The Integrated Eligibility & Enrollment (IE&E) initiative is one of Massachusetts’ largest efforts to modernize public benefits services. Its goal is to give constituents one place to apply for and manage benefits across organizations in Health and Human Services (EOHHS). These include MassHealth, the Massachusetts Health Connector, and SNAP benefits. The team had chosen the technology IE&E would use. However, they hadn't tested the experience with people.
Program leaders, including Rafael Zanatta (EOHHS), Amy Dybas (MassHealth), Joonyoung Moon (Department of Transitional Assistance), and Andy Graham (Health Connector), wanted to make sure constituents would have a good experience with the new website. What was missing was a plan for testing with constituents.
Building a foundation for constituent research
That concern led Rafael to reach out to Mass Digital’s Constituent Experience Center of Excellence (CX COE). The CX COE is part of the Commonwealth Digital Roadmap, which calls for state organizations to collaborate on easy, seamless experiences for constituents.
Mark Burrell, Director of Experience Design & Research, and Chief Digital Officer Devyn Paros saw an opportunity. Testing the new website was valuable. But it would be even better if EOHHS could start building an experience research program that could support its future projects.
Apefa Ashiagbor, EOHHS’s Chief Applications Officer, agreed. EOHHS didn’t have much experience with constituent research. But with the CX COE’s support, they came up with a plan. It included:
- Building a participant panel that made it easy to recruit for studies
- Collecting consent from participants
- Doing interviews and usability testing at different points in the project lifecycle
- Analyzing findings and identifying patterns
- Turning findings into action
This plan helped show how constituent research could fit into the IE&E project. It also formed the foundation for how research could become a regular part of EOHHS’s work.
From advice to action
The next step was to put the plan into action. Kevin Markgren, a CX COE experience researcher, joined the IE&E team. He supported EOHHS and their partner, Deloitte, in creating a research plan. Together, they recruited participants, collected consent, and ran their first tests.
Along with practical advice, Kevin focused on how to do research sustainably. He wanted to make sure that what the IE&E team did would be a good fit for future EOHHS projects. At the same time, the CX COE’s Mark Burrell worked with EOHHS leadership to define a long-term staffing plan. He helped EOHHS recruit and interview for a new Experience Design & Research (XDR) Lead, followed by an Experience Researcher position.
This approach — combining coaching, planning, and real project work — helped EOHHS build skills quickly. Team members with little research experience gained confidence and became active contributors. For example, project manager Ursula Macmillan, went from being vaguely familiar with experience research to leading interviews and planning new studies.
Early results and organizational growth
The research led to real results:
- The IE&E team recruited its first constituent panel. Today, they’re continuing to recruit people with varying perspectives and backgrounds.
- Experience research is part of the portal’s delivery process
- The team hired an Experience Design and Research Lead to develop their research practice
- Now, they’re hiring a second XDR team member to increase their capacity
As the team began to deliver, others around the organization began to notice. Business stakeholders felt more comfortable advocating for constituent needs. Leaders who initially worried research would slow the project began to see it as essential rather than optional.
Impact: A lasting shift
This project started as an effort to test a new website. However, it’s led to major change in how EOHHS approaches digital services. EOHHS leaders recognized the value of experience research. They invested in new ways of working that put constituents at the center of service delivery. Project teams now understand that testing with constituents doesn’t mean delays. Instead, it means finding issues earlier and better outcomes. Building its own XDR team means EOHHS can rely less on vendors. It’s beginning to learn directly from the people who use its services.
The impact is already visible. The new IE&E portal is being shaped by ongoing constituent input. For the CX COE, the project demonstrates what enablement can achieve: Better products, constituent-centered practices, and improved outcomes for the people we all serve.