Not familiar with how househelp works in India?
Look out for these flickering circles throughout the case study for context.
How it started
An issue all of us saw in our own homes, trouble finding house help when required. How do you tackle the uncertainty of finding someone from an unorganized sector like this?
We noticed househelp rely heavily on personal connections and luck to find work, This process is time-consuming and unreliable, leaving many without stable jobs or income.
Nahi yaar, watchman se puchle.
08:10 am
[No, you should ask the watchman]
My Mom
Mom’s Friend
My maid can’t come next week, do you know anyone available?
08:01 am
INTERESTINGLY,
Over 50 million domestic workers power Indian households, yet the hiring process remains largely chaotic and unreliable
Check source
Building up Questions
FOR THE RESIDENT
FOR THE HOUSEHELP
Do residents trust house helps found online, or is trust the main issue?
Do residents rely on word-of-mouth instead of existing apps? Does this work for them?
Why do house helps still go door-to-door? Is it due to a lack of better options?
Do house helps struggle with work during off-peak times? How can we help?
Discussed their experiences at length
Methods
Interviews
Contextual Inquires
(Societies with MyGate)
Shadowing Maids
Stakeholders
Residents
Househelp
Watchmen
MyGate Employees
Sample Size
24 Residents
6 Maids
3 Societies (with MyGate)
2 Societies (w/o MyGate)
How might we find the right help for the right task at the right time?
much more than maid and resident
Mapping out the all the actors, actions, and flow involved within the current ecosystem. To help us get the understanding of the overall system of the current househelp service market. The focus here is more on the details for househelp and residents part in the eco-system.
Watchman
Friends
Other Maids
Shopkeepers
RWA
MyGate
Resident Welfare Association
Means of Communication
Check-in and out Status Update
POC b/w Maid and Residents
Where Househelp Services Stand Today
We studied existing platforms that connect households with domestic workers, identifying their strengths and weaknesses. This analysis helped us understand the market landscape and pinpoint opportunities for differentiation.
Shakuntala Devi
Age: 35 yrs
househelp
Shakuntala Devi
Age: 35 yrs
househelp
Shakuntala Devi
Age: 35 yrs
househelp
Broad Scope
Cost leadership
differentiation
Lower Cost
Higher Cost
Cost focus
Narrow Scope
Word-of-Mouth
Local Agencies
Housing Management Platforms
Hyper-Local Service Aggregators
Global Service Providers
differentiation focus
Ask yourself,
despite these solutions is it easy to find househelp that is
trustworthy
&
AVAILABLE QUICKLY
So we ideated...
INTRODUCING
Imagine Uber but for Calling Maids.
What is
?
Sahayak enables residents to connect with available househelp through housing/service apps, matching them based on preferences like work type, timing, and ratings.
Househelps receive automated calls about work opportunities, allowing them to accept or decline jobs directly
You’re probably asking,
what really is the solution
PLAIN
&
SIMPLE
B2B Service:
Collaboration with Housing Management Platforms
We collaborate with platforms like MyGate, JioGate, etc to leverage their database and connect residents with househelp easily and timely.
Housing Management Platforms
For Residents
‘Open to Work’
LinkedIn Mental Model
Click ’Find Help’ to avail our services
Wait for maid to accept
Uber’s Mental Model
Filter to your preferences
Confirmed Maid Profile shows up
x
Edge Cases
None of the maids accept the request
Maids are busy.
Sorry (Name),
there are currently no available maids responding to your request. Please search again and wait while we find the right fit or you can try again later.
Cancel Request
Search Again
Request cancellation post accepting
Type of work
Are you sure?
If you cancel your request now, your will be disconnected.
Cancel Request
For Househelp
No more waiting for word-of-mouth leads.
Househelps receive work alerts directly on their phones via Interactive voice response (IVR) calls and messages in their local languages.
Hear the automated call below in the video
Designing for Digital Inclusivity
No Smartphone Required
Supports basic “dabba phones” and no-internet situations, since work accepted through IVR Calls and SMS
Low Literacy Friendly
Press 1 / Press 2 easy to understand response system
Voice-based instructions in local languages ensure ease of use
Equal Access to Opportunities
All house helps receive work notifications regardless of the device or digital fluency (fair participation)
If you can take a phone call, you can find work.
Still in progress
For MyGate Employees
Filterable datasets for targeted insights
Role-based access for security
Analytics section with data visualization
Tabular data with sortable columns
For Watchman and Security Guards
We help streamline their responsibilities by enabling them to update the "Open to Work" tag on MyGate, removing the need to manually remember and convey each maid's availability to residents. Additionally, maid ID cards make househelps more accessible and identifiable to residents.
#
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Sangram Najeema
Inside
Cleaning | Cooking
5.0
4 HOUSES
#
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Breaking Down the Solution
We explored the service model, algorithm, user flow, and storyboard that detail the seamless connection between residents and househelps including the backend and frontend processes involved.
Real people, real feedback
Conducted user testing to evaluate interface usability, service flow efficiency, and overall satisfaction for both residents and maids by collecting both qualitative and quantitative feedback from relevant stakeholders.
Desirability, viability, & feasibility put to test
Usability Testing
MyGate Collab Prototype with Residents
Wizard of Oz Testing
Automated call, messages with Househelp
Speedboat
Group Discussion post testing with Team
Key Performance Indicators considered here were:
Task Success Rate; Time to Task Completion; Error Rate; Engagement Rate; Satisfaction Score; Drop-off Rate
Key Changes Made
User wanted to book a maid for few days later in case of early cancellation by their maid.
Date Selection Ability:
Make scheduling more convenient and time-specific
The Verdict Is Finally In
81%
of househelp
responded positively to the Call system, even those with limited technical literacy.
91%
of residents
reported that the ability to select type of work reduced miscommunication during bookings
Statistics same as interviews above
89%
of residents
appreciated the custom date selection in the filter as it was more intuitive
Industry perspective and Validation
Pitched to the MyGate Co-Founder and team
We pitched our solution to MyGate’s Co-Founder and leadership team, who helped us understand how our idea could plug into their system and scale meaningfully — reinforcing the real-world potential of Sahayak.
Our “Open to Work” feature moved directly into implementation.
It went live in a single release — and received an instant positive response from users, validating both the problem and the solution approach. This real-world deployment strengthened our confidence in the scalability and relevance of Sahayak’s service model.
Dedicated to all our moms!
Making househelp discovery a click away!
