Logic Tax Tool
Yum! Brands
Creating a logic-based tax tool.
Overview
While working with Yum! Brands on a Menu Management Tool, I was asked to join and support the Tax Pod. I worked to ideate and iterate through a logic-based tax creator concept. My focus was to create a method for making any U.S. tax that any individual store might encounter. For example, I used the Henrico County tax laws, one of the most complex in the country, as a baseline for the system. If that tax could be created within our solution, any tax could.
Role
UX Designer
Scope
Four Weeks
Tools
Research, Observation, Workshops, Documentation, User Testing, Sketching, Figma
Approach
Problem Statement
Creating tax laws for thousands of store locations across multiple brands is difficult and cumbersome. (Some might say "taxing"). The new Menu Management Tool would allow for a centralized location for Yum! Tax Professionals to be able to create and modify governing tax laws for every store in the United States.
Goals
- Create a logic-based tax creation tool
- Develop interactions that make creating complex tax laws simple
Process
When I started the project, I observed Tax Professionals find details and capture comparative data to improve workflow.
- How long does the current tax creation process take?
- What is the governing process?
- How frequently are taxes updated once they are in the system?
I ideated and iterated wireframe UI concepts, simplifying a very complex process. I made them extra ugly (red & blue) to focus the team on functionality over aesthetic. The final wireframes utilized Material UI patterns created within the design system.
I provided the HTML and CSS for the testable proof of concept (POC) and created and ran user testing with Yum's tax professionals.
- User Flows
- Sketches
- Wireframes
- Design System
- Mockups
- Prototypes
- User Testing
- Iteration & Refinement
Findings
The initial testing pointed to a potential reduction in creating all of the taxes for a new store by 50 to 65 percent at full scale. Users reacted positively to the new system, noting that taxes were easier and faster to input than the current system.
Solution
This innovative solution met both the user and business needs. The logic-based tax tool has been implemented and is used by Yum! Tax professionals to create and update all of the taxes for every U.S. store. Reception from the Yum Tax team continues to be positive.
Impact
Results
- Went from concept to proof of concept in a few short weeks
- Simplified the complex process of creating taxes for KFC, Taco Bell, and Pizza Hut stores
Achievements
- Left a positive impression on Tax Pod team memebers
- Overview of the tax tool was presented in an all-hands team meeting to all of Yum.dev
Takeaways
What would I do differently?
With such a short timeline to create a proof of concept, there isn't much room for reflection on what I would have done differently. However, I would have preferred to have created a high-functionality prototype in Axure before going to a coded POC. This didn't happen on this project because we had a dedicated Dev who focused on creating the POC. However, there is potential to learn more from a quickly built, throw-away prototype before any code is written.
How did I grow?
This project helped reiterate the value of working r and accurately. Scrappy research, testing, and iterating through sketching allowed me to get to a testable concept in a short time.
