Designing an AI-Assisted MSP Configuration Experience
Context
Pre-Graduation project with MAGNIT GLOBAL
UX Researcher Product Designer
My Role
Product Focus : Configuration Section
Magnit is a leading contingent workforce management platform that helps large enterprises manage contractors, vendors, and temporary workers at massive scale (thousands of workers, suppliers, and rules simultaneously).
The Vendor Management System (VMS) includes a Configuration section where internal teams (especially Managed Service Providers — MSPs) define critical rules, approvals, workflows, and thresholds that control how the system behaves for clients.
This project is focused solely on the MSP user's view of the Configuration section.
research
Understanding The Challenge
Magnit’s VMS handles high-volume contingent workforce operations. MSP users must configure complex settings across deeply nested menus, fragmented data fields, and repetitive manual tasks. Navigation feels like an “Easter egg hunt,” leading to high cognitive load, frequent errors, and long task times (12–15 minutes per common config).
The Configuration section varies by user role (Client, Supplier, User, MSP), with each containing multiple nested sub-sections and fragmented settings.
To capture the full scale and deep nesting of the MSP Configuration landscape, I mapped the complete information architecture in FigJam followed by a deep analysis of each section of config to find patterns.This sitemap reveals extreme fragmentation, long hierarchies, and scattered groupings.
Full Information Architecture of the MSP Configuration section (click the image for zoomable view)
Synthesized User Insights: Mental Models, Personas, and Prioritized Pains
After mapping the full Configuration IA and uncovering its deep nesting and fragmentation, I analyzed all collected data sources: meeting notes, interview transcripts, SME discussions, and config comparisons.
From this, I created:
Mental models and persona summaries for key MSP roles (CS/VMS Only, Client Services Admin, Finance/Billing & Compliance, PSO/Program Support Operations). These captured how each persona thinks about and navigates the system.
Next, I synthesized the top recurring pains and opportunities across all sources into a prioritized list.
focus
Problem Statement :
MSP users in Magnit's Vendor Management System face significant friction in the Configuration section due to deeply nested navigation, poor discoverability, fragmented information architecture, lack of contextual guidance, passive change history, and heavy reliance on manual processes and tribal knowledge. This results in high cognitive load, time-consuming tasks (12–15 minutes on average), frequent errors, risk aversion, unnecessary escalations to L2 support, and overall inefficiency in managing complex, cross-silo configurations.
How might we Statement :
How might we provide intuitive, contextual guidance and reduce manual effort in deeply nested MSP configuration workflows, so users can discover, understand, and safely execute settings quickly and confidently without relying on tribal knowledge or escalating to support?
Problems
Navigation Complexity
Config pages are long, fragmented, and lack reliable search; finding the right setting is time-consuming
Often mentioned as ester egg hunt
Repetitive Manual Tasks
Users spend excessive time on manual, repetitive tasks that are highly time-consuming and could be automated.
Often mentioned by users
Data Visibility Gaps
Essential data like original start dates, visa information, and audit logs aren't visible in the UI, forcing users to rely on external systems and manual spreadsheets for tracking.
Often mentioned by MSP PSO Team
Statements
The configuration area in Magnit feels less organized, often with ad-hoc placement of items, making it harder to understand and navigate.
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MSP Client Services (VMS only)
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If LOS were automatic,
a 10-minute extension becomes 2 minutes. Multiplied by 15–20k per month, the savings are huge.
PSO Team (Pushpendra & Suraj)
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Clients ask why a setting exists or works a certain way, product documentation doesn’t always provide rationale.
MSP Client Services (VMS only)
WORK
Solution & Design Decisions :
From the synthesized pains and HMW opportunity, I explored multiple ways to address discoverability, cognitive load, and manual effort in the complex MSP config space.
The HMW pointed to a need for on-demand, contextual support in a deeply nested system.
I ideated an AI Config Agent - a lightweight, overlay chatbot that activates on hover/click within config screens. It explains settings, guides tasks, flags risks, and suggests actions in natural language, while keeping the user fully in control.
Alternatives considered (before finalizing AI Config Agent):
Full IA redesign (disruptive, requires backend changes).
Better search + static tooltips (insufficient for deep context and dynamic guidance).
Templates/bulk edits (helps repetition but not discoverability or understanding).
Persona-Based Opportunity Mapping:
Task Journey Comparison: Manual vs. AI-Assisted
These diagrams compare a high-frequency MSP configuration task (e.g., adding a delegate approver) in the current system versus with the AI Config Agent.
Outcome
Low-Fidelity Screens
These quick wireframes focused on layout, interaction flow, and placement of AI elements without visual polish, allowing rapid iteration based on pain points.
High-Fidelity Prototypes
High-fidelity prototypes refined the AI Config Agent concepts into polished, realistic screens. These focused on visual clarity, interaction details, typography, color cues for risk/success, and seamless integration as an overlay within the existing MSP config interface.
Prototype Demo Video
This short screen recording demonstrates the final clickable prototype of the AI Config Agent in action.
Complexity in tools like Magnit's VMS isn't a flaw - it's a feature for scale. The real challenge (and opportunity) is bridging the gap between powerful capabilities and everyday usability through rigorous user understanding and smart augmentation.