Oakville and Milton Humane Society

ROLE:

UX DESIGNER

ROLE:

UX DESIGNER

TIMELINE:

8 WEEKS

TIMELINE:

8 WEEKS

TOOLS:

FIGMA, FIGJAM

TEAM:

4 DESIGNERS

6 DEVELOPERS

2 PMS

TEAM:

4 DESIGNERS

6 DEVELOPERS

2 PMS

TOOLS:

FIGMA,FIGJAM

Redesigning shelter operations through clarity and care

How can we make animal, volunteer, and record management intuitive and stress-free for everyone?

TL;DR

WHAT WAS BROKEN

WHAT WE CHANGED

WHY IT MATTERED

Daily shelter operations relied on fragmented tools, manual updates, and tribal knowledge, creating stress and inconsistencies in animal care.

We designed a centralized, mobile-first system that organizes tasks, records, and schedules around how staff and volunteers actually work.

Clear ownership, faster access to information, and calmer workflows, allowing teams to focus on care, not coordination.

35%

Reduction in task coordination time

Faster access to animal records

40%

Fewer missed or duplicated tasks

Impact based on stakeholder feedback, usability testing insights, and workflow analysis.

40%

Fewer missed or duplicated tasks

Faster access to animal records

35%

Reduction in task coordination time

TL;DR

Impact based on stakeholder feedback, usability testing insights, and workflow analysis.

Oakville & Milton Humane Society supports animal care, adoption, and volunteer coordination across their shelter. Daily operations depend on staff and volunteers managing animal records, schedules, and care tasks in fast-paced, emotionally demanding environments.

This is all done on a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet, shared across staff and volunteers during live animal care.

Track animal status, medical notes, and behavioural changes across the day

Assign daily tasks
Coordinate volunteers across shifts
Record pet updates in real time

Track animal status, medical notes, and behavioural changes across the day

Assign daily tasks
Coordinate volunteers across shifts
Record pet updates in real time

Common Problems

Reality in the Humane Society

High cognitive load
Staff had to scan dense, multi-column data while multitasking, increasing mental strain during already high-stress moments.
Easy to overwrite or miss information
Critical notes were buried, duplicated, or accidentally erased, leading to inconsistent care and follow-ups.
Not mobile-friendly
Updates often happened after tasks were completed, creating gaps between care and documentation.

Daily Tasks

All done on a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet, shared across staff and volunteers during live animal care.

High cognitive load
Staff had to scan dense, multi-column data while multitasking, increasing mental strain during already high-stress moments.
Easy to overwrite or miss information
Critical notes were buried, duplicated, or accidentally erased, leading to inconsistent care and follow-ups.
Not mobile-friendly
Updates often happened after tasks were completed, creating gaps between care and documentation.

Before designing solutions, we needed to deeply understand how staff and volunteers currently worked, where friction existed, and what success actually looked like for them.

Methods Used

Stakeholder Interviews

Listening Before Designing

Information was overcrowded, forcing staff to scroll and cross-reference constantly.

Data entry relied on manual consistency, leading to frequent errors and outdated records.
The spreadsheet required prior knowledge, making onboarding new volunteers difficult.
No visual hierarchy made urgent tasks hard to identify quickly.

Information was overcrowded, forcing staff to scroll and cross-reference constantly.

Data entry relied on manual consistency, leading to frequent errors and outdated records.
The spreadsheet required prior knowledge, making onboarding new volunteers difficult.
No visual hierarchy made urgent tasks hard to identify quickly.

Existing Sytem Audit (Excel)

Workflow Walkthroughs

Affinity Mapping

Why Excel Failed

Key Insights

How This Shaped Our Design

Separated information by purpose

Animals, tasks, schedules, and notes live in distinct views instead of one dense system.

What We Didn't Do

Staff needed clarity at a glance, not more data fields.

The system had to support varying levels of technical comfort.
Information structure mattered more than feature depth.
Reducing cognitive load was essential for day-to-day efficiency.

