WorkLife Sync
Services
UX Design
Product Design
Company
Volkswagen Group of America
Year
2024
Team
Victoria Feng — Lead UX Designer
Dominick Aviado — UX Designer
Svitlana Mason — UX Designer
Isabel Perdomo — Project Manager
Biplow Ghimere — Developer
Jeongmun Lee — Interior Designer
The Volkswagen Group of America Innovation Center of California is an innovation hub for the many car brands within the group and investigates and prototypes future concepts for transfer to brands.
As the driving experience changes, as do our habits in the vehicle. When prompted to investigate productivity concepts within the vehicle, we were able to explore technology partners and integrate them into a driving experience that makes the transition between work and life within the vehicle as seamless as it can be.
On this project I was able to lead a team of designers to create a digital demo with future physical concepts that was presented at the annual Volkswagen Group Future Mobility Days conference held in August in Wolfsburg, Germany.
The Problem
Increased In-Vehicle Time
With the rise of remote work and flexible schedules, there has been an increase in time spent on the road and tackling both personal and professional tasks while on the go. This has been especially apparent when observing the North American Region (NAR) driver as there have been shifts in work culture and an increased desire for work-life balance.
Defining Productivity
With the aim to create more productive spaces within premium mid-size vehicles, we had to understand the target users and what tasks they were trying to tackle while on the move. This helped us set research goals to understand both physical and digital touch points we could tackle with our design.
Research & Ideation
Understanding the NAR Driver
Through conducting a series of surveys and interviews we were able to get a better understanding of people's view on "work", the standard definition of productivity, in the vehicle as well as what tasks they were tackling while driving or parked. A highlight of our research was that we found around half of interviewees rarely or never use their car as a work space.
Other things we learned included a typical driver's digital toolkit, average commute times, pain points in mobile work spaces, attitudes towards working in a vehicle.
Defining Core Experiences
After benchmarking competitors and their productivity tools, the team worked through some ideation exercise and came up with some core experiences for our demo.
The Solution
Multi Device Management
Bringing a typically buried feature to the driver's fingertips, allowing simple switching between connected devices.
Video Conferencing Carsona
Partnering with D-iD, an voice to avatar technology partner, we were able to create a digital avatar based off an image that could be integrated into video conferencing calls. This helped drivers preserve a professional image while driving and not have to worry about their appearance.
Call Transcription & Summary
A feature that allows drivers to transcribe calls and review notes from a call both on the HMI and within the vehicle phone app.
Daily Briefing
Partnering with Spooler, a generated daily briefing allows drivers to hear a seamless customized series of sound clips. These can include local new, email summaries, podcasts, affirmations, etc. The contents are customized in the vehicle app by the driver, are location and interest based, and can be adjusted in length to match drive time.
