florist app case study

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Problem Statement

Luka is a husband and father who needs an easy and time-saving way to order flowers and bouquets for his wife and daughter because it’s too frustrating and time-consuming to search every store for the right flower to buy.

Lisa is an executive at a large company that needs to find an easy and effective way to find rare and beautiful flowers to add to her garden. Being able to find the price and availability of these flowers as well as purchase them is considered critical for Lisa.

Introduction

Happy Flowers is the name of a new and trendy florist shop in Hershey, Pennsylvania, Berkley, California, and Miami Florida. Happy Flowers offers its customers a wide array of flowers for their special events and needs.

The Challenge

Happy Flowers does not have any online presence or the ability to serve its customers online. Its competitors currently profit well from the online flower market. Happy Flowers would like to take the leap and provide an online platform that serves its customers.

The Approach

• Competitor Analysis & Competitive Audits
• Affinity Maps
• User Research & User Interviews
• Usability Studies, Insight Identification & Prioritized Insights

An app was developed for Happy Flowers that fulfilled its commercial needs. The app also adequately serves its customers by solving the core customer problems that were discovered during the research phase.

Project Overview

The problem.

Many users would love to purchase flowers in a more convenient way that saves time, allows for the creation of custom orders, the ability to check prices and availability, and even to add a custom note to their orders.

The goal of this UX project is to design an app for a trendy florist that allows users to order flowers online, create a custom bouquet, track their orders, check prices and availability, and add a custom note to their orders.

The Product

Design an app for a trendy florist’s catalog.

Project Duration

One month – March 2022 to April 2022

As this was the first project of my UX Design career undertaken in the Google UX Design Certification the entire project was undertaken by me.

I carried out all areas and duties of the UX Design process.

Responsibilities

• UX Research
• Wireframing
• Prototyping
• Visual Design
• Information Architecture

My UX Design Process

Time spent learning about the users we need to provide a solution for such as their pain points, fears, and motivations.

Learn about the market, competition, and other solutions to our users' problems that are currently available.

During this phase a solution was proposed based on the information gathered in the previous two steps. The first usability study was done here.

During this stage the information gathered from our first usability study was used to make incremental changes to the lo-fi prototype. It was then converted to a hi-fi prototype.

During this phase, we tested our hi-fi prototype in a second usability study to ensure that the app was ready for production and the market. Minor changes were made.

During this phase an evaluation of the entire UX Design process was done with feedback from users taken into consideration to evaluate the success of the project.

Understanding The User

User Research Summary

The research was conducted by using social media to connect with and interview users who frequented floral pages for businesses.

The assumption was made going into the interview that users would like to have an app to view flowers available in store to be able to decide if they would like to purchase a specific flower. The research, however, found that users would not only love to view flowers online but customize bouquets and order them.

There were quite a few who would also love to have their orders delivered with a special note.

Product Users

Our users are male and female people between the ages of 18 and 75 who frequently visit flower shops and buy flowers.

User Pain Points

Pain point 1.

A lack of functional online platforms where users can view and order flowers online or create a custom bouquet for purchase.

Pain Point 2

Inability to order and deliver their favorite flowers from their favorite stores by using digital media from the comfort of their homes.

Pain Point 3

Unable to learn when flowers they like or are interested in having are in stock to allow them to purchase before orders run out.

Pain Point 4

Inability to place special orders for flowers that suppliers don’t have. This pain point leads to users being unable to acquire new and rare types of flowers to suit their tastes.

• Users need an easy and convenient way to order flowers and bouquets without the need to visit each physical store
• Users need a way to easily check the price and availability of flowers and bouquets
• Users need to be able to create a customized bouquet according to their tastes that is made up of assorted flowers they like
• Users need to be able to add a special personalized note to their orders of flowers or bouquets

User Personas

Age : 28 to 75 Education : College Graduate

Hometown : Hershey, Pennsylvania Family : Spouse, Children

• Be the best husband and father to his wife and children
• Show his daughters how they are to be treated by their husbands by treating his wife special
• Tend to his wife’s love for flowers and love language for gifts and acts of service

Frustrations:

• There are no current apps to order flowers online
• Has to call several places to find the fresh flowers he needs
• Limited function on the website prevents him from being able to create a custom bouquet and note

Luka is a father of two beautiful children and husband to his beautiful wife, Sara.

