Excise Movement Control System Trader Front End alpha reassessment
Service Standard assessment report Excise Movement Control System Trader Front End 14/06/2023
Service Standard assessment report
Excise Movement Control System Trader Front End
| From: | Central Digital & Data Office (CDDO) |
| Assessment date: | 14/06/2023 |
| Stage: | Alpha reassessment |
| Result: | Met |
| Service provider: | HMRC |
Previous assessment reports
Alpha assessment review – Government Digital Service Standard points 1, 5, 8 and 14 were not met and were reassessed as reported in this document.
Service description
The Excise Movement and Control System (EMCS) is a computerised system for monitoring the movement of excise duty-suspended goods throughout the UK and EU. Traders can
either access EMCS via a web-front end maintained by HMRC (referred to internally as the
Trader Front End), or via third party software (via APIs). The current design of the Trader Front End has not changed significantly since EMCS was introduced over 10 years ago. It predates GDS standards and has never been subject to user research. This has resulted in a service that does not meet user needs and which is fundamentally inaccessible. The team has been tasked with making the service more accessible and to bring it in line with user needs. Their initial work has been on the “submitting a receipt” journey within the service.
Service users
This service is for people involved in the movement of excise duty-suspended goods in the UK and EU. These tend to be external users (people at organisations). Based on data, we know the main types of organisation using the current service are:
- distilleries and breweries
- logistics companies, freight forwarders and customs brokers
- excise warehouses (also known as bonded warehouses)
- (wine) wholesalers, importers and retailers
- supermarkets
1. Understand users and their needs
Decision
The service met point 1 of the Standard.
What the team has done well
The panel was impressed that:
- the team accepted and addressed all the recommendations from the first assessment.
- the team have demonstrated their recognition of the importance of user-centred design by expanding the team size to a more appropriate level for this type of service.
- the team demonstrated a solid understanding of their user base. This included looking beyond job title to other variables that make people similar of different e.g. length of time in role, size of organisation etc.
- a range of appropriate methods have been utilised, including those with a direct impact on the design e.g. card sorting.
- the team clearly demonstrated how user research is driving the design and prioritisation e.g. starting with receipts as there’s more risk involved.
What the team needs to explore
Before their next assessment, the team needs to:
- prioritise contextual research. This will enable them to form a better understanding of users in the context of their aims and tasks rather than focusing on the Trader Front-End element. It will deepen their appreciation for the problems caused by double keying and how their work on universal barriers manifests in real life situations.
- use evidence from private beta users to determine whether all the optional fields are needed. Research has shown users tend to avoid these and the cognitive burden could be lessened if ones that are never used are removed
- ensure they have a robust research plan for working with private beta users
- continue efforts to make accessibility a regular part of their research and design process. The panel acknowledges the challenges with recruitment, and creativity will be needed. For example, are there others in trader organisations with access needs who could test the service?
- although it was great to see some creative research methods employed, the team needs to ensure these are ethically sound. Asking people to use the service without guidance is potentially setting them up to fail. It’s good practice to consult their ethics board or experts, or even just have other user researchers critique approaches.
- the user needs showed a greater understanding of the people involved, but they were largely functional. The team still needs to reflect the user’s high level needs. Why do they engage with this and related HMRC services in the first place? Are they trying to expand into new markets? Increase profits? Diversify their product offering?
5. Make sure everyone can use the service
Decision
The service met point 5 of the Standard.
What the team has done well
The panel was impressed that:
- the team took on board the recommendations from the previous assessment, doubling the number of research participants, almost a quarter of which had accessibility needs. This was achieved by taking a creative approach to recruitment, making use of a recruitment panel and HMRC’s user panel amongst others, which helped mitigate the constraints the team faced.
- the team tested the service across a range of software, paying close attention to the impact of language on users
- the team demonstrated that they would maintain their focus on making sure everyone can use the service in private beta, making it a central part of their plan
What the team needs to explore
Before their next assessment, the team needs to:
- name the service to support its use, following naming conventions set out in the Government Digital Service Standard
- understand whether users may face barriers in reaching the Trader Front End service itself, given that it is a microservice designed as part of a broader service for excise duty-suspended goods trading organisations
- maintain a focus on making sure their service can be used by everyone, noting trade is a complex landscape, and that organisations are made up of individuals who may also face accessibility needs
8. Iterate and improve frequently
Decision
The service met point 8 of the Standard.
What the team has done well
The panel was impressed that:
- the team demonstrated that the prototype had evolved multiple times, in line with user research findings
- the team made clear their plans for maintaining a monthly cadence of test and learn for their work in private beta
- the team invested in building relations and ways of working to support them to learn how to improve their service, including in line with other related services that their users would use. For example, they participate in regular show and tells and design crits.
What the team needs to explore
Before their next assessment, the team needs to:
- work with their Senior Responsible Owner to explore whether the Excise Movement and Control System should be part of the wider Borders portfolio to further facilitate alignment of related services
- consider how to embed quantitative insight alongside user research insights to inform design and product decisions, and ensure that insight from the service provided through other channels such as the fall back form, for example, also informs decisions
14. Operate a reliable service
Decision
The service met point 14 of the Standard.
What the team has done well
The panel was impressed that:
- the team confirmed that the service has been put forward as a candidate for the Borders and Trade service availability discovery. This will address the issue of fallback forms to be completed once with no need to re-input in full.
- the team are working to upskill the current helpdesk staff with the existing and new EMCS service to ensure users will be fully supported by the helpline contingency plans
- data has been provided for the reliability of the existing EMCS service
- the team demonstrated how service health would be monitored, supported and acted on
What the team needs to explore
Before their next assessment, the team needs to:
- continue looking at alternatives for users engaging with a third party or agent when they need help with a submission
Next Steps
Met - alpha
This service can now move into a private beta phase, subject to implementing the recommendations outlined in the report. The service must pass their public beta assessment before launching their public beta.
This report will be published on GOV.UK
If there is a factual inaccuracy in the report, contact the assessments team immediately. If the assessments team do not hear from you within 5 working days of sending this report out, it will be published on gov.uk/service-standard-reports as is.