Smart Tasks
Estimated 2 min read
- My Role
- Product Design Intern
- Users
- 50,000+ tax analysts
- Tools
- Figma, FigJam
- Timeline
- Jun – Aug 2024 · Internship
Giving 50,000 tax analysts back the time they spent fighting their task tool.
Problem. Analysts spent more time navigating their task tool than doing the work
Solution. An AI assistant backed by a deep library of tax data, with Smart Tasks: one-tap shortcuts that automate the busywork
Opportunity. How might we take load off 50,000 analysts without changing how they already work?
Overview
Tax work is complex. The tools shouldn't be.
PwC engagement teams juggle a huge volume of tasks across many clients at once. Early in my internship it was clear the existing task system was adding friction: analysts spent more time navigating the tool than doing the work.
My answer was an AI assistant: a chat agent backed by a large library of tax and engagement data. The piece I owned inside it was Smart Tasks, built to automate as much of the routine work as possible.
- AskAnalysts ask the assistant for what they need instead of hunting through menus
- Smart TasksQuick options tailored to what each analyst does most
- One tapMark a task complete, draft a client letter or kick off a routine step
- Back to the workTime goes to the calls that need a human
Research
Feel the friction first
I spent my first two weeks shadowing tax analysts and sitting in on engagement team standups. The goal wasn't only to observe, but to feel where the tool got in the way. By the end I had a clear map of where smart automation could take real load off people.
Design
Design with the constraints, not against them
I worked closely with engineering to pin down which actions the assistant could reliably automate in the near term, then built Smart Tasks around those. The result feels intelligent without asking anyone to change how they already work.
Results
By the numbers
Feedback
What my team said
Jorell quickly adapted to the demands of our project, consistently meeting tight deadlines with grace and professionalism. His ability to deliver above expectations was truly impressive.
He quickly grasped complex business needs and used his advanced visual design skills to develop effective prototypes.
Takeaways
What I took away
- 01Feel the friction firstTwo weeks of shadowing told me more than any brief could.
- 02Design within real constraintsBuilding around actions the assistant could automate today kept the work shippable.
- 03Don't make people change how they workAutomation should fit the existing workflow, not replace it.
Detailed design artifacts are under NDA. I'm happy to walk through the work live. Get in touch →
Thanks for reading :)
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