During the day, Luka spends his time as a Software Engineer in one of the top financial companies in Pennsylvania and New York. Luka loves his wife and two daughters very much and occasionally takes home flowers and chocolates for them as a surprise gift.

He loves being able to pick out and purchase a freshly cut flower online while at work and pick it up on his way home.

However, he finds current platforms do not allow custom notes to be added to orders, don’t give helpful information about flowers for special events, are unable to make a bouquet online, and most flower shops don’t have an online presence.

Age : 23 to 75 Education : Highschool Graduate

Hometown : Hershey, Pennsylvania Family : Husband, Children

• Plant the most beautiful home garden in Hershey
• Would love to see flowers before she buys them to decide if they fit her garden
• Collect rare and beautiful flowers in one garden
• Unable to find rare flowers easily
• Unable to order flowers that are fresh and easy to grow
• Unable to view HD photos of flowers on websites she’s interested in

Lisa is an executive of one of Hershey’s subsidiaries and spends a lot of time at work in a high-stress environment.

She likes to garden to refresh from her hectic workdays and has managed to plant a beautiful garden during her time.

Lisa loves to plant rare flowers with assorted colors and even spends over $100 per plant.

She loves the complements her garden brings her and would love to keep planting rare and beautiful, hard-to-get flowers to improve her garden’s aesthetics but faces a challenge in finding the flowers she wants due to a lack of proper technology and platforms that lists flowers.

Currently available platforms do not allow her to order flowers to plant or order freshly cut ones either. She would like a platform that allows her to order flowers she can replant.

User Journey Map

Paper Wireframes

Lo-Fi Wireframe

Lo-fi prototype.

Usability Study

I conducted two rounds of usability study. Findings from the first study helped guide the designs from wireframe to mockups.

The second study used a high-fidelity prototype and revealed what aspects of the prototype needed refining.

Both usability studies included questionnaires to qualify participants as potential flower-buying customers.

The usability study included several tasks that needed to be completed by participants. The tasks were to be recorded by the participants as they completed them remotely in the comfort of their homes with an effort made to verbalize as best as possible their thoughts and reactions while completing the tasks.

Participants ranged from the ages of 18 to 75, were frequent flower buyers, and lived across the world.

Round 1 Findings

During the first usability study, we learned that users wanted an easier way to re-order an old order. They also wanted a way to select which of their orders they’d like to add a note.

These changes were made and functionality was added to the Order History screen.

• Users found the process to add a note to a completed order difficult.

Users needed an order summary screen with their order details before completing their orders.

Users found the process of reordering an already completed order difficult

Before Usability Study

After Usability Study

Round 2 Findings

The previous design did not allow users to create a new bouquet easily as users had to go through up to 4 steps to carry out this function. It was also limited in function as there was no clear way to delete an already made bouquet.

We added the ability to add a flower to a bouquet and create a bouquet from anywhere in the app’s shop or catalog. We solved the navigating away effect users complained about by adding an overlay animation to add flowers to a bouquet. 

This gave users the impression of a new screen and step being opened to do this function while staying on the page they are adding the flower to the bouquet.

Users needed an easier way to create a new bouquet

After Usability Study- Step 1

After Usability Study - Step 2

Hi-Fi Prototype & Final Mockups

Accessibility Considerations

Interaction design.

We were sure to allow users to have the effect of creating a new bouquet or being able to add flowers to an existing bouquet without leaving the flower screen’ by using an overlay animation for the bouquet creation screen.

We were sure to use proper animation times to keep users engaged as they used the app and navigate from screen to screen.

Ease of Navigation

Care was taken to ensure that users had an easy time carrying out major functions by allowing multiple paths to do the same task as well as following the most intuitive and easy-to-understand flow.

