Case-study companion · local review
Beyond the happy path. The wait. The wrong turn. The decision to come back later. A product journey has to account for all of them.
Two reconstructed journeys connect people’s needs to the paths they can take, where they can get stuck, and what the evidence does—or doesn’t—tell us.
Documented path Audit observation Reconstructed path Open evidence
Coverage follows the available documentation, not every theoretically possible outcome. These are new syntheses, not contemporaneous research artifacts or measured emotional journeys.
01 / V5 migration
A safer migration is a journey with gates. Access problems, missing assets, client delays and QA failures belong in the rollout plan.
People Designer, account manager and client; participants are the people affected by release decisions.
Goal Modernize a live program while preserving participant-specific content and client approval. Reconstructed from 2023–24 training, runbook and meeting notes. Operational gates are documented requirements, not proof that every migration followed them. Participant feelings were not directly researched here.
01 Prepare02 Preview03 Migrate04 Verify05 SupportStage 01
Prepare Need Know the correct program and preserve every participant type’s experience. Action / touchpoint Verify access and program identity; capture live assets before changing templates. Friction A designer’s shared access was blocked. Older sites could have missing content. Sources: E1 · E2 · E3
Paths and outcomes Documented path Access unavailable IT ticket → retest; the meeting notes record an unresolved retry, not a guaranteed resolution.
Documented path Content lost but captured Retrieve saved assets and re-upload them. This was the revised training recommendation.
Open evidence No original content exists Client/account-manager direction remained unresolved in the training notes; do not fabricate missing content.
Stage 02
Preview Need Let the client judge the right experience before a live change. Action / touchpoint Use a demo for preview; clarify special requirements and route feedback through the account team. Friction SSO programs needed demos; unclear custom upgrades could be held. Slow feedback stalled work. Sources: E1 · E3 · E4
Paths and outcomes Documented path SSO or unclear custom scope Use the documented demo requirement for SSO; hold unclear custom work for information.
Documented path Client feedback delayed Wait for clearance. The notes document delay and later pressure, not an approved automatic deadline.
Reconstructed path Client requests revisions Revise the preview and seek approval again: a reconstruction of the preview/approval gate, not a measured loop.
Stage 03
Migrate Need Change the intended theme without exposing unfinished work. Action / touchpoint Demo: Publish & Restart. Production: lock first, then Publish & Preview. Friction Demo and production have different release controls; theme configuration and content tokens are risky edit surfaces. Sources: E1
Paths and outcomes Documented path Standard brand change Update brand variables; put sanctioned custom overrides in Designer Variables.
Documented path Theme Config or token deletion Do not edit Theme Config. Ask the lead before deleting a token that seems inapplicable.
Documented path Work incomplete or unapproved Keep the live site locked. Unlock only when complete and client-approved.
Stage 04
Verify Need Preserve responsive behavior, public/private scope and participant-specific content. Action / touchpoint Check pages, roles, links, forms and responsive layouts. Submit test forms only with a demo account. Friction A responsive shell can still lose content, break a role-specific page, or hide an error state. Sources: E1 · E2 · E3
Paths and outcomes Reconstructed path QA identifies a defect Remain locked, repair and retest: derived from the runbook’s complete-and-approved release condition.
Documented path All required checks and approval complete Unlock the site for participants; checklist scope is broader than the landing page.
Open evidence Destructive failure or rollback Backup refresh was a named risk. Restore duration was an unanswered question; no tested recovery SLA is claimed.
Stage 05
Support Need Make post-release issues reach someone who can resolve them. Action / touchpoint Account managers route revisions to the assigned designer; technical problems go to the lead. Friction A handoff is not a resolution. Support became quieter qualitatively, without a ticket baseline. Sources: E5
Paths and outcomes Documented path Theme revision request Route to the assigned designer via the account manager; resolution is not guaranteed by routing.
Documented path Technical escalation Escalate to the lead for investigation.
Open evidence No report, silent failure or renewed incident No monitoring protocol, incident history or closure SLA was supplied; absence of a ticket does not prove no harm.
Follow the branches. Open a full-size image to zoom, or explore the editable board. The stages above carry the same journey without requiring FigJam access.
Readiness, missing content and approval Open full-size map ↗ Production, QA and recovery Open full-size map ↗ 02 / Demo catalog
Choosing a reward is not always a checkout. Save for later, empty carts, insufficient points, cancellation and uncertain confirmation all change the journey.
People Loyalty-program participant browsing, comparing, saving or redeeming on desktop or mobile.
Goal Find an appropriate reward, understand the points commitment, and recover without losing context. The 2023 implementation notes and 2025–26 Demo 15 audit are different evidence layers. Audit statements are reported observations, not independently reproduced defects or proof of shipped fixes. This case remains separate from the six-month V5 rollout.
01 Discover02 Evaluate03 Review04 Check out05 AftercareStage 01
Discover Need Understand the available rewards and narrow the set. Action / touchpoint Browse departments or search; filter, sort and paginate results. Friction The audit reports hidden active filters, mobile context loss, small pagination targets and filter reset on refresh. Sources: C0 · C1 · C2 · C3
Paths and outcomes Documented path Useful results Open an item or save it to the wish list; search and department selection are documented entry routes.
Audit observation Filter context lost The audit proposes visible active filters and reset controls. Persistence and restored search context still need validation.
