Case Study
Turning Field Discovery into a Geospatial Damage-Assessment Workflow
Helped productize Accela's 2023 Rapid Damage Assessment expansion. I worked on Survey123 integration and configuration, then used agency presentations and a disaster-response workshop to refine the workflow and roadmap.
Jump to a section
Delivered capability
Field assessment became part of a connected geospatial workflow.
The expanded offering connected mobile and geospatial capabilities with damage-assessment work. My contribution connected integration and configuration decisions to feedback from the agencies expected to use them.
My contributionAs an associate product manager, I contributed integration and application-type configuration, presented the workflow, ran discovery workshops, and translated feedback into product work.
- Starting point
- An existing damage-assessment offering needed expanded mobile and geospatial capabilities, informed by how agencies work after a disaster.
- What changed
- The 2023 expansion included Survey123 integration and configuration, with agency feedback informing personas, roadmap, and follow-on work.
Project scope
The work behind the result
Existing offering expanded in 2023
New geospatial and mobile capabilities
Esri Survey123 integration
A field workflow with real constraints
Rapid Damage Assessment supports agencies assessing damage after a disaster. Accela's June 2023 announcement describes an expansion of an existing offering, including mobile and geospatial capabilities and Survey123 integration.
The product challenge was to connect information collected in the field to the agency's broader assessment workflow. The integration and configuration needed to make sense to people doing disaster-response work.
Build the connection and configuration
I worked on the integration and application-type configuration connecting to Esri's damage-assessment capabilities, including Survey123. This formed part of the wider team's work productizing the expanded offering.
The useful unit of work was the assessment workflow: what gets captured, how it connects to the platform, and what the agency can do with that information. My role linked that customer context to requirements and delivery.
Put the workflow in front of agencies
I presented the capability multiple times, including at a Florida user-group conference. Those conversations gave the product work an audience of agencies familiar with disaster response.
In an interactive workshop, participants grouped by disaster type and placed sticky notes along a process timeline. The exercise made their workflows visible and created specific input for refining the experience.
Carry discovery into the roadmap
I used the feedback to refine the workflow and built personas, a roadmap, and categorized tickets for continued work. Discovery became input to product decisions and follow-on delivery.
The workshop format helped move the conversation beyond a demonstration. Participants could show where the work happened in their own process, which gave us more useful input than a general reaction to the interface.
What the expansion delivered
The 2023 expansion added geospatial and mobile capabilities to Rapid Damage Assessment, including Survey123 integration. My contribution combined integration and configuration work with direct agency discovery.
This case shows how I approach a field product: connect the technical workflow, put it in front of the people who understand the conditions of use, and carry their feedback into the next product decision.
Skills demonstrated