reverse the polarity! mike kuniavsky. this morning usability today reverse the polarity!
TRANSCRIPT
This Morning
Usability today
Reverse the polarity!
Ye Olde Usabilitye
Software
Human Factors
Experimental Psychology
Computer science
Universities
Labs
Then, the Web happened
Technology + The Bubble = craziness!
Changed user research and user-centered design forever
After the Web
Web = awareness + $
A fusion of old industries– Design– Information Science– HCI– Marketing
A tectonic shift
Creates crisis of purpose
And here we are
A lot of usability testing
Taught in design schools
Techniques shift from one to many– Psychology to anthropology/marketing research– Modules to environments– Abilities to expectations– Laws to solutions– Supply to demand
A new way of thinking about development, about people, about companies
What do we call it?
How do we adapt?
The Problem, part 1
Help! This is broken!
The client
We’ll help you!
The consultant
Hooray! You did exactly what we asked!
The Problem, part 2
6 months later
12 months later
18 months later
What to do?
Hmmm… !
What to do?
Reverse the polarity!Use user research methods to understand companies
Discovery, the Adaptive Path recipe
Start with traditional sales and consulting methodologies
Add structure and process
Incorporate user research and information architecture methods
Makes:
a thorough understanding of company expectations, needs, capabilities and desires
more relevant, more actionable user research
context
What we’re looking for
Understand the company– Structure– Priorities– Concepts– Terminology
Understand the product– What roles does it play in the organization
Understand the project– Scope– Process– Players
Understand the context
Techniques used
Structured stakeholder interviews
Focus groups
Artifact review
End products
Tangible– Controlled vocabulary– User profiles/personas– Formal documentation: MRD, PRD, Project Brief, etc.
Organizational– Company mental model– Prioritization
Informal– Makes people think– Makes you listen– Creates a relationship with participants– Communicates value of UCD
Stakeholder Interviews
Stakeholders: people who are affected by the performance of the product– Executives– Product/project managers– Customer service personnel
Formal discussion guide
Typically 10, as many as 20-30
60 minutes long
Stakeholder Interviews: Example
Children’s educational products company
Goal: restructure site
Major Findings– Brand drives all decisions at all levels– Site does not have to make money to be successful
Other findings– Kids submarkets: 3-6, 6-9, 9-12 (only girls)– Product lines large and unstable– One product chosen every back-to-school season as hero product
Focus Groups
Goals: to get expectations, perceptions, opinions, priorities, anecdotes
Less influential stakeholders
3-5 groups total
90 minutes long
Focus Groups: Example
Perceptions– Staff has never created children’s content– The calendar is a huge amount of work every month
Opinions– Not enough of the company’s innovation is communicated– Site is confusing even to employees– Not representing the brand well
Priorities– New user acquisition not as important as current user relationship– Can’t lose the teachers– Don’t anger Wal-Mart
Artifact Review
Ask for everything
Skim 90%
Read documents that summarize knowledge
Examples– PowerPoints– Product specs– Requirements documents– Consultant research– Server log analysis
Artifact review: Example
Internal child research team knows their stuff
Games are huge
No coherent content strategy
Much content accessed less than 5 times a month
Conclusions
What we do with it:– What user research to do– How to present results
Make users and companies successful
