Lead UX Designer
Aviation MRO
2016
GE Aviation
Smart Shop
GE Aviation's global maintenance facilities were struggling with a Task List Workbench system that required 6 months to master. Engineers toggled between 7+ screens for simple tasks while critical knowledge remained trapped with individual experts.
I led a week-long discovery workshop at GE Caledonian in Scotland, bringing together stakeholders from 4 international facilities. Through ethnographic research and participatory design, we transformed complex SAP workflows into an intelligent platform that reduced learning curves by 70%.
4 Global Facilities
Scotland, Brazil, Hungary, USA
6→2 Months
Time to proficiency
70% Reduction
Screen navigation requirements
The Challenge
The legacy SAP-based Task List Workbench showing complex navigation and overwhelming data density
GE Aviation's maintenance facilities in Scotland (Prestwick), Brazil (Celma), and Hungary were struggling with an antiquated Task List Workbench system built on SAP:
6-Month Learning Curve
Engineers required half a year before becoming proficient with the system
7+ Screens Per Task
Simple operations required navigating multiple disconnected interfaces
Data Integrity Issues
Frequent overwrites and lost entries compromised system reliability
Lost in Translation
Non-English facilities lacked context from fragmented translations
Team
Stephen Szermer - Lead UX Designer
3 Product Managers
2 Engineering COE Technicians
IT Architects & Data Leaders
Takeaways
- • Enterprise transformation requires deep ethnographic research
- • Tribal knowledge democratization drives adoption
- • Intelligent automation reduces cognitive load
- • Context preservation is critical for global operations
Ready to Transform Your Operations?
Let's discuss how human-centered design can revolutionize your enterprise workflows.