Ford faced a complex GCP migration, hampered by Terraform's intricacies. This project involved designing a user-friendly application to simplify infrastructure provisioning and selection for their diverse application portfolio.

Migrating thousands of Ford applications to GCP using Terraform presented significant challenges:

• Steep learning curve: Product teams lacked Terraform expertise and time to deep dive into this entirely new language.

• Infrastructure complexity: Choosing the right GCP resources (compute engine, databases, etc.) for each app was difficult and costly if done incorrectly.

• Error-prone process: Manual Terraform configuration led to frequent errors and delays in the process as there was not a single source of truth to help product teams achieve their infrastructure goals.

My role as lead UX designer focused on creating a user-friendly application that addressed the specific challenges Ford engineers faced with Terraform:

• Simplifying Terraform: Recognizing the complexity of Terraform code, I designed an abstraction layer that hid the underlying code while still providing the necessary functionality. This involved creating a visual workflow that guided users through the process, using drag-and-drop functionality for resource selection, and providing clear visual feedback on the status of deployments.

• Developing an Intelligent Recommendation Engine: To address the challenge of infrastructure selection, I worked with subject matter experts and designed a recommendation engine that analyzed application requirements (scalability, latency, etc.) and suggested optimal GCP configurations. This involved developing a decision tree model and integrating it into the application's interface, providing clear explanations for each recommendation.

• Iterative Design Based on User Feedback: Throughout the design process, I conducted multiple rounds of user testing, incorporating feedback to refine the application's design. For example, early testing revealed confusion around the terminology used in the application, leading to a redesign of the interface using more user-friendly language and icons. This iterative process ensured the application met the needs of its users.

The app we built focused on making things simpler:

• A clear step-by-step process: We guided users through the migration process with an intuitive workflow. (Show a screenshot of a key screen here!)

• Smart recommendations: The app suggested the best GCP infrastructure based on each app's unique needs. For example, if an app needed high availability, it would automatically suggest using managed databases. (Show a before-and-after comparison of Terraform code vs the app's interface.)

• Simplified Terraform: We hid most of the complex Terraform code, letting users interact with a much simpler interface. Think drag-and-drop instead of complex code!

A Big Win for Ford (and for Me!) The impact was significant:

• Faster migrations: We saw a 30% reduction in the time it took to move apps to GCP (based on post-pilot survey data).

• Fewer errors: The number of mistakes dropped by a whopping 45% (tracked via application logs).

• Happy users: Ford's engineers gave the app a 90% satisfaction rating (from post-pilot user feedback).

This project showed me the power of good UX design in solving even the toughest technical problems. By simplifying a complex process, we helped Ford achieve its cloud migration goals efficiently and effectively and allowed engineers to focus on the work they really love: building the applications that solve real user problems.