A social networking app for
remote workers that reimagines
the future of work
■ Overview
Design Challenge
Having worked for over a year in a fully remote job at Shopify, I found myself seriously missing daily social interactions. On the one hand it allowed for a lot freedom, but it could at some moments feel a bit lonely. I found myself thinking - is it just me that feels this way? How are other remote workers feeling? I turned these initial questions into my problem space.
Me working remotely
The problem
With technological advances like cloud sharing, we are seeing an increase in remote working. In the UK, 40% of the workforce have reported to have worked remotely in the past seven days and 16% do not go to the office at all.
That being said, remote workers struggle with a sense of community and belonging, whereby 53% say it is harder to feel connected to their coworkers and communication is siloed. This increases feelings of isolation and limits their networking opportunities to advance their career.
The solutions
Hive is a social networking app for remote workers. With Hive, users can create or join a group of remote workers to co-work, socialise and network in their day-to-day.
They can connect directly with fellow remote workers with whom they share similar interests, skills, and more.
Additionally, the ability to rate and review public spaces allows users to meet up in spots that meet their remote working standards.
ONBOARDING
Learn
Creating an informative onboarding process that is appealing by using a clean, minimalist and professional layout
Devising friendly copy to highlight key benefits
Providing users with a sense of control about viewing more details or getting started with their journey
FILTER AND SEARCH
Discover
Tags on event pages have helpful iconography, reducing cognitive load and enabling users to scan content quickly when browsing during work hours
Comprehensive filtering allows users to find others and partake in the most ideal activity based on their needs (e.g. time, place, accessibility, amount of people, etc.)
A search system allows for direct access to groups and places
PLAN
Meet up
Groups (or "hives") showcase a title and description to allow users to quickly understand what to expect and whether it aligns with their interests
A list of attendees promotes transparency and encourages engagement, while fostering a sense of community
Distance relative to their location allows users to understand and factor in potential travel time in their work day
Exact location of a hive is hidden until user is accepted for privacy and safety reasons
Amenities available to remote workers allow them to make informed decisions and reduce unpredictability when meeting in unfamiliar public places
SAY HELLO
Find your people
Underline tabs split profile into social and career to help counter feelings of potential imposter syndrome
Personalisable prompts enable users to express individuality and showcase the human behind the work history
Chips with icons allow users to easily scan for common interests, facilitating interactions
Vector illustrations give resumé section a friendly and inviting feel
COORDINATE
Location, location, location
Underline tabs separate hives from places, allowing users to also conveniently find places to work from outside of the home
Community-based reviews are a way to rate the quality of a place from a remote worker perspective, helping users make informed decisions and reduce unpredictability when working remotely outside of the home
Map view provides perspective on location and distance
Icons enable user to quickly understand the key amenities available in each place
Discover
SECONDARY RESEARCH
Isolation in the era of technology
To begin investigating the problem space, I turned towards existing quantitative and qualitative research. It was important to find sources on the intersection of mental health and remote work from late 2022 onwards, which aren't influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic.
I discovered some shocking statistics related to the future of work and mental health. Contrary to what you might expect, remote work has not gone away since the coronavirus and is expected to rise over the coming years. This confirms that there is a growing need for a solution to this loneliness in the digital age.
Forbes (2023)The board room
3 in 4
middle market executives reported that their remote workers were feeling isolated
6 in 10
executives say it negatively impacts their employee's mental health
The office
1 in 2
say it is hard to feel connected to their co-workers
PRIMARY RESEARCH
Speaking to the bees
To gain a deeper understanding of the problem, and verify the validity of my assumptions at this stage, I conducted 7 user interviews. I chose interviews as my means of primary research because the shadings of loneliness cannot be captured in a checkbox.
Participants
Age Above 21 years old
Occupation Full-time remote workers
Schedule Work at least 30 hours a week
Language Native/fluent in English, as interviews will be conducted in English
Take a peek at the questions and interview structure! It was also helpful to crystalise my definition of a "remote worker" at this stage: a freelancer, contractor, or full-time employee that does not have access to a shared in person office space with colleagues.
Interviewing a bee
Affinity Mapping
To synthesize and accelerate research analysis with ease, I transcribed recordings using Otter AI and discovered patterns by tagging taxonomies through Notion.
I transferred relevant quotes to Figma and categorised them into three groups: Behaviours, Motivations and Pain points. Find some excerpts below.
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KEY RESEARCH FINDINGS AND OPPORTUNITIES
Zooming in on loneliness in the digital age
Physical loneliness & seeking company
6/7 users interviewed mentioned feeling significantly lonely - 2 saying that it was directly impacting their mental health.
Some find it more productive to work alongside others, others find it less productive - but regardless of productivity level, each user interviewed seeks out company and connection by working alongside friends or strangers at least once every two weeks, if not more often.
Finding ways to encourage users to tap into this network of people.
Importance of their local community
Users often do not live in same city as their colleagues. To compensate for this, they lean into their neighbourhood and local area.
