Reducing Enterprise Onboarding Time by 30%…
Reducing Enterprise Onboarding Time by 30% at Google
Strategic UX improvements that increased completion rates by 25% and boosted usability scores from 72 to 86
PROJECT AT A GLANCE
Lead Product Designer
6 months (2024)
Product, Engineering, UX Research
Android Enterprise
MEASURABLE IMPACT
📞 20% Fewer Support Tickets
Project Overview
Android Enterprise setup is the crucial first step for businesses managing work devices. This project tackled a notoriously complex part of that setup, internally known as the "laser" flow. This flow involved a checklist guiding IT administrators through mandatory, often intricate, configuration steps. Our primary objective was to streamline this experience by significantly reducing steps, consolidating screens, and clarifying language, ultimately making onboarding faster, clearer, and less error-prone for End Users.
The Challenge
Enterprise IT administrators were abandoning Android device setup midway through onboarding—a complex 12-step checklist that was confusing, time-consuming, and error-prone. This directly impacted Google's enterprise customer retention and increased support costs.
THE CORE PROBLEMS
❌ TOO MANY STEPS
Fragmented 12-step journey forced users to navigate between the setup wizard, external apps, and a confusing checklist—resulting in excessive clicks and a lengthy, disjointed experience.
❌ UNCLEAR GUIDANCE
Screen titles and instructions used technical jargon without context, causing confusion and errors during complex configuration tasks. Users didn't understand why steps were needed or what would happen if they skipped them.
❌ INCONSISTENT UI
The checklist interface felt disconnected from Android's design system, reducing user trust and creating a fragmented experience that made users question if they were still in the "right place."
THE IMPACT OF THESE PROBLEMS
- Only 50% of users completed setup without errors
- Average setup time: 18 minutes (too long for busy IT admins)
- High support ticket volume for onboarding issues
- Frustrated enterprise customers abandoning the platform
- Negative perception of Android Enterprise's ease of use
My challenge: Redesign the onboarding flow to reduce complexity and time while maintaining all necessary security configurations and compliance requirements.
BEFORE vs AFTER: FLOW STRUCTURE
BEFORE: Complex 12-Step Fragmented Flow
[Welcome] → [Terms] → [Account] → [Device] → [Network] → [Security Basic]
↓
[Security Advanced] → [Apps] → [Policy] → [Review] → [Confirm] → [Success]
❌ 18 minutes average
❌ 50% error rate
❌ Users got lost between steps
❌ No way to save progress
AFTER: Streamlined 8-Step Integrated Flow
[Welcome + Account] → [Device] → [Essential Setup] → [Advanced Options]
↓
[Apps + Policy] → [Review] → [Processing] → [Success + Next Steps]
✅ 12.5 minutes average (30% faster)
✅ 80% error-free (60% improvement)
✅ Clear linear progression
✅ Save & resume functionality
My Role
As Lead Product Designer, I drove the UX strategy and execution for this initiative—conducting user research with 30+ enterprise IT administrators, analyzing quantitative data from 10,000+ onboarding sessions, designing the consolidated 8-step flow, creating high-fidelity prototypes in Figma, and partnering with Product Management, Engineering, UX Research, and Content Strategy teams to validate and ship the solution.
I advocated for efficiency and clarity throughout the design process, ensuring the final solution balanced user needs with technical feasibility and business constraints.
Research & Key Insights
I conducted qualitative research with 30+ IT administrators and analyzed quantitative data from 10,000+ onboarding sessions. Here's what we learned:
💬 INSIGHT #1: COGNITIVE OVERLOAD
"There's too much information on each screen. I just need to know what's required vs. optional."
— IT Admin, Fortune 500 company
Finding: Users were overwhelmed by dense screens with unclear prioritization. Decision fatigue led to abandonment.
💬 INSIGHT #2: LACK OF CONTEXT
"I don't understand why I need to do this step or what happens if I skip it."
— Systems Administrator, Healthcare org
Finding: Technical terminology without explanation made users hesitant to proceed. They needed to understand implications.
💬 INSIGHT #3: NO SENSE OF PROGRESS
"I have no idea how many more steps there are. It feels endless."
— IT Manager, Education sector
Finding: Without clear progress indicators, users felt lost and were more likely to abandon.
💬 INSIGHT #4: TIME PRESSURE
"I'm usually setting up 50-100 devices at once. Every minute saved per device matters."
— Enterprise Support Specialist
Finding: Time efficiency was critical. Users wanted the fastest path without sacrificing necessary configuration.
The Solution
I redesigned the onboarding experience as a streamlined, 8-step linear flow integrated directly into the Android setup wizard—eliminating the fragmented checklist and creating a cohesive, efficient journey.
