Enhancing ERP User Experience: Conquering the Scroll with Page-Based Navigation
Learn about a real-world software engineering challenge within ERP systems and how a user-centric solution significantly improved user experience and productivity.
(a) Challenges: The Frustration of Endless Scrolling in ERP Systems
In the realm of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems, even seemingly minor interface issues can lead to significant user frustration and decreased productivity. This podcast episode delves into a specific software engineering challenge encountered within a custom screen featuring a split container, where one side displayed a form and the other a grid. The grid was intended to show related information, such as invoices or sales orders, based on the customer selected in the form.
The core problem arose when dealing with customers who had a large volume of associated data, particularly numerous sales orders. This abundance of information led to an overwhelming amount of vertical scrolling for users. As highlighted in the discussion, this “dreaded scroll bar” created a nightmare for users, especially those working with extensive datasets. The constant need to scroll up and down to locate specific information proved to be inefficient and frustrating, diverting the user’s focus from analyzing the data to simply navigating it. This continuous scrolling resulted in users losing sight of the bigger picture. Consequently, the customer sought a more effective way to handle large datasets within the grid. Their request was for a page-based navigation system, similar to the familiar “next” and “previous” buttons found on many websites, which they termed a “page next view format at UI level”.
(b) Solution: Implementing Page-Based Navigation for Improved User Experience and Productivity
To address the challenge of excessive vertical scrolling, Premalatha, a software engineer at Tayana Solutions with over two years of experience in ERP systems, implemented a user-centric solution. Prima directly modified the logic at the ASPX level, working with the user interface code. The key to the solution was replacing the default vertical scrolling with a page next/previous functionality.
The fundamental functionality of the grid remained unchanged; it continued to display all relevant information. However, instead of one long, continuous list, the data was now broken down into manageable chunks or pages. Once the number of records exceeded the page’s capacity, navigation buttons such as forward, backward, start, and end would automatically appear.
The impact of this seemingly small change was significant. As noted in the podcast, the updated screen presented a stark contrast to the previous design. The daunting scroll bar was replaced with neat page navigation controls, providing a visual cue that immediately made the data feel more manageable.
The benefits of this solution were immediately apparent:
- Enhanced User Experience: The page-based navigation completely solved the customer’s problem and significantly improved their experience.
- Increased Productivity: By eliminating the time wasted on endless scrolling, users could focus on the data itself, leading to a direct improvement in their productivity.
- Improved Data Analysis: Users could maintain a better grasp of the data without being constantly distracted by the need to scroll.
- Better Accessibility: Breaking down large datasets into pages makes the information more accessible and easier to digest.
This case study underscores the critical importance of user feedback in software development and highlights how even small UI enhancements can have a profound impact on day-to-day workflows. Tayana Solutions, with their expertise in handling diverse ERP scenarios and customizations, demonstrated a commitment to making complex systems work effectively for their users. This exemplifies how user-centered design can streamline workflows and boost productivity in digital environments. For anyone facing similar challenges with their ERP systems or seeking to improve user experience, reaching out to experts like Tayana Solutions is highly recommended.