They feel connected to people by working from local spots like cafès, libraries, or networking events, with a frequency ranging from a few times a week to at least once a month.
Supporting users to connect with people or places nearby in a productive way.
Lack of meaningful interactions
Users find themselves in environments or situations where they are able to connect with others, but struggle to make deeper connections that go beyond the surface.
They find it hard to break the ice, which hinders their ability to have meaningful interactions within their communities in their day-to-day.
Finding ways to facilitate interactions and assist them in finding people with common interests.
How might we alleviate the physical loneliness experienced by remote workers and foster a sense of connection and belonging in their day-to-day?
Alex has embraced the remote work lifestyle for the past three years. They value both their international co-workers and their local community, but sometimes feel disconnected from both due to the unique challenges of remote work. They have a strong desire to balance their professional life with more meaningful social interactions in their day-to-day, as remote working can feel lonely quite often. Living in a vibrant urban neighborhood, Alex frequents local cafes and libraries as their workspace once a week as a way to counter their feelings of isolation. They have also tried out a few co-working spaces but find the price is not sustainable and have a hard time meeting and connecting with people who have similar interests to them. They are looking for company during their working hours, to be shared with people who have common interests to them.
FRUSTRATIONS
Feels isolated working from home
Finds her workday monotonous and repetitive
MOTIVATIONS
Meet new people in her local community
Socialise or work alongside people in her day-to-day to stimulate herself personally and professionally
BEHAVIOURS
Tries out different co-working spaces, libraries and cafès in search of the right fit, hoping to discover places to work comfortably while connecting with others
Occasionally works alongside friends, but finds it hard to coordinate a time and place that’s convenient for all parties
Co-working spaces
As confirmed with user interviews, in person co-working spaces provide missed opportunities for connection as they do not facilitate or provide opportunity for meaningful interaction.
Virtual meet-up apps
Virtual meet-up apps for remote workers don’t tackle physical loneliness.
Physical meet-up apps
The remote-working community gets heavily diluted in the app and event apps don’t provide the tailored information required by a remote worker to work comfortably alongside other people.
Developing the unique concept of a meet-up app designed within a work capacity, relatively personal information will be conveyed through the app. This may include not only the sharing of a user’s live location with potential strangers but also content that can imply personal wealth and financial status. For this reason, safety should be heavily prioritised.
It is important to strike a balance between professionalism and friendliness. I aim to prevent users from feeling intimidated or feeling any notion of imposter syndrome by developing a welcoming design that can help them to feel comfortable reaching out to each other.
It is important to reduce cognitive load as much as possible. This is because despite wanting to find opportunities to meet with others, people experiencing loneliness might fall into the trap of making excuses to stay at home and in their “comfort zone” if there are too many steps or if the process to meet up is too complicated.
Develop
I started this process by brainstorming with thinking/exploratory sketches and exercises like Crazy Eights. I made sure to refer back to Alex and the Design Principles I had laid out every time an idea for a concept was sparked.
While checking out direct competitors on Mobbin and the Apple App Store, it was useful to take note of their UX/UI for inspiration. I also took care to explore beyond direct competitors for added edge and perspective (e.g. dating apps, which have been designed to foster connection). I then grouped key features or elements and annotated them, creating an inspiration board in Figma.
For example, during the sketching process of possible layout options for events/activities, it became clear just how integral the clear representation of people is to the transmission of a sense of community. I chose to place people at the forefront of my design and opted for profile icons instead of image banners for the activities themselves.
Version 1
19 usability issues, 14 solutions prioritized for improvement of the prototype.
Version 2
12 usability issues, 11 solutions prioritized for improvement of the prototype.
Version 3
Complete and ready for next round of testing.
Warmth
Connection
Focus
Friendly
Growth
Name selection
Exploring various concepts that could reflect these key words, when coming up with the name, I searched for a word or expression that portrayed the notion of productivity, collaboration and the sharing of space. I settled on the name "Hive" - a place that brings together "worker bees." Although they may work in different fields (no pun intended), worker bees are brought back together to one place at the hive, where they share and contribute to the general growth of the group.
Final logo
Easily recognisable
Geometric shape feels focused
Bold and confident
Left alignment feels dynamic and implies movement
Tilted shape feels playful and friendly
Logo with wordmark
Simple and minimalist
Friendly, bold font
Shape edges are soft and inviting
Font
Letter spacing
0%
Paragraph spacing
0px
Case
Original
Line Height
120%
Base value
16
Scale
1.25
■ Conclusion
PRESENTING THE PROJECT
Introducing Hive
I had the pleasure of testing informally with dozens of users at a Demo Day in London. The most rewarding moments were connecting with people who had experienced remote work. One gentleman became very emotional looking through the app. He vulnerably shared that he had experienced serious depression brought on by the isolation of working alone, and that Hive would've been what he needed to feel less alone. This served as informal confirmation that the MVP of the design is on the right track.