What I've Learned

What I learned:

I’ve learned that what I initially thought was a simple project with a few screens and basic functionality was the result of my own inexperience. As I delved into the design process and learned more about the users and their needs to project developed into something more powerful and impactful than I initially thought it could be.

More Diverse Product Testing

Improve the accessibility of the product by testing with more people with disabilities.

Added Functionality

Add a screen where users can view more pictures of the flowers they are interested in, view prices, color availability, and similar flowers.

Equitability & Usability Improvement

Add Artificial Intelligence technology that will recommend flowers to users that they or their recipients might like based on the actions of other users like them.

Let's Connect!

I am open to more projects in the field of UX Design with an added interest in Product Design, UX Generalist, UX Research, UX Visual & Interaction Design, and UX Writing.

Let us talk more about your next project and how I may bring value to your company and team. I can be contacted at www.jabezroberts.com/contact or [email protected] .

ux360.design

Flora: An Online Flower Shop [Case Study]

Project overview.

The product: Flora is an online flower shop based in San Fransico, California that also ships its products to the UK. The app is designed around making buying flowers as easy as possible for all types of users with accessibility as a priority. As part of the accessibility focus, the app is designed to work across as many devices as possible including mobile, tablet, and desktop.

Project duration: August 2021 to October 2021

The problem: Interior designers need to experiment with a lot of decoration plants but clunky interfaces and vague refund policies make it difficult to make online purchases.

The goal:  Design an app for the Flora Flower Store that allows users to easily purchase flowers, not having to worry about getting low-quality items; saving time and money.

My Role: UX designer designing a web app for Flora from conception to delivery.

Responsibilities:  Conducting interviews, paper, and digital wireframing, low and high-fidelity prototyping, conducting usability studies, accounting for accessibility, and iterating on designs.

User Research: Understanding the user

I conducted interviews and created empathy maps to understand the users I’m designing for and their needs. A primary user group identified through research was interior designers who had to make a lot of indoor flower purchases for experimentation.

Every individual who participated in the research showed a similar pattern where they primarily browse through the products using categories.

Pain Points

• Time: Buying flowers frequently takes longer through online purchases due to shipping periods.
• Cost: Buying flowers frequently adds on extra cost for shipping fees.

User Persona: Xei

Problem statement: Xei is a passionate interior designer who needs an online platform that contains intuitive navigation for browsing plants and flowers because she wants to experiment with different plant decorations for her work and studio .

Empathy Map for Xei

I created an empathy map to understand Xei’s needs and help me make better decisions while designing the product.

Starting the Design

Paper wireframes.

Taking the time to draft iterations of each screen of the app on paper ensured that the elements that made it to digital wireframes would be well-suited to address user pain points. For the home screen, I prioritized the search feature to help users find what they are looking for easily. 

Information Architecture for Flora Website

I started working on the IA for the website next so that I can visualize the website before I digitize the wireframes. This helped the lot with what the primary navigation would look like and how the sub-pages would be categorized. This is how the final IA diagram looks like.

Digital wireframes

As the initial design phase continued, I made sure to base screen designs on feedback and findings from the user research.

The primary goal is to create a search feature that integrates category filters in itself.

Low-fidelity Prototype

Using the completed set of digital wireframes, I created a low-fidelity prototype. The primary user flow I connected was for the “Making a purchase” manual flow.  View the Flora app low-fidelity prototype .

Usability study: Findings

I conducted two rounds of usability studies. Findings from the first study helped guide the designs from wireframes to mockups. The second study used a high-fidelity prototype and revealed what aspects of the mockups needed refining.

• Users want a better purchase flow.
• Users want detailed descriptions for their items.

Refining the Design

My early designs had a vague representation of item descriptions and details. After the usability study, many participants kept asking about how detailed the descriptions would be, so I organized the description into tabs and added an additional gallery option for inspiration on decorating.

After the second round of usability studies, I noticed users were confused about the payment flow. To improve on this, I added a few more steps with detailed instructions on how to make a purchase.

