ACRA trustBar

A fully responsive website for a regulator in Singapore, ACRA, that is utilised nationally and globally to verify ACRA-issued documents.

Client

The Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA)

Project duration

6 months (2022)

Team members

1 UI / UX Designer (me)
1 Product Owner (ACRA)

1 UI / UX Designer (me)
Product Owner (ACRA)

Context

The Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA) is the regulator of business entities in Singapore. Business entities are required to establish and administer a repository of documents and information with ACRA. The information can be accessed by the public to conduct checks on the background of the business entities and people involved.

The challenge

There have been cases of fraudulent activities where fake ACRA-issued documents are used in business transactions. As a regulator of business entities in Singapore, ACRA needed a way to enhance the authenticity and reliability of their documents, which will in turn contribute to a more secure and trustworthy business environment in the country.

Scope of the project

The project comprises of 3 parts — The Internet Portal, Intranet Portal and document redesign.

Internet Portal

Available to the public, the Internet Portal allows any one to verify the authenticity and currency of Business Profiles and Business Certificates. The Internet Portal must also include VICA Chatbot, explanation of the trustBar technology, FAQ and announcement features.

Intranet Portal

The Intranet Portal can only be assessed by ACRA officers on their government-issued laptops, and enables them to perform administrative maintenance functions.

Redesign Business Profile and Business Certificates

ACRA was also seeking to modernise and improve the readability of their documents.

Researching the problem space

Getting myself familiar with the problem space, I set a few research goals in place:

To get myself familiar with the problem space, I set a few research goals in place:

Interviewing users

To understand the existing processes, use cases and pain points of the actual users, we interviewed 20 stakeholders from different industries, including users from:

  • ACRA officers

  • Corporate Service Providers

  • Law Firms

  • Businesses

  • Banks

  • IMDA TradeTrust

Stakeholder interview plan

Once we’ve completed the interviews, I conducted a affinity mapping exercise with the Product Owner from ACRA to organise and record our findings from the sessions.

Notes and observations recorded and grouped in an Affinity Map

From the stakeholder interviews, our key insights are:

Prevalence of QR code for verification

Users are familiar with the usage of QR code since it became extremely prevalent during the Covid-19 period.

Heavy reliance on physical documents

Transitioning away from physical documents is challenging as most processes are paper-based.

Users need to be certain that information is up-to-date

Changes in ACRA documents are crucial as they can impact business decisions made by users.

Importance of ACRA branding for credibility

All users will feel more confident and reassured knowing that the platform is a service provided by ACRA.

Empathising with users

To better empathise with users, we crafted personas of our target audience and created journey maps to visualise the process that users go through to accomplish their goals.

Wire flows & validating solution

Using the insights gathered, I created the wire flows and reviewed the proposed solution with our developers before proceeding with the usability tests.

This ensured that the proposed solution is technically feasible. Otherwise, it would be difficult and time-consuming to find alternatives that might not work for users at the later stages of this project.

One of the wire flows for the verification process

Before the usability testing sessions, I prepared a few key tasks for the users to perform. Each task included the goal and success criteria, ensuring that the wording was neutral to avoid influencing the users in any way.

An example of a task we gave users

From the usability testing sessions, we observed:

Internet Portal

Require more verification details such as date and time

  • Require more verification details such as date and time

  • Most users uploaded the wrong file during verification

  • Found it easy to understand information on “How it works”

  • Require more verification details such as date and time

  • Most users uploaded the wrong file during verification

  • Found it easy to understand information on “How it works”

Most users uploaded the wrong file during verification

Found it easy to understand information on “How it works”

Intranet Portal

Terms used should be similar to their existing platform for familiarity

  • Terms used should be similar to their existing platform for familiarity

  • Require more search options as information might be unavailable

  • Need a way to generate multiple documents simultaneously

  • Terms used should be similar to their existing platform for familiarity

  • Require more search options as information might be unavailable

  • Need a way to generate multiple documents simultaneously

Require more search options as information might be unavailable

Need a way to generate multiple documents simultaneously

Business Profile and Business Certificate

Verification via QR code should have clearer instructions

  • Verification via QR code should have clearer instructions

  • Date format should be in DD MMM YYYY to prevent confusion

  • Document is more visually appealing and easier to read

  • Verification via QR code should have clearer instructions

  • Date format should be in DD MMM YYYY to prevent confusion

  • Document is more visually appealing and easier to read

Date format should be in DD MMM YYYY to prevent confusion

Document is more visually appealing and easier to read

Prototyping the solution

Based on the observations from the first usability testing session, I crafted the high fidelity prototypes for the Internet Portal and Intranet Portal, and further refined the design of the Business Profile and Certificate.

Internet Portal

An easy and straightforward way for users to verify the authenticity and currency of their ACRA-issued documents, including useful features for users to download or print the verification results.

Intranet Portal

ACRA officers can effortlessly retrieve information on purchase transactions, generate detailed reports for reporting purposes and update information on the Internet Portal in real time.

Business Profile & Certificate

Revamped with a new look, information within the Business Profiles and Business Certificates are thoughtfully organised and presented to improve readability and scannability.

Outcomes and learnings

The project was launched successfully with ACRA issuing over 75,000 verifiable Business Profile and Business Certificates every month.

Truth to be told, being the sole designer for a large project like this wasn’t easy, but I’ve learned many things along the way:

Adaptability

Working on all aspects of the design, including high-level decisions to detailed interface elements, being the sole designer meant I had to be adaptable and make the most of what is available without compromising on design quality.

Collaborating with stakeholders

Close collaboration with stakeholders is important for risk mitigation as potential risks can be identified and addressed early on. This will not only decrease the chances of misunderstandings, but also mitigate the risk of delays or significant revisions later in the project timeline.

Problem solving

Every project has its challenges, whether its conflicting stakeholder requirements, unexpected project complexities or technical challenges. When problem-solving, I've learned the importance of finding a middle ground — balancing how things look, function, and perform. It's about making smart choices that meet everyone's needs and fit the project's goals.

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Let’s Connect

It doesn’t just end here — Feel free to reach out for any opportunities or even just to bounce around ideas. 😊

Let’s connect