1. 1
The Strategic UX Triangle:
Chasing the dream of Embedded UX
Eva Kaniasty
redpillux.com
@kaniasty
User Experience Strategy Overview, Eva Kaniasty/Red
Pill UX
7. 7
APPROACH
IDENTIFYING PROBLEMS
LISTENING TO THE ORGANIZATION
IDEAL VISION
GOALS | BEST PRACTICES
TACTICS
CONSISTENT WITH ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE
User Experience Strategy Overview, Eva Kaniasty/Red
Pill UX
10. 10
STARTUP
/ AGENCY
“We do discount UX.
I showed it to coworkers
and they liked it.
ESTABLISHED
/AGENCY
“You can’t get valid data
from only 8 users.
Marketing already did
focus groups anyway.
User Experience Strategy Overview, Eva Kaniasty/Red
Pill UX
11. 11
Methods Strategy Checklist
✓We agree on issues of
VALIDITY
methodology and research
validity.
User Experience Strategy Overview, Eva Kaniasty/Red
Pill UX
12. 12
GROWING
/MATURE
“We spent all this money
on our lab.
Let’s usability test it!
GROWING
/AGENCY
“We have 3 people
wireframing out every
project.
User Experience Strategy Overview, Eva Kaniasty/Red
Pill UX
13. 13
Methods Strategy Checklist
✓ We agree on issues of methodology
VALIDITY
and research validity.
✓We draw from a range
TOOLBOX
methods, choosing the right
solution for the problem at
hand.
User Experience Strategy Overview, Eva Kaniasty/Red
Pill UX
14. 14
STARTUP
GROWING
“We do UX. We just
hired 2 UX developers.
GROWING
AGENCY
“Our UX person is great.
She tells us exactly what
to do.
User Experience Strategy Overview, Eva Kaniasty/Red
Pill UX
15. 15
Methods Strategy Checklist
VALIDITY
✓
✓
TOOLBOX
PEOPLE
We agree on issues of methodology
and research validity.
We draw from a range of methods,
choosing the right solution for
problem at hand.
✓ Our staff has the expertise
required to deliver rigorous
and high quality work.
User Experience Strategy Overview, Eva Kaniasty/Red
Pill UX
16. 16
TACTICS FOR THE RIGHT METHODOLOGY
DISCOUNT OR FORMAL?
SHOW OR TELL?
OUTSOURCE OR TRAIN?
User Experience Strategy Overview, Eva Kaniasty/Red
Pill UX
18. 18
STARTUP
GROWING
“Dev already started.
Can you do a UX phase
in the next 2 weeks?
GROWING
ESTABLISHED
“Sales and marketing do
their own landing page
& widget design.
User Experience Strategy Overview, Eva Kaniasty/Red
Pill UX
19. 19
Process Strategy Checklist
✓Our project plans allocate
TIME
time for a UX phase.
User Experience Strategy Overview, Eva Kaniasty/Red
Pill UX
20. 20
GROWING
ESTABLISHED
“I’m pretty sure we did
user profiles last year.
“I can’t be there, but I’ll
watch the testing videos.
“Just email me a copy of
the report.
User Experience Strategy Overview, Eva Kaniasty/Red
Pill UX
21. 21
Process Strategy Checklist
TIME
✓ Our project plans allocate time for a
UX phase.
✓User perspective is
USERS
represented and known.
User Experience Strategy Overview, Eva Kaniasty/Red
Pill UX
22. 22
GROWING
ESTABLISHED
“We ran 5 user tests: we
just haven’t implement
the results yet.
GROWING
ESTABLISHED
“Great brainstorm
everyone. Too bad we
can’t use your ideas this
time.
User Experience Strategy Overview, Eva Kaniasty/Red
Pill UX
23. 23
Process Strategy Checklist
TIME
✓ Our project plans allocate time for a
UX phase.
USERS
✓ User perspective is represented and
known.
IMPACT
✓Ideas generated through
the UX design process are
acted upon.
User Experience Strategy Overview, Eva Kaniasty/Red
Pill UX
24. 24
GROWING
ESTABLISHED
“The launch is
delayed, so there is no
time for usability
testing.
GROWING
ESTABLISHED
“We have to move on to
the next project before
we can do v.2.
User Experience Strategy Overview, Eva Kaniasty/Red
Pill UX
25. 25
Process Strategy Checklist
TIME
USERS
✓ Project plans include a UX phase.
✓ User perspective is represented and
known.
IMPACT
✓ Ideas generated through the UX
design process are acted upon.
LEARNING
✓Evaluation and iteration
happens.
User Experience Strategy Overview, Eva Kaniasty/Red
Pill UX
26. 26
TACTICS FOR THE RIGHT PROCESS
USER-CENTERED OR LEAN UX?
LIVE USERS OR PERSONAS?
COLLABORATE OR DEMONSTRATE?
