Defence Research and Development Canada
Military Mobile Apps Usability Audit
A usability audit of seven defence mobile apps, delivering actionable recommendations to improve efficiency and safety for military personnel.
Role
UI/UX Designer
User Researcher
Responsibilities
Conducted a heuristic evaluation of seven mobile applications for an agency responsible for the safety and effectiveness of military personnel.
About the project
The goal was to identify usability issues that could hinder performance in high-stakes operational environments.
The challenge
01 / 03
Usability becomes a safety concern
In operational environments, buried navigation and low-visibility actions can slow users down when speed matters most. The audit needed to establish a consistent, evidence-based view across seven separate applications.
My approach
02 / 03
A systematic audit across seven apps
Using established interaction principles and mobile design guidelines, I audited each app and categorized findings by severity.
Critical issues included buried History and Results screens, and low-visibility primary actions such as Start buttons.
- Heuristic evaluation
- Severity-based issue ranking
- Cross-app pattern review
- Actionable design recommendations
The outcome
03 / 03
A practical roadmap for the development team
I delivered a 140-page report with prioritized recommendations, including consolidating menu items and surfacing key functions directly on the home screen.
The report gave the development team a clear path to improve both efficiency and safety for end users.
From the report
04 / 04
A look inside the deliverable
The result
What changed after the work shipped
7
Mobile applications audited
140 pages
Prioritized research report
1 roadmap
Clear direction for implementation