Here is how my final design looks like:

High-fidelity prototype

View the Figma Link for hi-fi Prototype

Resonsive designs

The designs for screen size variation included mobile, tablet, and desktop. I optimized the designs to fit the specific user needs of each device and screen size.

Accessibility considerations

Used appropriate contrast and tested colors so that color-blind users can easily differentiate the UI elements.

Used detailed instruction text and created support for assistive technologies such as screen readers.

Designed the app to adapt to any screen or device size so that users can access it through any device of choice.

Going forward: Takeaways & Next steps

The app helps users purchase high-quality flowers for themselves or as gifts.

“I like how there are inspirations for designers on each product. This will help me out a lot before making a purchase decision.” Quote from peer feedback

What I Learned:

While designing the Flora app, I learned that there are scenarios where my solution may not be the best solution for the majority of the users. Usability studies and peer feedback influenced each iteration of the app’s designs.

Next Steps:

• Add more accessibility features so that we design for underrepresented groups which will result in a better experience for all.
• Add overlay tips for users who are not tech savvy since many of our user base falls in that category.
• Research more on the workflows of how are users actually use the app.

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UX Design Case Study #1 – Redesign of an Architect’s Website

The Challenge…

A local architect wanted to update their website with a more modern, clean look with concise and minimal text and easy-to-read content.

Solution….

We redesigned the site with a clean and elegant style, minimized text and highlighted and organized photographs in a visually appealing way. We also added more pages so that the home page wasn’t cluttered, and included clean white spaces to modernize the design.

UX Design Case Study #2- Start Your Own Business App

See the slide show below for a presentation on the UX Design work for a new App to help people start their own business.

UX Design Case Study #3- Flower Ordering App

As part of the Google UX Design Certificate program, in my role as lead UX designer, I created the following case study to summarize the research, process, development and conclusion that went into the development and prototyping for a hypothetical florist web and mobile application.

Introduction

In this case study, we conducted UX Research and UX Design for web and mobile apps for a hypothetical florist located in Portland, Oregon.

This case study summarizes all of the research and processes involved in developing and prototyping the apps.

Project Overview

The problem: Flower purchasing customers wanted an easy- to-use app to preview and order flowers online within a short timeframe.

The goal: Design an app that lets customers filter and preview flower arrangements within a minimal amount of time.

Our initial research for this project included online analytical research and competitor audits, as well as upfront interviews with actual potential users for design input.

After creating mockups and prototypes during two separate phases in both Figma and Adobe XD, we conducted multiple usability studies, and synthesized the results to improve the designs.

Examples UX Research including Persona Development, Storyboards, Usability Studies, and Synthesizing Results

The ideation process included creating both paper and digital wireframes, then creating mockups and prototypes in both Figma and Adobe XD, which were tested in usability studies. The results of those studies were sythesized, and iterations were made to the mockups to continually incorporate feedback and improve the designs.

Our usability studies led us to understand further pain points among users and led us to add addition features such as being able to customize a flower arrangement, and more detail under the “Occasions” catagory.

Figma Mockups

Click here for the link to the Figma mockups of the mobile design.

Adobe XD Prototypes

Click here for a link to the Adobe XD prototypes for the desktop app.

Customization Feature

Easy Filtering Features

Our final research led us to include the customization and filtering features that made the app quicker and easier to use, thus making the online flower-ordering experience to be much more efficient and enjoyable for the users.

For follow up, we would recommend additional research on how to pair the current inventory in the floral shop with the offerings available on the website so as to minimize any substitutions, which was also a pain point for users. This would require backend programming and incorporation of the inventory system to the web applications.

UX Case Study: Blooms' Flower Shop

This case study for my Google UX Design Professional Certificate features creating a flower online store that allows the users to have an enjoyable experience to shop for flowers in a local florist making the process intuitive, simple and fast.

Project overview

The product

Blooms is a flower ordering website that provides users an effective and convenient way to buy flowers to their loved ones. Our goal is to make ordering fast and easy for all users. Blooms wants to compete in the market by measuring effectiveness through tracking order placed and monitoring repeat customers.

