakeholders, helping teams quickly grasp where and how each role was impacted.

Outcome & next steps

The user journey map made a complex, governance-heavy access process visible from all perspectives. It aligned stakeholders around a shared understanding of the problem and shifted the topic towards clear product priority.

✓ Aligned 40+ stakeholders around one shared process view

✓ Revealed hidden manual work not captured in business process maps

✓ Raised roadmap priority for improving data access

✓ Enabled quick wins through clearer communication and handovers within the application

After validating the journey map with key stakeholders, I worked with the Product Owner and Tech Lead to identify opportunities and priorities. Using opportunity mapping and early prototyping, we defined which improvements to tackle first, ensuring insights from the journey map directly informed product decisions.

Reflection

This project highlighted for me again how powerful adapted UX methods and visualisations can be when dealing with complex, undefined processes. The access journey wasn’t a standard SOP but a variable, human-driven system with many roles, tools, and dependencies. By investing time in deep interviews and visualising both structure and uncertainty, the journey map made hidden work, emotional load, and key bottlenecks visible. What took weeks to uncover became understandable in minutes: creating empathy, shared understanding, and a strong foundation for prioritising meaningful change.