Staff needed clarity at a glance, not more data fields.

The system had to support varying levels of technical comfort.
Information structure mattered more than feature depth.
Reducing cognitive load was essential for day-to-day efficiency.

We intentionally avoided over-automation and complex workflows, prioritizing simplicity over speed based on research findings.

Designed for zero-training use

Navigation and interactions were optimized for rotating volunteers and first-time users.

Reduced visual and cognitive load

We prioritized spacing, hierarchy, and clarity over feature density.

Understanding Our Users

Phillip, Age 57, Volunteer

Long-time animal volunteer, low tech confidence, rotating shifts

Goals

Complete assigned tasks correctly and on time
Quickly understand what each animal needs
Avoid asking staff for clarification

Pain Points

Dense tools are hard to navigate
Instructions are unclear or buried
Fear of making mistakes in records

Design Implications

Zero-training onboarding
Clear task ownership and step-by-step guidance
Large tap targets, readable layouts, minimal clutter

Emily, Age 25, Shelter Staff

Manages animal care, volunteers, and records

Goals

Know task status at a glance
Ensure animals receive consistent care
Reduce time spent coordinating volunteers

Pain Points

Overlapping responsibilities and interruptions
Missed or duplicated tasks
Manual follow-ups with volunteers

Design Implications

Real-time task visibility
Centralized records per animal
Clear accountability and handoffs

Key Insights

Phillip, Age 57, Volunteer

Long-time animal volunteer, low tech confidence, rotating shifts

Goals

Complete assigned tasks correctly and on time
Quickly understand what each animal needs
Avoid asking staff for clarification

Pain Points

Dense tools are hard to navigate
Instructions are unclear or buried
Fear of making mistakes in records

Design Implications

Zero-training onboarding
Clear task ownership and step-by-step guidance
Large tap targets, readable layouts, minimal clutter

Emily, Age 25, Shelter Staff

Manages animal care, volunteers, and records

Goals

Know task status at a glance
Ensure animals receive consistent care
Reduce time spent coordinating volunteers

Pain Points

Overlapping responsibilities and interruptions
Missed or duplicated tasks
Manual follow-ups with volunteers

Design Implications

Real-time task visibility
Centralized records per animal
Clear accountability and handoffs

With multiple users, tasks, and records in play, the system needed clear structure before visual design. We focused on defining how information should be grouped, accessed, and updated in real time.

Structuring the Experience

Before

Everything lived in a single Excel sheet. Animals, tasks, volunteers, notes, all creating clutter, errors, and missed information.

After

We separated information by purpose, so staff could find what they needed at the moment they needed it.

The Goal

Turn one overloaded spreadsheet into a system that reflects how shelters actually operate.

Core Structure

Animals → profiles, medical notes, care history

Tasks → daily responsibilities tied to animals and shifts
Volunteers → roles, schedules, assignments

Animals → profiles, medical notes, care history

Tasks → daily responsibilities tied to animals and shifts
Volunteers → roles, schedules, assignments

With the information architecture defined, we moved quickly into low-fidelity wireframes to test how the system would actually feel in use. The goal wasn’t visual polish, it was validating flows, hierarchy, and task clarity before committing to UI decisions.

These wireframes helped us pressure-test whether staff and volunteers could:

Find critical information at a glance
Understand task ownership without explanation
Move through daily workflows with minimal friction

These wireframes helped us pressure-test whether staff and volunteers could:

Find critical information at a glance
Understand task ownership without explanation
Move through daily workflows with minimal friction

From Structure to Interaction

Low-Fidelity Wireframes

These wireframes focused on core shelter workflows; tracking animals, managing volunteers, and accessing records quickly—prioritizing clarity and ease of use for all experience levels.

Partnered closely with developers and stakeholders throughout the design process, using low-fidelity wireframes to align early on feasibility, constraints, and implementation details

Led regular design walkthroughs and feedback sessions to maintain shared understanding across teams and ensure user flows and interactions were clearly communicated
Incorporated cross-functional feedback iteratively, balancing user needs with technical and operational realities to support a smooth handoff into development

Collaboration + Cross-Functional Work

The low-fidelity wireframes helped align design, product, and development early by clearly communicating the design vision and enabling feasibility discussions before high-fidelity execution.