The problem

Competitor websites have plenty and confusing ordering steps before completing the actual tasks. Item display is overwhelming that it's hard for the user to choose.

Design a flower-ordering flow to be user friendly, providing a clear menu, offering different payment options, fast checkout process and ability to choose to deliver or pick up the orders in the store conveniently.

Conducted competitive analysis by trying competitor apps

Conducted user interviews as primary research with 5 users who order food online

Created user personas

Created user flow diagrams

Created paper and digital wireframe

Created Mockup and responsive design in Adobe XD

Created low and high fidelity prototype in Adobe XD

Conducted 2 rounds of Usability study and interview

User Research

I conducted interviews and created empathy maps to understand the target users and their needs. A primary user group identified through research was users who are in a relationship and users who are away from their loved ones or family members and wanted to send gifts by buying flowers online and deliver to their address.

I interviewed users to learn about the following:

Do buy flowers for special occasions?

If yes - Do you buy online? Where, Why and For Whom?

Why do you choose this flower store over the other competitor?

How often do you order?

Can you tell me your process in buying/ordering flowers?

How do you decide what flower or arrangement to buy?

What are the challenges or experiences you encountered while ordering flowers?

How did you feel when you found out that the flower ordering site is already fully booked?

Do you prefer to pick up the flowers yourself or deliver the flowers to the recipient? Why?

What features do you usually like to see in a flower ordering website?

What are the areas that you think they can improve on?

User Journey Map

I created a user journey map to highlight the touch points, actions, thoughts, and pain points. This illustrates what the user goes through to achieve their goals. This will help me as a UX designer create obstacle free paths for users, reduce impact of designer bias, and identify improvement opportunities.

Fictional user whose goals and characteristics represent the needs of larger group of users. This will help identify patterns and behaviors in users that might point to a common pain point that a group of user experience. Build based on research and data collected.

Building a sitemap means thinking about all the steps and decisions a user makes when they come to the website. A well-defined sitemap can orient the user and help improve site navigation. Creating a sitemap can also help spot areas of improvement in the navigation and any important pages that were overlooked before beginning the design phase.

Next, I started making paper wireframe, a fastest and inexpensive way to get the idea out. Stars were used to mark the elements of each sketch that would be used in the initial digital wireframes.

Moving from paper to...

Digital Wireframe

Design and Implementation

Created a Design system, a series of reusable elements and guidelines that allow designers to design and develop following predetermined standards.

View the Blooms flower ordering website High-fidelity prototype in Adobe XD

The Blooms website makes users feel like really thinks about how to meet the user needs. I learned the importance of usability studies and gathering feedback to refine the mockup. These insight direct action and help me as a designer improve the product. We should always make the user front and center of the product. Always remember that we are not the user, that's why we need to continuously learn from them to produce inclusive design.

Bouquet Preview App - UX Case Study

Hi everyone!

This is a Bouquet Preview App UX Case Study from my Google UX Design Professional Certificate .

To have a detailed view on this case study visit https://www.behance.net/gallery/155288455/Bouquet-Preview-App-UX-Case-Study

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Boeing Charged with 737 Max Fraud Conspiracy and Agrees to Pay over $2.5 Billion

The Boeing Company (Boeing) has entered into an agreement with the Department of Justice to resolve a criminal charge related to a conspiracy to defraud the Federal Aviation Administration’s Aircraft Evaluation Group (FAA AEG) in connection with the FAA AEG’s evaluation of Boeing’s 737 MAX airplane.

Boeing, a U.S.-based multinational corporation that designs, manufactures, and sells commercial airplanes to airlines worldwide, entered into a deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) in connection with a criminal information filed today in the Northern District of Texas. The criminal information charges the company with one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States. Under the terms of the DPA, Boeing will pay a total criminal monetary amount of over $2.5 billion, composed of a criminal monetary penalty of $243.6 million, compensation payments to Boeing’s 737 MAX airline customers of $1.77 billion, and the establishment of a $500 million crash-victim beneficiaries fund to compensate the heirs, relatives, and legal beneficiaries of the 346 passengers who died in the Boeing 737 MAX crashes of Lion Air Flight 610 and Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302.

