Smart Edge Developer Experience

Designed and developed comprehensive edge computing developer experience to enable efficient, scalable Smart Edge SDK's and applications.

Role

Product Design, UX Strategy, UX Research, UX/UI Design

Team

Product Managers, Engineering Managers, Edge Developers, Platform Engineers, Agency

Tools

ISO-9241-11, Google HEART, Developer Experience Framework, LinkedIn, Indeed, Dev Jobs Boards, Lean UX Canvas, Miro, PowerPoint, GitHub Pages, Axure, Adobe Creative Suite

Executive Summary

Edge Computing Strategy

I led the end-to-end Developer Experience Assessment (DXA) for Intel's Smart Edge (formally OpenNESS) product, which drove the significant transformation of the product and raising developer satisfaction to meet the MVP target of 75%. Using this and additional research I created a DX Strategy which expanded into rebranding, redesigning, and enhancing the developer experience.

Team of 2
UX Designa & Content
75%
DX MVP Baseline
100%
Rebrand

The Tension Points

Edge Computing Complexity

Edge computing development, in it's infancy (only 3% of developers building edge applications) was overly complex and difficult to understand, creating barriers for developers wanting to build edge applications and limiting adoption.

Developer Experience Gaps

Developers lacked clear guidance and tools for edge computing development, resulting in slow adoption and inefficient development processes.

Strategy Alignment Needed During Complete Rebrand

New strategy needed for complete rebrand and convergence of new product for edge computing development, needed help aligning development efforts with business objectives and user needs.

Strategic Approach

Developer-Centric Strategy

Developed a comprehensive edge computing strategy focused on understanding and addressing developer needs, creating clear pathways for edge application development.

Experience Optimization

Optimized developer experience for edge computing by simplifying complex processes and creating intuitive workflows that reduce learning curves and development time.

Scalable Platform Design

Designed a scalable edge computing platform that supports diverse use cases while maintaining simplicity and developer productivity.

Process & Methodology

Research & Discovery

Conducted in-depth meetings with over 16 roles to gather diverse perspectives and mapped these insights into a consolidated journey. Identified five key experience principles to guide the Developer Experience (DX) strategy.

Design & Strategy

Collaborated with a content strategist to perform a content audit of the product documentation, created sketch profiles based on job postings and LinkedIn data, and used a Lean UX canvas to help extract key business objectives.

Implementation & Results

Developed a detailed strategy that addressed the unique needs of edge developers, leading to successful product transformation and improved developer satisfaction.

Impact

Smart Edge Transformation

The Smart Edge strategy provided a new and successful rebrand and consolidation of Intel's Smart Edge product by providing clear guidance, optimized experiences, and scalable tools that simplified complex edge development processes.

Before Smart Edge

  • Complex development
  • Poor developer experience
  • No clear strategy
  • Slow adoption

After Smart Edge

  • Simplified workflows
  • Optimized experience
  • Clear strategy
  • Increase in adoption

Visual Assets

Smart Edge Overview

Competitve Analysis of Edge Computing Products

Developer Experience

Presentation of roles during product evaluation process

Platform Features

Showing variety of capabilities selected by testers

Implementation

GitHub image for getting started guide

Developer Journey

Developer journey mapping and experience optimization

Journey Mapping

Journey mapping and process optimization for edge development

Tools & Technologies

Miro

Journey Mapping

GitHub Pages

Moving closer to the developer

User Research

Developer Insights

Journey Mapping

Process Analysis