User Experience Strategy Overview, Eva Kaniasty/Red
Pill UX
28. 28
STARTUP
GROWING
“We’re Agile, so we
don’t do research.
ESTABLISHED
“We don’t use
ESTABLISHED
“We rolled it back due
the
usability lab that much.
to internal pushback.
User Experience Strategy Overview, Eva Kaniasty/Red
Pill UX
30. 30
ESTABLISHED
“UX costs too much, and
the business is doing
fine as is.
GROWING
ESTABLISHED
“The CIO thinks
personas are a
waste of time money.
User Experience Strategy Overview, Eva Kaniasty/Red
Pill UX
31. 31
Business Strategy Checklist
BUY-IN
✓ Executive and stakeholder support
is strong.
✓UX budgets are stable
MONEY
non-negotiable.
User Experience Strategy Overview, Eva Kaniasty/Red
Pill UX
and
32. 32
ANY STAGE
“The beta testers seem
to like the new design.
ANY STAGE
“I think the project went
well. The stakeholders
seem happy.
User Experience Strategy Overview, Eva Kaniasty/Red
Pill UX
33. 33
Business Strategy Checklist
BUY-IN
✓ Executive and stakeholder support is
strong.
MONEY✓ UX budgets are stable and nonnegotiable.
METRICS
✓Metrics and benchmarks
are defined. Results are
measured.
User Experience Strategy Overview, Eva Kaniasty/Red
Pill UX
34. 34
ESTABLISHED
“The VP of sales has
made a list of features.
“These users just didn’t
GROWING
ESTABLISHED
get it!
ANY STAGE
“I think we should move
this button to the left.
User Experience Strategy Overview, Eva Kaniasty/Red
Pill UX
35. 35
Business Strategy Checklist
BUY-IN
✓ Executive and stakeholder support is
strong.
MONEY✓ UX budgets are stable and nonnegotiable.
METRICS✓ Metrics and benchmarks are
defined. Results are measured.
EVIDENCE
✓Evidence-based decisions
are the norm.
User Experience Strategy Overview, Eva Kaniasty/Red
Pill UX
36. 36
TACTICS FOR THE RIGHT BUSINESS STRATEGY
ENGAGE OR EXCLUDE?
SMALL TEAMS OR LARGE?
FOCUS OR TRIANGULATE?
User Experience Strategy Overview, Eva Kaniasty/Red
Pill UX
37. 37
STRATEGIC PLANNING
BUSINESS
METHODS
PROCESS
✓ Business Goals, Req. & Vision
✓ Project Goals & Metrics
✓ Project/Stakeholder Ecology
✓ Research Methodology
✓ User Modeling & Requirements
✓ Design Methodology
✓ Project Road Map
✓ Evaluation & Iteration
User Experience Strategy Overview, Eva Kaniasty/Red
Pill UX
39. 39
Methods Strategy Checklist
✓
VALIDITY
✓
TOOLBOX
PEOPLE
✓
We agree on issues of methodology
and research validity.
We draw from a range of methods,
choosing the right solution for
problem at hand.
Our staff has the expertise required
to deliver rigorous and high quality
work.
User Experience Strategy Overview, Eva Kaniasty/Red
Pill UX
40. 40
Process Strategy Checklist
TIME
USERS
✓ Project plans include a UX phase.
✓ User perspective is represented and
known.
IMPACT
✓ Ideas generated through the UX
design process have visible impact.
LEARNING✓ Evaluation and iteration happens.
User Experience Strategy Overview, Eva Kaniasty/Red
Pill UX
41. 41
Business Strategy Checklist
BUY-IN
✓ Executive and stakeholder support is
strong.
MONEY✓ UX budgets are stable and nonnegotiable.
METRICS✓ Metrics and benchmarks are
defined. Results are measured.
EVIDENCE ✓ Evidence-based decisions are the
norm.
User Experience Strategy Overview, Eva Kaniasty/Red
Pill UX
Editor's Notes
What’s missing?
One dimensional
Overwhelming - no one size fits all
Highly prescriptive at how you’re supposed to do UX
Nothing about what you’re accomplishing
Discouraging
You can’t sell UX
Designing your UX function
Maximizing value;
Not prescriptive in terms of tactics
what does an ideal practice look like?
What can we learn from misunderstandings & conflicts?
Theater of UX
Research is conducted on proxy users, or not at all.
User research and market research are not viewed as separate functions.
point of diminishing returns
Methodolatry
Checking the UX box; Hiring focused on UX unicorns - Don’t make me think school of UX design
UX team of one - Does not scale
We love usability testing... make it happen without additional staffing
UX is an afterthought
Design is fragmented, with conflicting factions
Death by deliverable
Learned helplessness
Always time for dev
Dead end
A product that isn’t getting better is a dying product.
Executive and stakeholder support is lacking or sporadic.
Resistance
Rejection
What is success? How do you know that you’re doing a good job?
Benchmarks and measures of successful outcomes do not exist.
