Jove EV Charging Platform

An EV charging platform owned by MTR Lab, a wholly-owned subsidiary of MTR Corporation Limited, focuses on creating strategic value through investments in technology and formulating innovative solutions that support the long-term growth of communities.

Jove's highest priority is to become the central hub for EV chargers from various providers in Hong Kong, thereby achieving extensive market coverage. In the long term, our vision is to streamline the entire parking experience by integrating EV charging with the existing smart parking projects, moving further towards smart mobility.

The Jove Charging Platform is designed to cater to various target groups, primarily segmented by venue type:

‍Commercial Buildings: Here, users are typically tenants or white-collar workers. These individuals might prefer AC charging options and are likely to spend more time charging their vehicles as they work.

‍Shopping Malls: Users at these locations may include those needing urgent EV charging or casual shoppers who can afford to wait a few hours while they shop.

‍Monthly Parking Space: Renters might opt for private EV chargers, providing them with convenience and dedicated charging solutions.

For each of these user groups, our product and business teams have tailored specific features and business plans to meet their distinct needs effectively.

1. Conduct market and user research, and participate in product feature planning
2. In charge for the UI development and product architecture
3. Provide overall visual suggestion/direction and visual assets such as illustrations and animations
4. Maintain design library
5. Key person for offline experience material like backdrop, decoration, user guide, etc
6. Vendor management

We apply different research methods corresponding to various purposes and project stages. Here are some examples:

We distributed a questionnaire to EV-related groups on social media before launching the product. The purpose was twofold: first, to understand the impact landscape regarding charging concerns, including where users charge, how much they are willing to pay, what applications or charging services they use, etc. Second, it served as a preliminary screening tool to identify potential candidates for further interviews.

We conduct user interviews and shadowing primarily at charging stations. This allows us to observe how users interact with the app to operate the charger and to ask them about their decision-making process in choosing a charging spot, pain points, activities during charging, and to gather product feedback. Below is a small amendment we've made after observing how users conduct the charging process, 99% of them would plug the connector first.

Customer Satisfaction (CSAT) is a key metric used to measure customer satisfaction with our charging services. We employ Typeform to collect CSAT and user feedback post-charging. Additionally, this helps us identify user concerns and feature suggestions. Most importantly, by asking users what they believe was done best or worst, we can pinpoint pain points with precision. Currently, the most significant issue is charger performance and reliability.

Jove isn't just a one-off website, it's a long-term utility application built from the ground up with scalability in mind. Significant effort was dedicated early on to establish its foundation, encompassing component modularization, structuring page hierarchy, and defining navigation. This groundwork has led to a cohesive visual language.

While working on the architecture, another foundation is the visual aspect. By creating primitive visual elements, we have created fundamental UI components that are designed for scalability,make up 99% of the existing pages.

When a new feature idea or business requirement is generated, the design process almost immediately starts on paper with a very low-fi wireframe for quick concept visualization. Typically, we hold a casual meeting to collect feedback from the rest of the team.

When we begin crafting the high-fi mockup, components from the design library are reused, as we aim to minimize the need for creating new components. Normally, prototypes with various options are provided, each with their pros and cons. During sprint planning, the entire team decides on the final version, which then serves as the reference for developers when the new sprint starts. Below is an example of a different UI approach for the EV charging reservation function.

One thing that is really special to me is not only supporting the digital experience but also the offline aspects. For example, I am responsible for the charging station backdrop, signage, floor coating, stickers, and user guidelines. This role gives me the opportunity to learn about printing, coordination, procurement process and vendor management.