the ux industry & you

The UX Industry & You

Let’s talk about UX

The UX Industry & You | Rebecca Destello

U…what…?


What is User Experience (UX)?

“User experience encompasses all aspects of the end-user’s interaction with the company, its services, and its products.- Jakob Nielsen and Don Norman

http://www.nngroup.com/articles/definition-user-experience/

“User experience is the totality of the effect(s) felt by a user as a result of interaction with… a system, device, or product, including the influence of usability, usefulness, and emotional impact during interaction, and savoring the memory after interaction.- Hartson and Pyla

PeoplePeople

usingusing

technology (mostly)technology (mostly)

& how it makes them feel

& how it makes them feel


U…what…?

With credit to Emma Rose, PhD

Dan Saffer


Why you should be interested in a career in UX


High satisfaction: Most UX professionals love what they do, because their work is fulfilling and the jobs pay well.

You might be a UX person if ... You love good designYou like to organize things You’re the one who always spots the bugs in software or typos on the restaurant menuYou are a life long learnerYou are a people person

Source: User Experience Careers Report by Farrell and Nielsen


Why not?

Source: http://www.onwardsearch.com/


Understanding your options


http://userexperiencelondon.blogspot.com/2011_08_01_archive.html


Architectural vs. UX Roles

Adapted from http://www.slideshare.net/rwinzenburg/ux-roles-and-job-titles

Surveyor Move Planner & Closet Organizer

Interior Designer

Drywaller & Brick Layer

Plumber & Electrician

Architect

UserResearcher

InteractionDesigner

InformationArchitect

User InterfaceDesigner

Front EndDeveloper

Back EndDeveloper


UX Roles explained

InteractionDesigner•Interviewing•Wireframe•Prototypes•Work Flow (usability)•Excel•Silverback, Captcha•Omnigraffle, Visio•InDesign, Axure•Fireworks, HTML

InformationArchitect•Content Inventory•Card Sorting•Labeling•Navigation•Thesauri•Search•Controlled

Vocabulary•Excel•Optimal Sort

User InterfaceDesigner

•Design Principles•Usability•Typography•HTML/CSS•Photoshop•Illustrator•Fireworks•JQuery

Front EndDeveloper•HTML•CSS•JQuery•JavaScript•Flash/Flex•ActionScript

UserResearcher

•Field studies•Personas•Observation•Focus groups•Usability testing•Morae•Ovo Studios•Excel•Word•SPSS•PowerPoint

UX Designer Interactive Designer

Adapted from http://www.slideshare.net/rwinzenburg/ux-roles-and-job-titles


2 common roles

UserResearcher

UXDesigner


Job titlesUX designer, UX architect, interaction designer (IxD), UI designer, information architect, visual designer

Must be good withCreating solid design from fuzzy ideas, keeping up with current trends, thinking outside the box, creative thinking, color theory, design theory

UX Designer

User ExperienceDesigner

UX Unicorn!!UX Unicorn!!+ extra points if you understand

code and usability


User Researcher

Job titlesUX researcher, user researcher, usability analyst, usability specialist, UX tester, UX consultant

Must be good withMaking people feel at ease, interviewing, listening, analysis, collecting loads of information and distilling it into meaningful data, public speaking

UserResearcher


UX Pegasus!!UX Pegasus!!+ extra points if you

understanddesign theory

Now what?


Get hired

If you’re not sure what you want to do – apply for what interests you and learn more through interviewing.

Specialize, but don’t pigeon hole yourself.

Consider contract or freelance work to gain experience.

Use an agency.

Have a portfolio.


“The purpose of a portfolio is to create a sense of personal ownership over one's accomplishments, because ownership engenders feelings of pride, responsibility, and dedication.”

- Paris, S & Ayres, L. (1994) Becoming Reflective


First, a note about portfolio types


There are 2 types of portfolios

Website vs. Deck

Website portfolios are good for• Lots of projects• Show ALL of your work in one place• Representing yourself online

PPT decks are good for• One or two projects• Talk about one or two projects in depth• Representing yourself during an interview


This one’s about deck portfolios


Deck portfolios

Your portfolio should be simple. Forget fancy transitions and layouts - focus on storytelling.

Must haves Your name A tagline (what you do) Past work examples (details about the project,

what it looked like before and after, challenges, and what your role was)

A list of your skills An “About Me” page with a way to contact you


Your deck portfolio should


S.O.A.R.

SOAR is a handy formula for discussing your accomplishments.

Situation: What challenge were you faced with?

Objective: What did you hope to accomplish?

Action: What action(s) did you take?

Result: What resulted from your action(s)?


S.O.A.R. example

SituationIt was breakfast time and there was no cereal in the house.

ObjectiveBreakfast is the most important meal of the day, therefore it is important to eat something before going to school.

ActionAfter investigating around the kitchen, I was able to combine cooked oats, raisins, cashews, and a little bit of honey to create a healthy alternative to cereal.

ResultBy combining these ingredients with milk, I was able to create a new breakfast meal that helped me make it through the day.


“I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”

- Maya AngelouThe UX Industry & You | Rebecca Destello

Deck portfolio tips

• Read the book "Presentation Zen” by Reynolds & Duarte.• Having a meter on every slide that shows where you are in

the presentation (to give a sense of progress).• Have an agenda slide. People should know what to expect.• Don't use slide transitions (aka: strip tease presentation).• Always practice with a friend beforehand.• Give credit where credit is due. Be explicit about your

participation in projects and of what you accomplished.• End with your contact info.


Public Speaking 101

• Make eye contact.• Don't fidget, stand straight, comfortable, and

professional.• Speak slowly at a normal volume.• Always stop to ask if anyone has questions.• Know your material. Don't just read the screen.• Don't be afraid to let your personality come through.• SMILE! Remember, you love doing UX work!


Network!

Join special interest groups, get memberships, go to conferences, attend meetups, join LinkedIn (www.linkedin.com/in/rebeccadestello)


Examples

A few deck portfolio examples…

UX Designers• brynnevans.com/files/portfolio.pdf• laura-simpson.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/

lsimpson_UXportfolio20121.pdf

UX Researchers• userpages.umbc.edu/~huijuan1/file/

HuijuanWu_Portfolio.pdf • mukeshnathan.net/assets/nathan-portfolio.pdf


Thank you!

@rebeccadestellolinkedin.com/in/rebeccadestello/


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