KEY DESIGN IMPROVEMENTS
1️⃣ CONSOLIDATED SCREENS
Merged related steps to reduce cognitive load and context switching.
12 screens → 8 steps (33% reduction)
2️⃣ CLEAR, PLAIN LANGUAGE
Rewrote all instructions, replacing technical jargon with user-friendly explanations. Added "Why do I need this?" tooltips at decision points.
3️⃣ PROGRESSIVE DISCLOSURE
Hid advanced options behind "Show more" links, reducing complexity for 80% of users while maintaining power user functionality.
4️⃣ PROMINENT PROGRESS INDICATORS
Added clear stepper showing "Step X of 8" with time estimates (e.g., "~3 minutes remaining") to set expectations.
5️⃣ REAL-TIME VALIDATION
Implemented inline validation to prevent errors before users could advance, with specific, actionable error messages.
6️⃣ SAVE & RESUME FUNCTIONALITY
Allowed users to pause setup and return later—critical for IT admins managing multiple devices or interrupted by other priorities.
DESIGN APPROACH: EFFICIENCY OVER DELIGHT
Enterprise users don't need animations or visual flair—they need to get their work done quickly and correctly. My design prioritized:
- Speed: Reducing unnecessary steps and transitions
- Clarity: Making every action and consequence crystal clear
- Confidence: Preventing errors and providing helpful guidance
- Flexibility: Accommodating different workflows and interruptions
The 30% improvement came not from polish, but from removing friction.
Core Design Principles
EFFICIENCY OVER DELIGHT
Enterprise users value speed and clarity above visual polish. Every design decision optimized for task completion time.
CONTEXT IS CRITICAL
Users make better decisions when they understand "why." Added tooltips and plain-language explanations at key decision points.
PROGRESSIVE DISCLOSURE
Hide complexity by default. Show advanced options only when users explicitly request them. Reduced cognitive load for 80% of users.
ERROR PREVENTION > ERROR HANDLING
Stop problems before they happen through inline validation, clear confirmations, and preview states for destructive actions.
Results & Impact
The redesigned onboarding flow delivered significant, measurable improvements across all key metrics:
QUANTITATIVE RESULTS
⏱️ SETUP TIME REDUCED BY 30%
Impact: 5.5 minutes saved per setup × 1M+ setups/year = massive time savings
📈 COMPLETION RATE INCREASED BY 25%
Impact: 16% more enterprises successfully deploying Android devices
⭐ USABILITY SCORE IMPROVED +14 POINTS
Moved from "acceptable" to "excellent" usability rating (SUS Score)
(60% improvement)
(Reduced costs)
QUALITATIVE FEEDBACK
"This is SO much better. I can actually see what I need to do and how long it'll take."
— IT Administrator, post-launch user feedback
"The new flow saved us hours across our device deployment. It's actually intuitive now."
— Enterprise Customer, 1000+ employee company
"Finally, a setup process that doesn't make me want to throw my laptop out the window."
— Systems Administrator during usability testing
BUSINESS IMPACT
- Improved enterprise customer satisfaction and retention
- Reduced support burden and operational costs
- Increased Android Enterprise adoption among new customers
- Better data quality from fewer rushed or incorrect setups
- Enhanced brand perception of Android Enterprise as user-friendly
The project successfully transformed a frustrating, error-prone experience into a fast, clear, and confidence-inspiring onboarding flow.
Key Takeaways & Learnings
EFFICIENCY OVER DELIGHT IN ENTERPRISE UX
The 30% improvement came from removing unnecessary steps and creating scannable information hierarchy—not from animations or visual polish. Enterprise users value speed and clarity above everything else.
PROGRESSIVE DISCLOSURE IS POWERFUL
Hiding advanced options behind "Show more" reduced cognitive load for 80% of users while still providing power users the control they needed. This single decision had massive impact on perceived simplicity.
CONTEXT REDUCES HESITATION
Adding simple "Why do I need this?" tooltips dramatically reduced user hesitation at decision points. Enterprise users make better choices when they understand implications.
CROSS-FUNCTIONAL COLLABORATION DRIVES BREAKTHROUGHS
The key improvements came from workshops with Engineering (technical feasibility), Content Strategy (clear explanations), and Product (prioritization). Solo design rarely achieves this level of impact.
SMALL IMPROVEMENTS COMPOUND AT SCALE
Reducing 4 steps doesn't sound dramatic, but across millions of setups per year, it saves significant time and improves experience at scale.
Skills Demonstrated
User Research · Usability Testing · Information Architecture · Interaction Design · Prototyping · A/B Testing · Stakeholder Management · Cross-Functional Collaboration · Material Design · Figma · Enterprise UX · Progressive Disclosure · Error Prevention · Content Strategy · Data Analysis