Need to knowPrivacy by role
Applied: Each role sees only what it needs; managers never see health details.
Impact: Trust from employees and compliance teams.
Overview
Project overview
When an employee needs time away from work, a change at work, or both, the request touches HR, a people manager, payroll, timekeeping and policy teams. For the employee it often happens during a difficult moment, and internal handoffs can feel like a maze.
AbsenceSoft manages FMLA, absence and workplace accommodation cases for employers. My job was to turn fragmented, form-heavy workflows into one coordinated, understandable journey, from the first question to a supported return.
Before
- Leave and accommodation handled as separate, disconnected processes
- Employees repeat information and can’t tell what happens next
- Case owners track deadlines across inboxes and spreadsheets
- Sensitive details visible to more people than necessary
After
- One linked case timeline across leave and accommodation
- Plain-language intake with clear next steps
- Every task has an owner and a due date
- Role-based access: managers see only what they need
The challenge
Problem statement and pain points
- Lost in the process: employees repeated information and couldn’t see what would happen next.
- Missed deadlines: FMLA and accommodation steps have legal timelines, but tasks were scattered across tools.
- Privacy risk: managers needed to plan coverage without seeing health information.
- Heavy training and support: complex screens meant long onboarding for HR teams and frequent support tickets.
How might we make the next action obvious, keep the conversation supportive and the record dependable, without exposing more than a role needs?
Approach
My approach
- Journey mapping for every role across the full leave and accommodation lifecycle.
- Workflow analysis with leave specialists to find where cases stall and where rework happens.
- Wireframes and high-fidelity prototypes for employee intake, case management and the interactive process.
- Embedded in agile sprints with engineering, reaching 95% design-to-development accuracy.
- Iterative releases validated with users, lifting satisfaction from 3.2 to 4.5 out of 5.
Journey
Four roles across six stages
The core design artefact: who acts at each stage of a request, so no step is left without an owner and no role sees more than it should.
01Recognize
02Intake
03Triage
04Discuss
05Implement
06Follow up
Employee
Starts privately: leave, change at work or not sure
Shares dates, work impact and contact preference
Talks through options with HR
Confirms the agreed plan
Checks in, extends or plans return
Leave specialist
Links workstreams; owns next action and due date
Leads the discussion; validates policy
Records plan, timing and communications
Revises, extends or closes the case
People manager
Gets a limited feasibility task
Coordinates agreed work changes
Plans coverage for the return
Program admin
Monitors queues and deadlines
Reconciles payroll and timekeeping sync
Audits consistency; refines templates
Users
Who it’s for
Primary
Employee
- Describes the support needed
- Sends requested items and tracks status
- Plans their return
Primary
Leave specialist
- Reviews information and validates policy
- Communicates and owns due dates
- Makes the case decisions
Secondary
People manager
- Plans coverage
- Coordinates agreed work changes
- Sees limited operational detail only
Secondary
Program admin
- Monitors queues and consistency
- Reconciles integrations
- Refines templates
Principles
Design principles applied
Six principles that resolved the tension between standard steps and individual circumstances.
ClarityNext action, owner, date
Applied: Every screen says who acts next, why and by when.
Impact: Fewer status-chasing contacts.
Cognitive loadProgressive disclosure
Applied: Intake asks intent first and shows only relevant fields.
Impact: Higher completion, less rework.
Human judgementAutomation assists
Applied: Rules create tasks and reminders; qualified staff make the decisions.
Impact: Speed without automated case decisions.
Error preventionVisible exceptions
Applied: Missing info, date changes, overdue tasks and sync errors get an owner.
Impact: Nothing fails silently.
Familiar patternsJakob’s Law
Applied: Standard queues, steppers and case records that HR teams already know.
Impact: 30% less training time.
Low-fidelity wireframes
Greyscale wireframes of every screen, desktop and mobile
Every screen was wireframed in greyscale first, with the same regions as the final design: workspace navigation, page header, status and each screen’s main working area. Leave specialists reviewed them against real case scenarios before visual design. The employee-facing screens were also wireframed for mobile, where requests often start.