Early wireframe reviews with developers revealed unnecessary navigation complexity, which I simplified while preserving core user tasks to support smoother development.

This experience reinforced the importance of frequent design check-ins and early feedback from the full team. By sharing work early and often, we were able to iterate efficiently, stay aligned, and avoid costly rework later in the process.

Guided by our research insights, we translated clarity, accessibility, and efficiency into a cohesive visual system and final product.

Design Direction

Clarity First

Layouts prioritize scannability, clear hierarchy, and reduced cognitive load for fast-paced shelter environments.

Designed for All Users

Interfaces accommodate varying levels of tech familiarity, ensuring staff and volunteers feel confident using the system.

Calm & Trustworthy Visuals

A neutral, friendly color palette and restrained typography reinforce care, professionalism, and reliability.

Design Pillars

High Fidelity Screens

These principles guided the final interface across key workflows.

These high-fidelity screens reflect a system designed for clarity under pressure, balancing structure, warmth, and ease of use across complex shelter workflows.

To ensure consistency, accessibility, and scalability, we created a design system that supported both staff and volunteers across the platform.

Design System

Colours

Typography

Components

Components: Designed for reuse across multiple workflows

Color: Chosen to feel calm, trustworthy, and aligned with the humane society’s mission

Typography: Prioritized clarity and readability for quick scanning

A look at the impact of the solution and the design decisions behind it, plus what I’d take forward.

Results & Impact

Staff could spend less time searching and updating information

Volunteers experienced clearer expectations and smoother onboarding

The humane society gained a scalable foundation for future growth

Results

After the redesign, we improved the following:

Centralized workflows replaced a single, error-prone Excel sheet, making information easier to find and manage.

Reduced cognitive load for staff and volunteers through clearer navigation, hierarchy, and labeling.
More consistent processes across teams, improving confidence and day-to-day efficiency.

Impact

Reflection

What I Learned

Designing for non-technical users reinforced the importance of clarity over complexity.

Early research and stakeholder conversations were critical in shaping realistic, usable solutions.
Strong information architecture directly impacts trust, efficiency, and confidence in a system.

What I'd Improve Next

Conduct usability testing with a broader range of volunteers over longer periods.
Explore lightweight automation or reporting features as a future iteration.
Refine accessibility further as real usage data becomes available.

This project strengthened my ability to design systems that balance empathy, clarity, and real-world constraints, especially in mission-driven environments.

<— PREVIOUS

Home

NEXT —>

Orbit Case Study

A look at the impact of the solution and the design decisions behind it, plus what I’d take forward.

Results & Impact

Staff could spend less time searching and updating information

Volunteers experienced clearer expectations and smoother onboarding

The humane society gained a scalable foundation for future growth

Results

After the redesign, we improved the following:

Centralized workflows replaced a single, error-prone Excel sheet, making information easier to find and manage.

Reduced cognitive load for staff and volunteers through clearer navigation, hierarchy, and labeling.
More consistent processes across teams, improving confidence and day-to-day efficiency.

Impact

A look at the impact of the solution and the design decisions behind it, plus what I’d take forward.

Reflection

What I Learned

Designing for non-technical users reinforced the importance of clarity over complexity.
Early research and stakeholder conversations were critical in shaping realistic, usable solutions.
Strong information architecture directly impacts trust, efficiency, and confidence in a system.

What I'd Improve Next

Conduct usability testing with a broader range of volunteers over longer periods.
Explore lightweight automation or reporting features as a future iteration.
Refine accessibility further as real usage data becomes available.

<— PREVIOUS

Home

This project strengthened my ability to design systems that balance empathy, clarity, and real-world constraints, especially in mission-driven environments.

NEXT —>

Orbit Case Study