Somnus

Interviews and task analyses with scientists, project managers, and QA leads.

Key findings centred on three recurring pain points: fragmented tools spread across email, spreadsheets, and shared drives; manual communication with no single source of truth; and inconsistent file handling processes that varied by site and researcher.

Framing the core complexity: every site had its own way of doing things.

The defining challenge was file upload workflows. Research sites followed different naming conventions, file formats, and preprocessing steps — meaning the same underlying task produced wildly different inputs. Before anything could be designed, this variation needed to be understood and systematised.

User flows and wireframes focused on standardising uploads and introducing validation.

The design phase produced a validation-first upload flow: files are checked against format and naming rules before submission, with clear inline error messaging guiding users to correct issues themselves. This reduced back-and-forth and built trust in the system without requiring manual review at every step.

Iterative collaboration with developers throughout sprints.

Rather than a single handoff, delivery happened in close collaboration with the engineering team across iterative sprints. Design decisions were continuously pressure-tested against real-world constraints — database structure, third-party integrations, and regulatory requirements — to ensure the interface reflected what the system could actually do.