Improving Release Notes Usability in Product Docs

Approach

The biggest shift came from realizing the experience was designed around release versions, while users think in terms of the products they manage. Users weren’t trying to “read release notes”—they were trying to understand how changes impacted their specific environment.

This led to a shift from a release-first model to a product-first experience. At the same time, I preserved a release-based entry point to avoid disrupting familiar workflows. I focused on reducing navigation friction, minimizing the number of steps required to find relevant information, and introducing a consistent content structure that made updates easier to scan and understand.

A key challenge was the lack of entitlement data, which prevented the system from automatically surfacing product-relevant content. Instead of waiting on a long-term solution, I introduced interim personalization through user-driven controls such as bookmarking apps and filtering by “My bookmarked apps”. This allowed users to immediately focus on relevant updates while laying the groundwork for future system-driven personalization.

Throughout the process, I worked closely with product, engineering, research, and content teams to ensure solutions aligned with both user needs and platform constraints. Even small design changes required coordination with content systems like DITA, which shaped what was feasible within the timeline.