User Centered Design

Nielsen's Usability Maturity Model outlines 8 levels of how organizations approach usability, ranging from "Hostility Towards Usability" where the only focus is on functionality to "User-Driven Corporation" where usability is central to all business activities. The middle levels include "Developer-Centered Usability" where developers consider usability, "Skunkworks Usability" involving informal usability testing, "Dedicated Usability Budget" allocating funds to usability, "Managed Usability" following a defined process, and "Systematic Usability Process" where usability is integrated into development.