Opportunity

“Companies that offer wellness and preemptive Employee Assistance Programs (EAP) often have far better luck recruiting and retaining employees, and see increased productivity.” Buffalo Business Journal, October 20, 2021

APG Emerging Tech was proud to design a user-centric, mobile application that improves access to health and wellness information for thousands of employees across the United States. This purpose-driven work was completed for our Client, a preeminent employee assistance program (EAP) provider.

What is EAP? A mix of meaningful health and wellness content (articles, videos, blogs, trackers) and an opportunity for live, individualized counseling and support, if needed. Most major corporations offer EAP services as a benefit to help employees manage the stresses that exist in life, beyond just the workplace. Our Client serves some of the most recognized corporations and governmental institutions in the United States. Given its innovative spirit and desire to grow, our Client worked with APG Emerging Tech to design a next-generation mobile app experience with improved access and usability so its important content could reach its clients and their employees.

Approach

We asked lots of questions and listened to what our Client’s leadership had to say about their clients, the employees they serve, and EAP industry as a whole. Listening is one of our superpowers at APG Emerging Tech. From the initial Discovery Workshop to the ongoing design meetings, we were able to learn about their lines of business, develop personas of the individuals they serve, and create a prioritized features list for their mobile app MVP.

Most importantly for our Client, we were able to show them progress thanks to our fully-interactive Axure prototype of the mobile app. Not only were we validating what we heard, but our Client’s teammates had an opportunity to react to the design and provide meaningful feedback because they could use this functional prototype.

APG’s clients spend more time using the designs than reviewing requirements in a long document. This benefits the final product and puts the solution on a fast-path to ultimate adoption. As our Client’s stakeholders clicked through and validated the requirements for the app, we learned more details about the way employees use EAP services and were able to modify the designs accordingly. Once refined and approved, the Axure prototype provided was the unambiguous blueprint from which to build.

APG further led the architecture, development and deployment of the mobile app.

Outcomes

The app is now available in the iOS and Android app stores. Over 60 companies and thousands of employees at each company are using the app to read helpful articles, watch interesting videos, take self-assessments, and even video chat with trained, professional counselors.