Case Management
System for CPO
Analyzed the user experience of an enterprise solution to unveil existing gaps within the technology and service — by conducting thorough internal and external user research across Consumer Protection Ontario.
The challenge
Our task was to evaluate the current case management system used by the Consumer Protection Ontario team by conducting user research internally and externally — with end-users — to determine existing gaps within the technology and service.
"How might we seek to understand and bridge the disconnect between our internal and external users to better understand their pain points and inform a CPO product roadmap?"
Understanding the context, behaviours, and needs of internal users across all 5 units.
Understanding how businesses and consumers interact with CPO — their pain points and information-seeking behaviours.
Translating research findings into a service design blueprint and process maps to inform future technology decisions.
What we set out to understand
Research participants
Marketplace Intelligence & Consumer Services
Primary intake and consumer-facing unit
Licensing Unit
Handles licensing applications and renewals
Inspections Unit
Field inspections and compliance checks
Investigations Unit
Complex complaint investigations
Burials Unit
Specialized regulatory unit
7 Businesses + 5 Consumers
276 screener respondents — recruited for diversity of business type, age, location, and tech proficiency
How we ran the research
We prepared tailored discussion guides for all 5 units by brainstorming questions as a team. Upon finalizing the questions, we prepared note-taking guides in Miro and ran workshop sessions with each unit.
Sessions included opening and closing questions to understand each participant's experience and past experience with CPO. A key limitation: we had only one unregulated business represented, so findings for that group should be treated as directional.
What we produced
Feedback was consolidated and scored across two key dimensions — severity of issue (critical, moderate, neutral) and type (pain point, suggestion, positive). This structured approach enabled prioritization across all five units.
What the research revealed
Workflows need separation by unit
Users need the ability to track what happens to a case as it moves through the various units — with clear handoff points and accountability at each stage.
Case progress is difficult to monitor
Users find it difficult to track the progress of cases and follow up on outstanding actions. There is no reliable way to know what's happening to a case after it leaves their hands.
One system to rule them all
Staff across all units expressed the desire to have only one system to maintain — rather than juggling multiple tools and platforms to manage a single case lifecycle.
Export is a persistent pain point
Users need to be able to export documents seamlessly. The current system makes this unnecessarily difficult, creating workarounds and lost time.