JOEL ​BASKIN

ABOUT RAPID7

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Rapid7 produces cybersecurity applications that protect hardware and software from malware and cyberattacks.  ​

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InsightVM detects, inventories, and inspects networked devices for vulnerabilities, such as outdated software versions, missing patches, and misconfigured settings. It  then reports the issues and suggests fixes. The Goals functionality tracked the progress of remediation efforts against specified benchmarks, while the Projects functionality assigned tasks to members of the Security and IT teams. Goals and Projects were created separately and w

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REMOVING AMBIGUITY ABOUT

USERS AND SECURITY TEAMS

PlayNetwork deployed new solid-state devices in client locations only to find them unreliable. Clients angrily called Customer Service while quickly CS reps grew frustrated with the recently released Device Manager Dashboard and its ambiguous indicators. 

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My task was to design a new Device Manager that

1) Enabled CS reps to easily diagnose device issues

2) proactively highlight failing devices to prevent service interruptions and service calls

3) filter devices by specific attributes like client and version to discover issues across related devices

4) stretch goal - filter and rollup views by client to enable accounts with internal IT groups to monitor their own devices

SIMPLIFYING THE LOGICAL MODEL

To design an effective dashboard that supports device monitoring and remediation processes, I identified 7 stakeholder roles affected by poor performance of the devices. The earlier project team had not done this, and customer service did not sufficiently understand how to troubleshoot the devices. I narrowed the focus of the project to accurate and timely reporting of failing devices because all other metrics depended on this.

 

By sitting with senior testers of the devices and customer service reps, I detailed the probable causes of device failure and charted a step-by-step process to isolate and resolve them. The key decision points became the prominent data points to be displayed on the dashboard. The troubleshooting decision tree became a core training tool for customer service.
 

WIREFRAMES AND MOCKUPS​

Early designs began on a whiteboard where I could collaborate quickly with stakeholders. The process was to draw out design assumptions and intentions from them using open-ended questioning and rapid reflection of their comments into visualizations. Once a candidate design direction stabilized, the process continued in electronic form. 

VALIDATING SUCCESS

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