Desktop · 6 screens
01Operations overview
◼ AbsenceSoft
EMPLOYER WORKSPACENorthwind Services
LEAVE OPERATIONSOverviewCasesEmployee requestsAccommodationsInsights & integrationsADMINISTRATIONCommunicationsPolicies & settingsCASE STUDYProduct story & journeyWorkspace / Leave operations
Good morning, JamieCurrent workload and next actions
View all cases＋ Start a requestActive cases000
Tasks due soon000
Employees away000
Return planning000
Case lifecycle snapshot
Request received
Eligibility
Documentation
Decision
Leave active
Return
Next actions
TaskOwnerDue
TODAY
TODAY
TODAY
Returning soon
EmployeeReturn datePlan
PLAN
PLAN
PLAN
02Case workspace
◼ AbsenceSoft
EMPLOYER WORKSPACENorthwind Services
LEAVE OPERATIONSOverviewCasesEmployee requestsAccommodationsInsights & integrationsADMINISTRATIONCommunicationsPolicies & settingsCASE STUDYProduct story & journeyLeave operations / Cases
Leave and accommodation casesA shared record for milestones, tasks and decisions
14 TASKS DUEExport view＋ Create caseAll active cases000
Continuous leave000
Intermittent leave000
Accommodation cases000
Case queue
Case / employeeCase typeOwnerNext actionStatus
OPEN
OPEN
OPEN
OPEN
Selected caseMilestones
Request
Eligibility
Certification
Approved
Next action · owner · due03Employee request
◼ AbsenceSoft
EMPLOYER WORKSPACENorthwind Services
LEAVE OPERATIONSOverviewCasesEmployee requestsAccommodationsInsights & integrationsADMINISTRATIONCommunicationsPolicies & settingsCASE STUDYProduct story & journeyEmployee services / New request
How can we support you?Start a private conversation with your leave team
PRIVATE WORKSPACERequest type
Details
Review
Confirmation
Support
I need time away from work
I need a change or support at work
I’m not sure yet
What happens next
Save draftContinue →
04Accommodation process
◼ AbsenceSoft
EMPLOYER WORKSPACENorthwind Services
LEAVE OPERATIONSOverviewCasesEmployee requestsAccommodationsInsights & integrationsADMINISTRATIONCommunicationsPolicies & settingsCASE STUDYProduct story & journeyLeave operations / Accommodations
Workplace support casesDiscussion, options, implementation and follow-up
16 ACTIVE＋ Start a requestRequests in progress000
Discussion due000
Trial / follow-up000
Waiting on input000
Interactive process · AS-2034Employee · Owner · Opened
Recognize
Gather
Explore
Implement
Follow up
Option AFEASIBILITY
Option BFEASIBILITY
Option CFEASIBILITY
05Insights & integrations
◼ AbsenceSoft
EMPLOYER WORKSPACENorthwind Services
LEAVE OPERATIONSOverviewCasesEmployee requestsAccommodationsInsights & integrationsADMINISTRATIONCommunicationsPolicies & settingsCASE STUDYProduct story & journeyLeave operations / Insights
Insights and system connectionsWorkload, upcoming tasks and integration health
SAMPLE REPORTINGExport reportReview settingsCases opened000
Tasks on time000
Awaiting input000
Returns due000
Workload by case stage
Stage 1
Stage 2
Stage 3
Stage 4
Stage 5
System connections
SystemLast syncStatus
SYNCED
SYNCED
SYNCED
SYNCED
06Product story & journey
◼ AbsenceSoft
EMPLOYER WORKSPACENorthwind Services
LEAVE OPERATIONSOverviewCasesEmployee requestsAccommodationsInsights & integrationsADMINISTRATIONCommunicationsPolicies & settingsCASE STUDYProduct story & journeyProduct story / Concept
UX CASE STUDYMake a difficult life moment easier to navigate.
Explore employee journey →Open HR operations
Employee
Leave specialist
People manager
Program admin
Recognize
Intake
Triage
Discuss
Implement
Follow up
Mobile · key screens
M1Operations overview
Good morning, Jamie＋ Start a request
Active cases000
Tasks due soon000
Next actions
TODAY
TODAY
M2Employee request
How can we support you?Step 1 of 5 · Request typeContinue →Save draft
I need time away from work
I need a change at work
I’m not sure yet
M3Case workspace
Cases
AllDue 14
Continuous leaveOwner · next action · dueOPEN
Intermittent leaveOwner · next action · dueOPEN
AccommodationOwner · next action · dueOPEN
M4Accommodation process
Interactive processAS-2034 · Step 3 of 5
Option AFEASIBILITY
Option BFEASIBILITY
Record plan →