Embracing Collaborative Design

Memi Beltrame

Embracing Collaborative Design
On the Acceptance of UX
in the Development Process

UXCon, December 3rd 2009
Lugano, Switzerland

Memi Beltrame: Embracing Collaborative Design - UXCon Lugano

About
• Developing websites since 1997
• 2003-2007 Study of cinematography
• Since 2007
specialising in frontend and interaction design
• Since 2008 for Liip Agile Web Development


Misson
Show the dynamics of collaborative design

Show ways to raise acceptance of UX in
development


The Internet
Browser War dotcom
Pl op !

1993 1995 1998 2000 03 04 05 06 2009

High interaction apps,
Increased need for UX

Until 2003 UX Design was only rarely a
part of the commission and
development process for websites.


Rich internet applications brought a
higher sensitivity to the users needs.


UX concepts as a response to shape
customer and user experience


Developers meet UX experts with
scepticism and little acceptance


Why?


To find out
we need to do two things:
● Know the process

● Understand the expectations


The process:
Collaborative Design


From Collaboration
To Collaborative Design


Collaboration is the successful
sharing of a working environment in
a joint effort to accomplish a task


Collaborative design is collaboration
with the task of creating an artefact


Collaborative Design takes place
whenever an artefact is planned
and/or implemented by two or more
participants.


Typical Collaborative Design Areas

Architecture
Software
Movies


The Internet is (probably) the
biggest single instance of
Collaborative Design


Collaborative Design is a reality.

It is the inevitable process that
emerges when you build something
as a team.


Unlike UCD or TDD it is nothing you
choose, it just happens,
nolens volens.

UCD: User centered design
TDD: Test driven development


Even the simplest
Customer < > Contractor Relationship
involves Collaborative Design


It involves is a network of participants


The goal is a common product
with a high overall utility


Every participant can propose
solutions for design issues


Participants are inter-dependent.


Participants are inter-dependent.
Inter-dependency means
„I need something“


Every participant has a self-interest
Customer:
Affordable yet magic

Developer:
solid, stable and performing

Designer:
beautiful and usable


Fulfilling self-interest means
Reaching a local optimum of utility


Are participants willing to
compromise their self interest for
the sake of a global optimum?


A B C D global Utility


The system can become very complex

Interface Designer Webserver
Management
Developer

Proxy
UX expert

Mobile Services

DB Specialist DB Admin

Project Lead


It's hard to keep track of the
interactions and design decisions
Management
Developer

Proxy
UX expert

Mobile Services


Project Lead


Subsytems can emerge

Management
Developer

Proxy
UX expert

Mobile Services


Project Lead


Subsytems also have a local
optimum utility plus they are loyal!
Management
Developer

Proxy
UX expert

Mobile Services


Project Lead


Every new participant brings a shift
in the global utility.


Every old participant must be aware
of this and accept it. Otherwise the
team is possibly ripped apart.


Successful Collaborative Design is
based on the commitment of each
participant to achieve an optimum
of overall utility.


Acceptance


UX brought a paradigm shift
to a whole industry

UX


Why does this change happen with
considerable problems?


Before UX:
Developers modelled processes
according to their instead of the
user's needs.


Before UX:
An application's utility was not
anyone's explicit responsibility


Before UX:
Utility did not figure as a criteria for
quality assertion in the conceptual
phase


Measurability


Criteria for quality assertion:
● Performance (computing speed, interface response)
● Drain on resources (bandwidth, disk-space, file-size)

● Implementation standards
(normalisation, unit/functional testing, validation)
● Deficiency (incomplete or faulty implementation)
● Duration, cost (on time, on budget)

● Utility (relevance of information, ease of task completion)


Criteria for quality assertion:
● Performance (computing speed, interface response)
● Drain on resources (bandwidth, disk-space, file-size)

● Implementation standards
(normalisation, unit/functional testing, validation) Easy to
● Deficiency (incomplete or faulty implementation) measure
● Duration, cost (on time, on budget)

● Utility (relevance of information, ease of task completion)
Hard to
measure


Hard to measure:
Utility needs a process involving
users to be asserted.

It's findings are hard to read and
difficult to interpret.


The user is the only valid measuring
instrument to assert utility.

Simultaneously being tester and
testee deprives the developer from
objectivity.


Objectivity is only possible if the results
do not depend on the tester.

Only measurements based on
objectivity lead to reliability and validity.


Expectation Management


It is important to continuously manage
stakeholder expectations.

Identify what each stakeholder can and
cannot do.


Two essential demands:

1. Device proficiency

2. Completenes of information


Device proficiency

Be familiar with the conventions of use
on the device as well as its limitations.


Completenes of information:

Information architecture proposed must
be complete and consistent.

Incompleteness paves the way for
arbitrariness

Provide methodological guidance

Raising Acceptance


Successful Acceptance:

Reciprocal understanding of each others
standards and expectations


This helps acceptance:
● Clear, unambiguous negotiation
● Alliances

● Shared experiences

● Common achievements

● High iteration workflows

● Frequent synchronisation


Questions?


Thank you!
Slides: http://slides.liip.ch


Embracing Collaborative Design

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