Streamlined a 40-step procurement process
In partnership with Seattle's Office of Economic Development (OED), volunteers through the U.S. Digital Response (USDR) worked over the course of 10 weeks to clarify and improve the OED's procurement process.
As a UX Researcher, I focused on understanding the current process, identifying areas for improvement, and proposing actionable changes. The goal was to reduce complexity, increase efficiency, and establish consistent workflows.
Paul, UX Research
Seattle Office of Economic Development (OED)
Problem
A 40-step process, that no one really follows...
The contracting process is not well understood
Sparsely documented, teams relied heavily on institutional knowledge to move contracts along.
Teams experienced high turnover
Especially among experienced staff, leading to a crucial loss of institutional knowledge.
Research Questions
Which roles are involved and what are their stated responsibilities?
What are the relationship dynamics?
Where is there ambiguity in responsibilities?
What are the steps of the contracting process from end-to-end ?
Where is there duplication or inefficiency?
What are the common pain points?
Ideation
How might we clarify and streamline the contracting process?
Core Metrics:
Staff hours per contract
Avg. days from initiation to execution
Approach
Understand
Function of contracting, teams and roles, incentives and KPIs
Map
Map the current process including the nuances of implementation
Identify & suggest
Pinpoint areas of frustration and suggest improvements
Methods
Process mapping workshops
Align stakeholders on a basic process framework for contracting
Service Blueprint Mapping
Visualize the process and workflows to ground qualitative conversations
Qualitative Interviews
Use specific examples to uncover details of implementation and associated pain points
Understand
What's a "Contract"?
Contracts are the legal agreements that Seattle Office of Economic Development (OED) organizes with vendors across the city to do specific work in service of the office’s mission to promote a diverse and vibrant local economy.
Ex. Seattle’s “Storefront Repair Fund” contracts with glass repair companies to provide services to small businesses whose storefronts have been vandalized so they can safely reopen.
🌮 Local seattle restaurant Casa Del Mariachi used a grant from the Storefront Repair Fund to repair their front door.
Understand
Office of Economic Development (OED) team structure and roles
Teams are organized around strategic “Pillars” of investment, including small businesses, neighborhood districts, and creative industries.
🏛️ Team structure mapped based on org chart and conversations with team managers
Program Managers (PMs) manage a specific program
They are in charge of the program’s day-to-day operations, ensuring use of funds aligns with the program’s intended impact.
Grants and Contracts Specialists (G&Cs) handle the administration of all contracts
They support compliance and reporting for multiple programs with many contracts.
Map
Facilitated a collaborative process-mapping workshop
The workshop illustrated the contracting process from various perspectives, allowing us to quickly align on the current process and identify some high-level pain points to focus on.
Highlighted lack of clarity when processing and paying invoices and fluidity of steps before contract is signed.
📸 Some snapshots from the workshop
Map
Consolidated and translated to a service blueprint
A simplified, high-level contracting process flow helped facilitate productive conversations with OED staff and stakeholders when diving into details about implementation.
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🗺️ a comprehensive overview of the contracting process
Identify & Suggest
Conducted in depth interviews to uncover problems, responsibilities, and key deliverables
Using the service blueprint as a guide, we dove deeper to understand the tasks, tools, and who’s responsible at each step of the process and the problems that occur.
“The PM-G&C relationship is the most important thing [to drive contracts forward] because everybody has a different work style.”
Program Manager
“Project managers don't feel as confident with knowing how much is left of or how much has been used on a particular budget... they're really dependent on G&Cs and finance”
Grants & Contracts Specialist
"My G&C has changed three times in the last year and a half... you're trying to build these systems and these rapports but that takes time."
Program Manager
Findings
Streamline team workflows, not the contracting process
Growing pains: influx of work + informal processes = high turnover
Funds managed by OED nearly doubled in one year. New hires struggled to get up to speed due to lack of clear documentation. More experienced employees faced higher workloads to accommodate, which was unsustainable.
Lack of consistent contract reporting limits visibility and efficient collaboration
Leading to frequent miscommunications, duplicated efforts, and general frustration.
Required signature from OED director causes a bottleneck
Especially visible when there’s a high volume of contracts in development. Changes at this stage have a significant effect on contract timelines.
Solution
A collaborative, editable contracting checklist
Align on responsibilities and approach
Agreeing and documenting how a team plans to work together upfront promotes visibility and clarity across roles.
Quickly onboard new hires
A reference document helps new hires confidently wade through a sea of forms and SharePoint folders.
