USER EXPERIENCE RESEARCH AND VALIDATION
Market Research and Competitive Analysis
A competitive analysis is a subset of the broader area of market research and uses its techniques and concepts to understand customer needs and market drivers.
The Challenge
I was tasked with conducting a competitive analysis of the MyPACE Platform, a system that was designed and developed by JFF for the Job Corps program.
Users / Audiences
The audience for this work were US DOL Job Corp program leaders and the MyPACE platform team.
Scope and Constraints
I had a tight 6-week window to review the MyPACE platform and the current career navigation and training landscape including comparable products and tools, as well as identify market trends.
Organizations
JFFLabs, Job Corps
My Role
UX Research
Date / Duration
Oct 2024 – Nov 2024
My Process
I starting with gathering an understanding of the Job Corps program.
In order to effectively compare career navigation and training tools in the marketplace, I needed to understand where the Job Corps program fits in including who it serves, how it serves them, it's history, and it's level of effectiveness.
I partnered with the platform team.
The platform team provided a demo, documentation, and answered questions I had throughout the project.
I conducted desktop research leveraging AI tools.
I identified and compared players in the career navigation and training marketplace including those working at the front-edge of industry trends and technology.
Then I ran into a wall.
The Job Corps program is unique in it's field. It's designed to serve a very targeted population of young adults with barriers to education and employment and I could not find a true direct comparable in the marketplace.
So, I shifted my direction.
I decided to make broader comparisons through the eyes of changing generational needs and wants to compare how other career and navigation tools are adapting. This allowed me to compare the Job Corps platform offerings with broader market tools in an effective way.
Outcomes and Learning
I learned there are a clear opportunities.
Looking through a generational lens, opportunities for the MyPACE platform stood out clearly. The upcoming MyPACE generation, Gen Alpha, is highly tech savvy, accustomed to digital experiences and values personalization, interactivity, and authenticity—and many tools and services in the current career and navigation landscape are already preparing for this.
I documented my analysis and provided proposed next steps for Job Corps and the platform team.
