Designed from the field,
not from assumptions.
Embedded with LandscapeFX crews to observe how field workers actually use software on the job. Two findings changed the product, one shipped by me in code.
Research
I went to one of Yeti's largest client on site to observe how they use the software, both in office and out in the field. The goal is to identify user patterns with my own eyes and design to optimize their workflow.
Field Observation
Shadowed crew members on active job sites. Watched how they held devices, what slowed them down.
Contextual Interviews
Spoke with operation managers about their workflows, how they track and what they skip.
Constraint Mapping
For each finding, I worked with engineering to understand what was feasible — and designed within those limits, or around them.
Finding 01
Hold to Press — when gloves meet glass
The most important insights from directly observing users use our product out in the fields.
The Observation
Crew members end their shift using a slide-to-confirm interaction. In the field, I heard complaints from many workers because they wear gloves and have large hands.
The Design Response
I proposed replacing the slider with a hold-to-press interaction. It is easier with gloves and harder to trigger accidentally. After validating with crews, I built a working prototype myself.
- On Start: A light impact (haptic).
- On Completion: A heavy impact or double vibration to signal the "Site" has officially ended.
Finding 02
Consumables Tab — a design pattern that shipped elsewhere
Users wanted to add their own consumables instead of selecting from the list generated for them by Yeti: bags of salt, quantities, units. Before designing anything, I questioned why this feature didn't exist already.
The User Need
Field operators track consumable usage per job (salt, fuel, materials). They wanted to add and manage their own items directly in the platform.
The Technical Constraint
Devs confirmed the permission handling made this feature too complex to build in the near term.
The Reframe & Pivot
If I can't give users what they want, I can make what exists work much better. Instead of custom entries, I designed a search and filter framework that optimizes the hustle.
How the reframed flow works
Open consumables tab
Filter by job type
Search or browse
Select and log
Design
Quote tool add item tab, same design pattern that I shipped.
Note — The consumables tab itself didn't ship due to dev timelines. But the same search and filter pattern was adopted in the quote tool and went live.
Reflections
Research changes what I view system
Neither of these findings would have surfaced in a user survey. The slider frustration was invisible until I watched someone try to use it with gloves on. However, these findings allow me to understand the tech limitations and see how every part of the product connects with each other.
Constraints are design inputs
The consumables limitation could have been a dead end. Asking "why can't we" before "how do we" reframed the problem entirely. And when devs couldn't ship some parts, building it myself meant the insight didn't die in a backlog.