About My Design / UX Process
I iterate. Profusely. But then I also brainstorm. Alone or with others. A selected few. A chosen few. It is an intimate sharing process.
I'd be inclined to write more but then I don't want to give the game away to copycats.
Then again, asking a creative person "what's your process?" is also an unusual idea. We don't usually think about process when thinking about the solution, or what we are trying to do! It's just like asking a chef what's his process of 'making a rack of lamb' or like asking an artist 'how do you paint what you see in front of you'. Well, you just do it! Just like cooking a scrambled egg, you just do it!
There are some observations however, based on retrospection. We are forced to jot down our 'steps' we took, to 'come up' with that idea. And judgers will judge you based on those 'steps'. Such a wierd concept eh. Seriously who makes hiring decisions like that?
Every project or piece of work is different and varied. As such, different permutations of pre-defined, pre-tested (and proven) methodologies can and should be identified (in the early stages) and subsequently applied to the project, problem or question at hand to derive the best possible solution within an allotted time, if any. Based on the results, we simply iterate until the solution reaches a level of refinement and achieves its purpose outlined at the start.
As such, let me walk you through a sample project in entirety using Design Thinking, Creative Problem Solving and Lean UX Principals.
Main UX Phases
UX Research and Design has its own phases similiar to how software development has developed their own software development life cycles (a fancy term for project phases, really). While the SDLC approach is no longer in fashion, it is nevertheless useful to have had defined a point A to B checklist of methods that can be applied such as the ones I describe here in order to aid the design thinking, creative problem solving and ultimately solution deriving process. Such methods can be inserted hand in hand to sync within an agile or lean project environment. We'll talk more about this later.
ResearchDefinition of Project Goals, Constraints and Schedule. Deriving a problem statement. Recording current platform metrics and deriving/agreeing on a success metric.
Observation and Contextual Interviews.
Define the User's Behaviour Patterns which Suggest Goals and Motivations.
Information obtained in this phase helps with the creation of Personas.
Product Audits.
Stakeholder Interviews.
Literature Reviews / Comparative Analyses.
Deliverables: Workflow Patterns. Modelling
Domain Models.
User Models, User Personas, User Archetypes. Identify: Behaviours, Attitudes, Aptitudes, Goals, Motivations. Deliverables: Information Flow, Workflow Diagrams. Requirements
Ideal User Experiences.
Define Product Capabilities.
Framework
Define: Information, Functions, Mechanisms, Actions, Domain Object Models.
Synthesize Interaction Framework.
How? Apply Interaction Design Principles. Leverage on Interaction Design Patterns.
Output = Interaction Framework Definition.
Describe how the Persona interacts with the product.
Refinement
Focus on Task Coherence.
Use Key Path and Validation Scenarios focused on Storyboarding Paths.
Design Methods I use
Design Studio: Design Studio is a great and fun way to get useful results quickly and to build team camaraderie, especially with a new client. An assembled team consisting of the design team and key clients or stakeholders is assembled in a meeting room, given markers and stationery and are asked to participate in a rapid fire brainstorm session after defining the project or product's aims, goals and constraints. It is useful and a must for any UX project in my opinion as it helps to break down organizational silos (everyone gets to meet everyone and interact) and it creates a forum for your teammates' point of view. Being a collab based activity, it is also a natural trust building activity and helps to synergize the team and client. The stages of the Design Studio workshop activity are usually: a) Define Problem and Constraints b) Individual Idea Generation (everyone is given an allotted time to scribble down ideas they have) c) Presentation and Critique (everyone presents their ideas publicly and critique is given round the table) d) Iteration and Refinement (generated ideas are iterated upon and refined till we have something we can agree on, that works and that we can start working on, in terms of furthering the design prototype and getting that tested. e) Team Idea Generation, a useful way to get ideas out from individuals into the open and discussed (or thrown out) as a team. There is no such thing as failure in these sessions and no one should be afraid to fail. The end result inevitably involves failure somewhere within the process in order to achieve success. To fail often and early is key.
Persona Definition: Personas! You've probably heard about them. Yes we draw them out of thin air! Or do we? They are a useful aid in a UX project to help visualise our vaunted user and personas change based on new data that is collected throughout the UX process. Regarding personas, we should SYNTHESIZE them, DIFFERENTIATE them, PRIORITIZE them. More on that later.
Get designers involved in the research process: To build empathy and so that they know what info (research) is important.