Spatial Investigation Workflows

Designing clearer workflows for investigating and resolving complex spatial data issues
Role

Product designer

Scope

Information hierarchy • Filtering • Search • Report view

Team

Core Editing • Geodatabase 

Timeline

2025

Focus

Spatial data investigation

Context

Spatial validation workflows are information-heavy

ArcGIS Pro users validate complex spatial datasets to identify geometry, topology, and rule-based errors. These workflows often involve many records, multiple feature classes, and dense technical information.

Reframing the Problem

From managing rows to supporting investigation

The original workflow focused heavily on displaying records.

Through workflow analysis and design exploration, I reframed the experience as an investigation workflow:

  • overview

  • filtering

  • pattern recognition

  • spatial context

  • resolution

This shifted the focus from table management toward helping users understand issues more clearly and act more efficiently.

Design Direction

Creating a layered investigation experience

I explored a report-style workflow that helped users move between:

  • high-level summaries

  • filtered issue groups

  • individual records

  • map-connected investigation

The goal was to reduce cognitive overload while preserving access to detailed technical information.

Information Architecture

Organizing information by investigation flow

Instead of presenting all records equally, the design introduced a layered structure:

Overview: Understand issue distribution and severity.

Categories: Filter by rule type, feature class, or geometry.

Records: Inspect and resolve individual issues.

Spatial Context: Locate and compare issues directly on the map.

Filtering & Search

Supporting different investigation strategies

Filtering and search were designed to support both:

  • broad exploration

  • targeted investigation

This included:

  • rule-based filtering

  • feature class filtering

  • selected-record workflows

  • Find/Search exploration for known records and IDs

The goal was to help users narrow large datasets without losing context.

Map + Data Coordination

Keeping spatial context visible

Spatial errors are not only table records. Users need to compare error information with map features, geometry, and surrounding context.

The design explored how table selections, filters, reports, and map views could work together to support investigation and resolution.

Outcome

Building a clearer investigation workflow

The project helped shift product discussions from adding more table functionality toward supporting a more complete investigation experience.

The work established a clearer direction for:

  • layered information hierarchy

  • summary-driven workflows

  • structured filtering

  • map-connected investigation

  • report-style issue review

Reflection

Designing for dense spatial information

This project reinforced that complex professional tools do not always need to be simplified by removing information. Often, the real design challenge is creating better hierarchy, clearer entry points, and stronger relationships between overview, detail, and spatial context.