Modernising Australia’s export licensing system
UX CASE STUDY | DAMIEN LUTZ
Overview
About
Challenge:
Minimal staff left no buffer for leave, manual data transfer between systems slowed every application, and a low first-time approval rate meant rework was constant—all across multiple commodities run as separate, inconsistent processes.
Client:
Dept. of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Forestry (DAFF)
My Role:
Lead User Researcher
Key Outcomes
1 modular design for multiple commodities
A single service vision replacing separate, inconsistent per-commodity processes
5 shared challenges identified
Common to both two licensing teams, despite different day-to-day processes
1 aspirational vision to align stakeholders
Establishing a concrete, visual target for what “modernised” should look like
Discovery
On-site visits revealed shared problems behind different commodity processes
Travelling with the Service Designer, I visited the Melbourne and Brisbane offices to observe staff processing licenses, and to understand differences by commodity
Low first-time accuracy
Many applications incorrect due to exporter error
Manual data transfer
Between systems, slowing the process and risking data integrity
Manual tracking
Monitoring and workflow tracking done by hand
Peaks and troughs
Slow process points create uneven workflow
No buffer for leave
Minimal staff means no cover when someone’s away
Visually mapping the licensing service to create a shared understanding
We then visually mapped out the step-by-step process for approving, renewing, revoking, and amending licenses for Meat and Live Exports, plus the needs and pains of internal licensing staff.
Analysing previous exporter research (Blurred for privacy)
Clarifying the people of the export ecosystem
Before designing a single service for multiple commodities, I needed a clear picture of everyone involved in the export licensing process — not just the licensing staff, but the wider mix of roles and responsibilities across the ecosystem. This gave us a shared reference point for who we were actually designing for, and helped surface where one modular service could genuinely serve different commodity teams, rather than just bolting two separate processes together.
The people of the export ecosystem
Profiling two teams to find where they overlapped
We visualised the two licensing teams as profiles, to highlight where their needs and pains overlapped.
Mapping common tasks across teams to inform a modular service design
Low first-time accuracy
Many applications incorrect due to exporter error
Manual processes everywhere
Manual data transfer between systems and manual tracking slowed the process and risked data integrity
Peaks and troughs
Slow process points create uneven workflow
No buffer for leave
Minimal staff means no cover when someone’s away
An aspirational profile gave stakeholders a concrete target
To guide the design direction, I created an “Aspirational Team Profile” — a snapshot of a future multi-commodity licensing team, merging the existing profiles with every improvement and insight from the envisioning exercise.
The aspirational licensing team profile for all commodities
Improved exporter guidance
New staff permissions, to speed up the process
One centralised, secure system
Notifications and tracking of application progress
Automation of basic tasks
Exporter information updated automatically across systems and departments
Deepening staff understanding of commodity industries
Cross-commodity staff support when others are on leave
Designing the modular service
Staff envisioning exercise
Ideating what might a future ideal service look like
We ran a session with staff at all levels to capture their ideas and wishes for improving the licensing process to convert needs, pains, and desires to high-level, shared need statements
Team exercise for envisioning a future state of the export licensing service
Service design recommendations
Drawing on the envisioning exercise and the team profiles, this pointed to eight clear recommendations:
Improved exporter guidance
New staff permissions, to speed up the process
One centralised, secure system
Notifications and tracking of application progress
Automation of basic tasks
Exporter information updated automatically across systems and departments
Deepening staff understanding of commodity industries
Cross-commodity staff support when others are on leave
Outcomes
We packaged our insights into a Design Brief to guide feasibility, viability, and priority discussions, and handed it over to the team who would build the new system.
One shared vision, multiple commodities
Replaced inconsistent, siloed processes with a single modular design direction
Built from the staff who’d use it
On-site observation and an envisioning session grounded the brief in real, current friction
A decision-ready brief for the next team
Feasibility, viability, and priority laid out for the team taking the work forward