Partnering with National Star College and funded by Innovate UK, the goal was to design a product that could lower barriers to employment. The brief: how might we help someone feel confident at work when learning new tasks is genuinely daunting and asking for help feels impossible?
I led the filmed research phase, spending time with trainees in real work environments at EDF Gloucester and Starr Bistro. Watched them work, spoke to job coaches and employers, documented the workarounds and systems people were already using.
The research fed into designing Ember, a digital assistant using beacon technology to provide step-by-step instructions at specific points in a workspace. The idea: a little nudge in the right direction rather than constant human support.
I directed a series of short films documenting the trainees and how the system worked in practice, helping to communicate the concept and its potential impact.