“The tragic crashes of Lion Air Flight 610 and Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 exposed fraudulent and deceptive conduct by employees of one of the world’s leading commercial airplane manufacturers,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General David P. Burns of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “Boeing’s employees chose the path of profit over candor by concealing material information from the FAA concerning the operation of its 737 Max airplane and engaging in an effort to cover up their deception. This resolution holds Boeing accountable for its employees’ criminal misconduct, addresses the financial impact to Boeing’s airline customers, and hopefully provides some measure of compensation to the crash-victims’ families and beneficiaries.”    

“The misleading statements, half-truths, and omissions communicated by Boeing employees to the FAA impeded the government’s ability to ensure the safety of the flying public,” said U.S. Attorney Erin Nealy Cox for the Northern District of Texas. “This case sends a clear message: The Department of Justice will hold manufacturers like Boeing accountable for defrauding regulators – especially in industries where the stakes are this high.” 

“Today's deferred prosecution agreement holds Boeing and its employees accountable for their lack of candor with the FAA regarding MCAS,” said Special Agent in Charge Emmerson Buie Jr. of the FBI’s Chicago Field Office. “The substantial penalties and compensation Boeing will pay, demonstrate the consequences of failing to be fully transparent with government regulators. The public should be confident that government regulators are effectively doing their job, and those they regulate are being truthful and transparent.”

“We continue to mourn alongside the families, loved ones, and friends of the 346 individuals who perished on Lion Air Flight 610 and Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302. The deferred prosecution agreement reached today with The Boeing Company is the result of the Office of Inspector General’s dedicated work with our law enforcement and prosecutorial partners,” said Special Agent in Charge Andrea M. Kropf, Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General (DOT-OIG) Midwestern Region. “This landmark deferred prosecution agreement will forever serve as a stark reminder of the paramount importance of safety in the commercial aviation industry, and that integrity and transparency may never be sacrificed for efficiency or profit.”

As Boeing admitted in court documents, Boeing—through two of its 737 MAX Flight Technical Pilots—deceived the FAA AEG about an important aircraft part called the Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS) that impacted the flight control system of the Boeing 737 MAX. Because of their deception, a key document published by the FAA AEG lacked information about MCAS, and in turn, airplane manuals and pilot-training materials for U.S.-based airlines lacked information about MCAS.

Boeing began developing and marketing the 737 MAX in or around June 2011. Before any U.S.-based airline could operate the new 737 MAX, U.S. regulations required the FAA to evaluate and approve the airplane for commercial use.

In connection with this process, the FAA AEG was principally responsible for determining the minimum level of pilot training required for a pilot to fly the 737 MAX for a U.S.-based airline, based on the nature and extent of the differences between the 737 MAX and the prior version of Boeing’s 737 airplane, the 737 Next Generation (NG). At the conclusion of this evaluation, the FAA AEG published the 737 MAX Flight Standardization Board Report (FSB Report), which contained relevant information about certain aircraft parts and systems that Boeing was required to incorporate into airplane manuals and pilot-training materials for all U.S.-based airlines. The 737 MAX FSB Report also contained the FAA AEG’s differences-training determination. After the 737 MAX FSB Report was published, Boeing’s airline customers were permitted to fly the 737 MAX.

Within Boeing, the 737 MAX Flight Technical Team (composed of 737 MAX Flight Technical Pilots) was principally responsible for identifying and providing to the FAA AEG all information that was relevant to the FAA AEG in connection with the FAA AEG’s publication of the 737 MAX FSB Report. Because flight controls were vital to flying modern commercial airplanes, differences between the flight controls of the 737 NG and the 737 MAX were especially important to the FAA AEG for purposes of its publication of the 737 MAX FSB Report and the FAA AEG’s differences-training determination.