Open evidence No results or slow data No-results preview was missing in the audit; search/detail loading UI was unchecked in the 2023 to-do. Retry behavior is unverified.
Stage 02
Evaluate Need Understand the item, delivery constraints, quantity and points cost. Action / touchpoint Review description and cost; select delivery where offered; choose quantity; add to cart or save. Friction Long descriptions push actions down on mobile. The audit reports price-check announcements and add-to-cart feedback gaps. Sources: C1 · C2 · C4 · C6
Paths and outcomes Documented path Ready to choose Select delivery and quantity where applicable, then add to cart; the archive records quantity limits, not exact limits for every item.
Documented path Not ready to redeem Save to wish list; later view, remove or move the item to cart.
Audit observation Price check or add feedback unclear Acknowledge progress and completion is a proposed improvement; no shipped loading, error or duplicate-prevention behavior is inferred.
Open evidence Unavailable reward or invalid quantity Availability labels and limits exist, but out-of-stock, unsupported delivery and invalid-quantity recovery rules were not supplied.
Stage 03
Review Need Keep control of the commitment before checkout. Action / touchpoint Change quantity, remove items, move items to wish list, continue shopping or check out. Friction The audit reports no quantity confirmation or removal undo. A cart-expiry warning is visible. Sources: C1 · C5 · C6 · C7
Paths and outcomes Documented path Edit, defer or continue browsing Quantity and wish-list actions keep item decisions separate from checkout.
Documented path Cart is empty The dedicated empty-cart record shows an empty message and Continue Shopping. It is not evidence of recommendation modules.
Audit observation Accidental removal or expired cart Undo is an audit recommendation, not a confirmed feature. The 30-day warning is recorded; restore and notification behavior are unknown.
Open evidence Wish list becomes empty Empty-list messaging was an unchecked 2023 to-do; the later wish-list audit did not show this state.
Stage 04
Check out Need Know whether redemption can proceed and why it stops. Action / touchpoint Check available points; complete information/tax steps when shown; review, acknowledge policy and confirm. Friction Insufficient points is documented. Tax content is dense; validation and save/resume are not established. Sources: C1 · C8 · C9 · C10
Paths and outcomes Documented path Not enough points The insufficient-points screen offers Shopping Cart and Continue Shopping. No cash top-up or automatic earning path is documented.
Audit observation Required input missing or invalid The audit proposes inline errors and an error summary. Pre-error screenshots do not establish runtime validation.
Audit observation Policy checkbox missed Acknowledgment precedes confirmation; the audit flags weak prominence. Exact disabled/error behavior remains unverified.
Documented path Participant cancels Cancel Order is named in the review audit. The destination and preservation of cart/data are not documented.
Open evidence Leave, timeout, network or submission failure Save-and-resume and processing were outstanding concerns. No retry, idempotency, persistence or duplicate-order guarantee is claimed.
Stage 05
Aftercare Need Know an order exists and how to get help. Action / touchpoint Read confirmation; print it, track the order, go to the account or contact support. Friction The receipt offers closure, but its downstream operational outcomes are not documented in these sources. Sources: C11
Paths and outcomes Documented path Order confirmed The receipt audit records textual confirmation and print/track/account actions. A receipt is not delivery completion.
Documented path Participant needs help The receipt references a Contact page; routing and service response are unverified.
Open evidence Delivery issue, return or refund Tracking failure, shipment delay, order cancellation after submission, refund and points-restoration rules require separate documentation.
Follow the branches. Open a full-size image to zoom, or explore the editable board. The stages above carry the same journey without requiring FigJam access.
Discovery, evaluation and deferral Open full-size map ↗ Checkout, interruption and aftercare Open full-size map ↗ Source register Dates below are last-edited dates, not necessarily event dates. “Documented” means the path appears in a source, not that every user completed it. The audit layer is retrospective and has not been reproduced here. Full private-source links are retained in FigJam and the local research notes.
E1 · Revised V5 Migration Steps Operational runbook · edited 2024-02-06 E2 · Training for V5 Migration Training and recommendations · edited 2023-12-01 E3 · Migration project meeting · January 30 Meeting notes and unanswered questions · edited 2024-02-01 E4 · Migration project meeting · April 3 Meeting notes · edited 2024-04-04 E5 · Accepted portfolio coordination narrative and Erika’s confirmation Owner account; not an incident log · edited 2026-09-07 C0 · Shopping · Demo 15 audit Retrospective audit · edited 2026-01-22 C1 · Catalog Redesign · July 11, 2023 Working notes and unfinished tasks · edited 2023-11-06 C2 · Implement Shopping Catalog in Demo Implementation notes; testing outstanding · edited 2023-12-05 C3 · Search Results Retrospective screen audit · edited 2025-10-23 C4 · Item Details → Delivery Options Retrospective screen audit · edited 2025-10-24 C5 · Cart Retrospective screen audit · edited 2025-10-24 C6 · Wish List Retrospective screen audit · edited 2025-10-24 C7 · Cart → Empty Dedicated empty-state audit · edited 2025-10-24 C8 · Checkout → Insufficient Points Dedicated blocked-checkout audit · edited 2025-10-24 C9 · Checkout → Tax Reporting Retrospective screen audit; eligibility rules absent · edited 2025-10-24 C10 · Checkout → Confirm Order Retrospective screen audit · edited 2025-10-24 C11 · Checkout → Order Receipt Retrospective screen audit · edited 2025-10-24 
