Lattice permissions

Empowering HR admins to configure roles and permissions for their entire organization with clarity, confidence, and ease.

Background

Lattice is a powerful people management platform that supports businesses in everything from payroll and benefits to talent development.

As companies grow, so does the complexity of managing Lattice permissions. Larger companies need more control over who can access sensitive data, but a new permission system, rolled out in 2023, became a top customer pain point due to its complexity.

My role

As the lead designer, I spearheaded the redesign and testing of Lattice's roles and permissions system. My goal was to simplify the user experience and restore customer confidence. I collaborated closely with cross-functional teams, including product management, engineering, and customer support, ensuring every facet of the system met user needs while addressing technical constraints.

The problem

Through a series of user interviews, we uncovered a recurring theme: confusion. Customers were struggling to differentiate between 'global' and 'targeted' permissions, and terms like 'Manager of Managers' left them scratching their heads. Some permissions didn’t function as expected, further compounding user frustration. It was clear—our customers needed a system that was easier to understand and configure.

permissions list — Permissions list before redesign

custom role — Custom role setup page before redesign

The mental model

Global and targeted permissions were an especially tricky problem to untangle.

I led the team in workshopping some different mental models for permission targeting.

We aligned on creating a super set of permissions that included all permission types as well as a reduced set of permissions that could be targeted to a subset of users.

brainstorm — Assessing the pros and cons of different mental models for global and targeted permissions

steps — I broke the flow down into more consumable pieces and changed the order of operations to drive comprehension

The redesign

My goal was to create a sense of confidence in the new system through simple user flows, helpful visual cues, and customer-centric language.

new screens — The new design simplified the role types into one list and broke the role creation flow into steps

I added illustrations and updated the experience to communicate confusing concepts like permission targeting

Reusable components to simplify implementation and drive clarity and consistency

Results

The response was overwhelmingly positive, with a noticeable improvement in users’ confidence and understanding of the system. Customers who previously struggled with permissions now described the process as 'streamlined' and 'intuitive.' Early user feedback indicated no confusion around critical concepts like global versus targeted permissions.

"...I think this is pretty streamlined. It is really clear to see what permissions will this have and then you have your little indicator to describe them more. It kind of gives you a little bit of insight, which I really like. I think that this is really clear, especially from someone who hasn't really done too much of this yet. And then I really like that it gives you a systems overview of everybody, like who's assigned and where. I'm visual, so I really like this."

-People leader, after trying out the new experience

I also reviewed the proposed redesign with our People Team and our Customer Support Team to further validate the direction. When launched, we plan to measure success by a looking for a stark reduction in support tickets which spiked after the initial launch of this experience.

Next steps

As the project moves into development with a planned launch in late 2024, I'm excited to see how these changes will positively impact both our users and Lattice as a whole. This project has reinforced the importance of user-centered design, and I'm confident that the streamlined permissions system will empower HR teams to manage access with clarity and ease.