In and around November 2016, two of Boeing’s 737 MAX Flight Technical Pilots, one who was then the 737 MAX Chief Technical Pilot and another who would later become the 737 MAX Chief Technical Pilot, discovered information about an important change to MCAS. Rather than sharing information about this change with the FAA AEG, Boeing, through these two 737 MAX Flight Technical Pilots, concealed this information and deceived the FAA AEG about MCAS. Because of this deceit, the FAA AEG deleted all information about MCAS from the final version of the 737 MAX FSB Report published in July 2017. In turn, airplane manuals and pilot training materials for U.S.-based airlines lacked information about MCAS, and pilots flying the 737 MAX for Boeing’s airline customers were not provided any information about MCAS in their manuals and training materials. 

On Oct. 29, 2018, Lion Air Flight 610, a Boeing 737 MAX, crashed shortly after takeoff into the Java Sea near Indonesia. All 189 passengers and crew on board died. Following the Lion Air crash, the FAA AEG learned that MCAS activated during the flight and may have played a role in the crash. The FAA AEG also learned for the first time about the change to MCAS, including the information about MCAS that Boeing concealed from the FAA AEG. Meanwhile, while investigations into the Lion Air crash continued, the two 737 MAX Flight Technical Pilots continued misleading others—including at Boeing and the FAA—about their prior knowledge of the change to MCAS.

On March 10, 2019, Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302, a Boeing 737 MAX, crashed shortly after takeoff near Ejere, Ethiopia. All 157 passengers and crew on board died. Following the Ethiopian Airlines crash, the FAA AEG learned that MCAS activated during the flight and may have played a role in the crash. On March 13, 2019, the 737 MAX was officially grounded in the U.S., indefinitely halting further flights of this airplane by any U.S.-based airline.

As part of the DPA, Boeing has agreed, among other things, to continue to cooperate with the Fraud Section in any ongoing or future investigations and prosecutions. As part of its cooperation, Boeing is required to report any evidence or allegation of a violation of U.S. fraud laws committed by Boeing’s employees or agents upon any domestic or foreign government agency (including the FAA), regulator, or any of Boeing’s airline customers. In addition, Boeing has agreed to strengthen its compliance program and to enhanced compliance program reporting requirements, which require Boeing to meet with the Fraud Section at least quarterly and to submit yearly reports to the Fraud Section regarding the status of its remediation efforts, the results of its testing of its compliance program, and its proposals to ensure that its compliance program is reasonably designed, implemented, and enforced so that it is effective at deterring and detecting violations of U.S. fraud laws in connection with interactions with any domestic or foreign government agency (including the FAA), regulator, or any of its airline customers.

The department reached this resolution with Boeing based on a number of factors, including the nature and seriousness of the offense conduct; Boeing’s failure to timely and voluntarily self‑disclose the offense conduct to the department; and Boeing’s prior history, including a civil FAA settlement agreement from 2015 related to safety and quality issues concerning the Boeing’s Commercial Airplanes (BCA) business unit. In addition, while Boeing’s cooperation ultimately included voluntarily and proactively identifying to the Fraud Section potentially significant documents and Boeing witnesses, and voluntarily organizing voluminous evidence that Boeing was obligated to produce, such cooperation, however, was delayed and only began after the first six months of the Fraud Section’s investigation, during which time Boeing’s response frustrated the Fraud Section’s investigation.

The department also considered that Boeing engaged in remedial measures after the offense conduct, including:  (i) creating a permanent aerospace safety committee of the Board of Directors to oversee Boeing’s policies and procedures governing safety and its interactions with the FAA and other government agencies and regulators; (ii) creating a Product and Services Safety organization to strengthen and centralize the safety-related functions that were previously located across Boeing; (iii) reorganizing Boeing’s engineering function to have all Boeing engineers, as well as Boeing’s Flight Technical Team, report through Boeing’s chief engineer rather than to the business units; and (iv) making structural changes to Boeing’s Flight Technical Team to increase the supervision, effectiveness, and professionalism of Boeing’s Flight Technical Pilots, including moving Boeing’s Flight Technical Team under the same organizational umbrella as Boeing’s Flight Test Team, and adopting new policies and procedures and conducting training to clarify expectations and requirements governing communications between Boeing’s Flight Technical Pilots and regulatory authorities, including specifically the FAA AEG. Boeing also made significant changes to its top leadership since the offense occurred.

