RBC - heyHR • Handed off 2024
A patent-pending generative AI solution for RBC's Global HR Center
Role
Developer, unofficial product designer
Timeline
May - August 2024
Team
1 Business Analyst
1 Data Engineer
2 Engineers
Skills
Product Strategy
Full Stack Engineering
Pitching & Storytelling
Overview
We designed, built, and deployed a patent-pending AI solution for RBC's Global HR Advice Centre in 4 months.
RBC Amplify is an internship program that challenges teams of 4 interns to solve a real business problem with technology, from understanding the problem space, researching, and designing, to developing, deploying, and pitching to senior leaders.
Outcomes
19.5%
reduction in call times
21%
decline in call volumes
$2.1M
projected annual cost savings
Note: Due to my NDA, I cannot disclose details on this project and its designs.
The Journey
It started with nothing but a real problem...
The HR Technology and HR Advice teams came together to present us with a real problem they were facing:
And we got to understanding the problem space...
We did field studies, surveys, interviews, and meetings with subject matter experts to understand the problem and the key pain points and opportunities.
...which led us to designing, building, and pitching our solution to senior leaders and executives across the bank!
We collected beta-launch data, continuously refined our pitch, and secured executive buy-in form the Head of Global Functions Technology.
Wins
97% of 156 users surveyed said that they would use heyHR
After being given a demo of the product.
We were recognized by CTO and Head of Global Functions Technology
For the impact and feasibility of our solution.
Our solution is patent-pending!
The legal team worked with us to submit a patent application due to the innovative potential of our solution.
Reflection
What I learned
Push back against stakeholders who think solution-first
Our problem statement had a solution in mind. We had to go beyond that and build a solution to solve the underlying problems even if it wasn't as “cool”.
How to navigate the sensitivity of various user and business needs
We had to bring value to the business, balancing: making employees feel heard, dealing with PII, managing the risk of misinformation, and working with the complexities of content ownership
How to craft an amazing pitch (and not get attached to your work)
We went through back-to-back-to-back practice + feedback sessions and iterated intensely, learning to give up what we once thought were good ideas.