Improving UX Research Quality with Cross-Department Collaboration
- 1. Improving UX Research Quality with Cross-Department Collaboration Photo by Mel Poole on Unsplash
- 3. I don’t know how to do this… 3 …all by myself Photo by ÉMILE SÉGUIN on Unsplash
- 4. • PM, Dev, and UX are equal partners. • Globally-dispersed. • Centralized UX team, individuals dedicated to products. • UXR and UXD may be across several products, due to size. • Larger companies may have PM, Dev, and UX have operations team members. Cross-functional Structure 4 Product Product UXR/ UXD PM DEV PM DEV
- 5. Process 5 PM and UX collaborate on generative research UX develops wireframes and prototypes If all goes well, DEV resources are scoped and build. Product released UX tests concepts, then usability. Final reviews, beta if needed Track analytics to determine success
- 6. 1. Less is more. 2. Follow that research. 3. Break it down 4. Find the right people TOPICS
- 7. Less is More Else, people may die of boredom.
- 8. Please no. 8 …an old mother pig had three little pigs and not enough food to feed them. So when they were old enough, she sent them out into the world to seek their fortunes. The first little pig was very lazy. He didn't want to work at all and he built his house out of straw. The second little pig worked a little bit harder but he was somewhat lazy too and he built his house out of sticks. Then, they sang and danced and played together the rest of the day. The third little pig worked hard all day and built his house with bricks. It was sturdy, complete with a fine fireplace and chimney, and it looked like it could withstand the strongest winds. The next day, a wolf passed by the lane where the three little pigs lived; he saw the straw house and smelled the pig inside. He thought the pig would make a mighty fine meal and his mouth began to water. So he knocked on the door and said: Little pig! Little pig! Let me in! Let me in! But the little pig saw the wolf's big paws through the keyhole, so he answered: No! No! No! Not by the hairs on my chinny chin chin! Then the wolf showed his teeth and said: Then I'll huff, puff, and blow your house down. So he huffed, puffed, and blew the house down! The wolf opened his jaws very wide and bit down as hard as he could, but the first little pig escaped and ran away to hide with the second little pig. The wolf continued down the lane and he passed by the second house made of sticks; and he saw the house, and he smelled the pigs inside, and his mouth began to water as he thought about the fine dinner they would make. So he knocked on the door and said: Little pigs! Little pigs! Let me in! Let me in! But the little pigs saw the wolf's pointy ears through the keyhole, so they answered back: No! No! No! Not by the hairs on our chinny chin chin! So the wolf showed his teeth and said: Then I'll huff and I'll puff and I'll blow your house down! So he huffed and he puffed and he blew the house down! The wolf was greedy and he tried to catch both pigs at once, but he was too greedy and got neither! His big jaws clamped down on nothing but air and the two little pigs scrambled away as fast as their little hooves would carry them. The wolf chased them down the lane and he almost caught them. But they made it to the brick house and slammed the door closed before the wolf could catch them. The three little pigs they were very frightened, they knew the wolf wanted to eat them. And that was very, very true. The wolf hadn't eaten all day and he had worked up a large appetite chasing the pigs around and now he could smell all three of them inside and he knew that the three little pigs would make a lovely feast. So the wolf knocked on the door and said: Little pigs! Little pigs! Let me in! Let me in! But the little pigs saw the wolf's narrow eyes through the keyhole, so they answered back: No! No! No! Not by the hairs on our chinny chin chin! So the wolf showed his teeth and said: Then I'll huff and I'll puff and I'll blow your house down. Well! he huffed and he puffed. He puffed and he huffed. And he huffed, huffed, and he puffed, puffed; but he could not blow the house down. At last, he was so out of breath that he couldn't huff and he couldn't puff anymore. So he stopped to rest and thought a bit. But this was too much. The wolf danced about with rage and swore he would come down the chimney and eat up the little pig for his supper. But while he was climbing on to the roof the little pig made up a blazing fire and put on a big pot full of water to boil. Then, just as the wolf was coming down the chimney, the little piggy pulled off the lid, and plop! in fell the wolf into the scalding water. So the little piggy put on the cover again, boiled the wolf up, and the three little pigs ate him for supper.
- 9. Three little pigs 9 Illustration by L. Leslie Brooke from the 1904 version of the Three Little Pigs
- 10. Make it easy to find and understand. 10 ▸ Write an executive summary about why this project was done and 3-5 important details. ▸ Reports and presentation decks should be placed in a location that everyone in the company can access. ▸ Include the recording of your presentation (if possible). ▸ Include links to prototypes.
- 12. PM Product Management ▸ User needs ▸ Dev effort and feasibility ▸ Prioritized findings/recommendations ▸ Usability and desirability Need to know ▸ Adoption of features. ▸ Efficiency by the user in the product. ▸ Empathy for users through quotes, videos, and stories. Place value on
- 13. DEV Developers ▸ Clear designs and specifications ▸ Acceptance criteria Need to know ▸ Confirmation through user behavior, quantitative data, and benchmarks ▸ Clarity. The less specific and clear, the more room for error. Place value on
- 14. VP+ Executives ▸ Impact to business goals ▸ Competitive advantages ▸ Any issues? List potential solutions Need to know ▸ Visualize quantitative data ▸ Executive summaries to provide context and important details. Place value on
- 15. Follow that Research Don’t just wave goodbye and let it go off on its own.
- 16. What happens at the end of a project? 16
- 17. Talk to Stakeholders. 17 After your final presentation ▸ Verify all research questions were answered and recommendations are clear and actionable. ▸ Confirm the next steps verbally and written. ▸ Schedule future check-ins: ╺ Did research inform decisions? Were recommendations followed? Why or why not? ╺ (after release) Did the decisions informed by the research generate measurable value?
- 18. Break It Down Not in a dancing sort of way
- 19. Think product vs project Break down the research study into smaller parts. 19 ▸ Experiments Explain the research methodology and the steps followed ▸ Facts Document the main findings evident from the data gathered ▸ Insights Capture the key insights extracted from analyzing the research data ▸ Opportunities List the decisions and action items resulting from the research analysis Credit: Atomic UX Research by Daniel Pidcock Photo by Nike on Unsplash
- 20. More evidence for decisions 20 Credit: Atomic UX Research by Daniel Pidcock
- 21. • Shared knowledge library- includes all your user research data, UX research reports, and deliverables. • Researchers are often the primary contributors, but everyone can benefit from the knowledge of past projects. • Allows everyone access to user insights to inform themselves and enables research-driven decisions. User Research Repository 21 Photo by Martin Adams on Unsplash
- 22. • Structure your repo for your visitors. • A well-defined research taxonomy. Tags categorize the data so it can be located easily. • Company-wide access to insights. Limit raw data to those who need it. • Maintenance is required. What Matters Most 22 Photo by Jo Szczepanska on Unsplash
- 23. Find the Right People Quality participants means quality research.
- 24. Generative Interviews 24 Elementary science teachers
- 25. The right users 25 Elementary science teachers 5+ years of experience
- 26. The right users 26 Elementary science teachers 5+ years of experience Specialize in STEM integration
- 27. Once long ago, in a far far land. 27
- 28. Employees who interact with customers ▸ Reassurance that research participation will not negatively impact their relationship with their customers. Need to know ▸ Insights from participants. ▸ Customers feel valued. ▸ Notified if their participants want to participate again. Place value on
- 29. 1. Less is more. 2. Follow that research. 3. Break it down 4. Find the right people TOPICS
- 31. Thank you!