TECHO Argentina wanted to reconnect with young volunteers. Working within a five-person research team, I helped investigate the journey from finding an opportunity online to participating in an emergency housing build and deciding whether to return.
Our research connected website friction, unclear expectations, demanding field conditions, and inconsistent follow-up. Together, these findings pointed to opportunities to improve the full volunteer experience.
Project Snapshot
My Role: UX Researcher
Team: Five researchers from different countries and backgrounds in Latin America
Duration: 32 weeks
Context: Academic project with TECHO NGO stakeholders, completed through Universidad de Belgrano
Deliverables: UX research report and stakeholder presentation
Tools: FigJam, Figma, Miro, Google Workspace, and Zoom
My contribution
I contributed to competitive analysis, heuristic evaluation, volunteer interviews, and remote desktop usability testing. I also participated in collaborative synthesis sessions, helping connect findings across methods and develop the final insights and stakeholder presentation.
The problem: attracting volunteers and sustaining their involvement (retention)
TECHO builds emergency housing with volunteers and communities. Stakeholders reported difficulty connecting with their target audience of young people aged 17–25 and maintaining participation over time.
Their existing “Plan V” report highlighted changing post-pandemic attitudes, concerns about the digital platform, and fragmented volunteer information.
We investigated two questions:
What prevents young people from finding and joining volunteer opportunities?
What helps—or discourages—volunteers from participating again?
The challenge was to understand where the experience broke down and which improvements the evidence supported.
Research approach: connecting reported experiences with observed behavior
Without access to reliable participation metrics and with limited volunteer records, we used qualitative research to investigate barriers across the journey.
Research Plan Outline
PHASE I: UNDERSTAND | PHASE II: EMPATHIZE | PHASE III: DEFINE |
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Methods and goals
METHOD | PURPOSE |
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Stakeholder discovery workshop | Understand organizational goals, assumptions, and communication challenges |
Benchmarking five Argentine NGOs and two US youth campaigns | Identify alternative approaches to recruitment, information, and engagement |
Heuristics evaluation | Identify usability problems in the enrollment flow and volunteer profile quiz |
Volunteer interviews | Explore expectations, field experiences, and reasons for returning |
Remote desktop usability testing | Observe how people found activities and attempted pre-registration |
We synthesized the evidence through affinity mapping, journey mapping, and a shared research data wall. Comparing findings across sources helped us distinguish recurring problems from isolated observations.
Finding 1: completing registration could conceal significant friction |
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The heuristic evaluation identified 29 usability issues, including broken links, navigation problems, and weaknesses in error prevention. Usability testing surfaced 22 issues, concentrated around finding a specific activity and completing pre-registration. Participants struggled with activity filters, unclear wording, and locating the final submission button. Some participants completed the flow with moderator assistance. This meant completion alone could not demonstrate that the experience was easy to use. Design implication: Make activity discovery and registration understandable without guidance. Prioritize functional reliability, clear labels, and visible actions before evaluating visual changes. |
Finding 2: volunteers needed clearer information before committing |
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Participants encountered uncertainty about costs, lodging, medical certificate requirements, and other practical details. Interviews revealed how those information gaps intersected with demanding field conditions. “The next day (it rained) (…) women were getting stuck in the mud (…) we all had to push together because if we didn’t, it would have been impossible.” — M. | Returning volunteer | Student profile An ex-volunteer makes the physical demands tangible. Other interviewees described difficulties with facilities and tools, suggesting that preparation and logistical support deserved attention alongside the registration experience. Design implication: Explain the practical commitment before registration, including weather conditions, physical demands, accommodation, and available support. |
Finding 3: enthusiasm did not always lead to another opportunity |
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Two volunteer accounts revealed contrasting pathways after participation.
This volunteer found a route back through personal initiative and direct contact with a build leader. Another described wanting to remain involved but receiving no follow-up.
Together, these accounts suggested an opportunity to support continued involvement more consistently. The interviews did not establish how widespread the problem was, but they showed how willingness to contribute could outlast the organization’s communication. Design implication: Provide a clear next step after participation, with consistent follow-up and opportunities suited to different interests and availability. |
Suggestions: support the journey before, during, and after participation
By triangulating findings across 5 research methos and multiple artifacts to analyze the data, a story started to emerge. It was evident that the problems of participation and retention weren't isolated, but connected to a whole service experience that combined the hardship of the physical experience, the mishaps of the digital experience, and an inconsistent communication that ended with a loss of connection.
We translated the findings into recommendations spanning the digital and service experience.
Suggestions | How to do this |
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Make joining easier | Repair broken links and unreliable filters, clarify interface wording, and simplify pre-registration. Make the final submission action easy to locate and explain what happens next. |
Set expectations before registration | Present location, costs, weather policies, accommodation, meals, and required documentation before volunteers commit. Explain the physical demands and available support. |
Create clearer pathways to return | Improve follow-up and visibility of upcoming activities. Explore different roles and schedules for people whose availability or abilities do not suit a weekend housing build. |
Strengthen understanding and support | Explain how families are selected and how financial contributions work. Improve preparation and on-site support so volunteers understand both the mission and the conditions they may encounter. |
Outcome: research delivered to inform TECHO’s next steps
We delivered a final research report and presented our findings to TECHO stakeholders.
Our synthesis connected recruitment and retention concerns across three areas: the digital journey, the field experience, and ongoing communication. This provided a broader basis for considering improvements than the platform’s appearance alone.
The documented outcome was a set of research-backed recommendations. Implementation and subsequent changes in participation or retention were outside the project’s scope.
Reflection: what I would improve
The project strengthened my ability to connect behavioral observations with reported experiences and organizational concerns. Its most valuable contribution was the synthesis: understanding how problems at different touchpoints could combine into a disconnected journey.
If continuing the work, I would:
Test mobile with the target audience: Recruit participants aged 17–25 and evaluate the mobile registration experience.
Measure independent task completion: Separate assisted from unassisted outcomes and avoid interruptions when measuring task time.
Map the service with operational teams: Investigate ownership, volunteer information, field support, and follow-up across the journey.
Prototype and validate the recommendations: Test a simplified registration flow and clearer activity information before implementation, then evaluate follow-up approaches over time.
These steps would help turn the research findings into tested improvements and measurable outcomes.