The department ultimately determined that an independent compliance monitor was unnecessary based on the following factors, among others: (i) the misconduct was neither pervasive across the organization, nor undertaken by a large number of employees, nor facilitated by senior management; (ii) although two of Boeing’s 737 MAX Flight Technical Pilots deceived the FAA AEG about MCAS by way of misleading statements, half-truths, and omissions, others in Boeing disclosed MCAS’s expanded operational scope to different FAA personnel who were responsible for determining whether the 737 MAX met U.S. federal airworthiness standards; (iii) the state of Boeing’s remedial improvements to its compliance program and internal controls; and (iv) Boeing’s agreement to enhanced compliance program reporting requirements, as described above.

The Chicago field offices of the FBI and the DOT-OIG investigated the case, with the assistance of other FBI and DOT-OIG field offices.

Trial Attorneys Cory E. Jacobs and Scott Armstrong and Assistant Chief Michael T. O’Neill of the Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Chad E. Meacham of the Northern District of Texas are prosecuting this case.

Individuals who believe they may be an heir, relative, or legal beneficiary of one of the Lion Air Flight 610 or Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 passengers in this case should contact the Fraud Section’s Victim Witness Unit by email at: [email protected] or call (888) 549-3945.

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Online school threats in New Jersey, Florida result in juveniles being arrested

Authorities in New Jersey and Florida have arrested three juveniles in connection to separate online school threats.

In New Jersey, a threat was posted to social media and said a shooting would occur at five schools, according to local news outlet NBC10 Philadelphia .

As a result, Woodbury Public Schools and the Deptford Township School District announced they would be closed on Monday.

In a letter to the Woodbury School community, Superintendent Andrew Bell said there was no immediate indication that the threat was valid, but that schools were closed out of precaution.

“While we do not believe the threat to be credible, we are exercising extreme caution to ensure the safety of our students, staff, and families. Please be assured that school safety remains our top priority, and we are taking every precaution necessary to maintain a secure environment,” Bell said.

Deptford Township superintendent of schools Kevin Kanauss shared a similar message.

“After carefully reviewing the progress of the investigation with our security team and law enforcement this evening, I have decided to close schools for Monday, September 9, 2024, out of an abundance of caution and for the safety and security of our entire Deptford Spartan Community, Kanauss said.

Police in Glassboro and Woodbury said two juvenile suspects were arrested in connection with the threat.

“Through the collaborative efforts of several agencies involved, two juveniles, one from Woodbury and one from Glassboro, have been located, identified and arrested regarding the threats made to our schools on social media,” the Glassboro Police Department said in a Facebook post. “We want to thank all agencies involved as well as the members of the community who spoke up and provided information to assist us in the quick resolution of this incident.”

GPD said while there was no active threat, additional security will be provided in and around schools in the district.

The Woodbury Police Department shared a similar statement of a juvenile arrested in its city, adding that an investigation remains ongoing.

In Florida, a 14-year-old high school student was arrested for "making written threats to kill or conduct a mass shooting," according to the Broward County Sheriff's Office.

Detectives said the girl posted the threats on Instagram — with one listing several schools that would be targeted.

"Other posts contained additional threats of a school shooting or other violence," the sheriff's office said. "Multiple individuals saw these posts online and reported them to law enforcement."

After authorities made contact with the teen, she reportedly claimed the posts were intended as a joke. She now faces numerous charges, including making written threats to kill/conduct a mass shooting.

The threats in Florida and New Jersey come amid a sensitive time for school safety. Authorities say a 14-year-old shooter opened fire on a Georgia high school last week, killing two students, two teachers, and injuring nine others.

RELATED STORY | Authorities identify 4 victims in Georgia high school shooting

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