DoorDash: Driver App

Current DoorDash Driver UI

Current DoorDash Driver UI

Hey David,
A major problem we're facing right now is tackling the issue of driver capacity planning: how to ensure we have enough drivers at the right time in the right place, so we can serve peak demand. At the same time, we also don't want to over-staff by too much where drivers start complaining and making less money.
– Stanley Tang, Co-founder at Doordash

The Challenge:
Design a scheduling tool and/or workflow that helps to allocate drivers in an optimal fashion given the information above (.pdf).

Things to consider:

  • What is the purpose of the driver scheduler? Allow drivers to schedule in the first place? (e.g. lyft has scheduling, Uber doesn't)

  • How do you show busy-ness information for different regions and different timeblocks, yet have limited real estate on a mobile device?

  • How do you convey how busy these different regions / timeblocks are? (show $$ expected to make - this is what Lyft does? how many other drivers have signed up? color to indicate overall busy-ness? dynamic pricing - pay more during peak times - but you will then have to think about dynamic pricing on the consumer side?)

  • How do we push drivers to sign up in regions and time-blocks where we need them the most?