How did we integrated the user experience design process into the development cycles at NICE Systems - challenges and solutions.

1. Integrating UX
into an Enterprise
Organization

2. Nice to meet you!
Ran Liron
UX Lead, NICE Enterprise

3. NICE Systems
Real-time tools that turn massive amounts of
data into knowledge, and knowledge into
insight
R&D centers located worldwide

4. NICE Enterprise
Largest division of NICE, providing solutions
for contact centers, branches, trading floors
and back offices

5. The Challenges

6. Agile
1
Agile sprints: UX design on the run

7.  3 weeks sprints
 Content keep shifting
 Scrum teams of about 6-9 people
 The UX expert isn’t part of the Scrum team
Agile @NICE Enterprise

8. Sprint
Initial approach: Continuous Detailed Design
Sprint 1
Start
Sprint 2
Start
Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 1

9. Focusing the Design on Upcoming Sprints
Sprint 1
Start
Sprint 2
Start
Planning
for Sprint 2
Detailed UX
for Sprint 2
Detailed PM
Requirements
for Sprint 2
Sprint 2 UX
Success Criteria
Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 1
High level PM
Requirements
for Sprint 2
Detailed UX
for Sprint 2
High Level PM
Requirements
for Sprint 2
Detailed PM
Requirements
for Sprint 2

10. Building upon a Clear Roadmap
Sprint 0
Start
3-9
Weeks
Defining the vision:
User definition, research,
main use cases, product roadmap,
and success criteria

11. Building upon a Clear Roadmap
Sprint 1
Start
Sprint 2
Start
s
1
Planning
for Sprint 2
Detailed UX
for Sprint 2
Detailed PM
Requirements
for Sprint 2
High Level PM
Requirements
for Sprint 2
Sprint 2 UX
Success Criteria
Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 1
High Level PM
Requirements
for Sprint 3

12. Agile
2
Communication

13. The process we used to have:
Communicating UX
Product Defining the requirement
UX Providing the UI guidelines
(Delivering on the sprint preplanning)
Development Producing the code
UX & QA
Quality validation

14. Communication tool:
Communicating UX
Detailed prototype + User stories and instructions in TFS.

15. The problems:
 Miss-communication of requirement
 Un-clear UX DoD
Communicating UX

16. Updated process:
It is all about direct communication
Communicating UX
Product
Defining the requirement
UX+
Product
Discussing the requirement and DoD
UX+ + Dev.
Product
Quality validation
UX+ + Dev. + QA + TW

17. Alignment
(A.K.A. the “same same but different” problem)
3

18. There is more than one (correct) way to skin a cat
Different application, same issues –
Tables, popups, pagination, date range picker, etc.
The problem: We kept reinventing the wheel
We should use unified, consistent,
and well thought-through methods

19. How: A collection of UX design patterns

20.  Title & a short description
 When to use
 When not to use
 Usage guidelines
 Alternative controls
And also…
 Visual design (Style guide, graphic assets)
 Development references
The design pattern structure

21. What: Design pattern structure

22. What: Design pattern structure

23. What: Design pattern structure

24. >
What: Design pattern structure

25. 1st iteration: A collection of UX design patterns

26. 2nd iteration: Visually grouping the patterns

27. 2nd iteration: Visually grouping the patterns

28. Local feedback (i.e. – @Israel) from PMs & R&D
Remote groups had some issues with the guidelines
implementation
Feedback
” it is saving development time...
(ensuring) very high quality of our products”
“A reference implementation of all of these
widgets in action would be far more useful "
Live gallery >

29. 3rd iteration: Live Gallery
Online >

30. Usability Testing
4

31. Validate our solutions –
Ensure that we are providing an effective,
efficient and pleasant user experience.
The Need

32. Test early and test often
 Preferred timing: Before development
 Effective timing: Anytime
tip #1

33. Nothing is more convincing than one’s own
observations, therefore…
 UXers:
Invite PMs & R&D to front-row seats at the tests
 PMs & R&D:
Make the time to participate!
Tip #2

34. Understand Your Users
5

35. Meet the Users (A.K.A. “Contextual Inquiries”)

36. Feedback from Our Product Directors
“This is extremely important observation...
we can learn from it and use it as a baseline for improvement”
“This is very good and important…
I will share the PPT with my team”

37. UX-it Day
6

38. “All Aboard the UX Train!”
A single day dedicated to working together with
R&D on UX improvements, gaps & bugs
UX-it Day

39. Setting Goals

40. Picking Tasks (Literally)

41. Working Together!

42. Improved UI implementation
Focus on user experience and winning
together
Fun!
UX-it Day: Added Value

43. Bottom Line

44.  Utilize Sprint 0 to define the vision
 Involved everyone in direct F2F communication
 Build UX pattern & guidelines repository
 Usability testing & user observations - Early and
whenever possible
And the bottommost bottom line…
Methods for Effective UX

45. Generating a great user experience in
large organizations requires that
everyone – Product, R&D and QA –
take an active part in the UX design.
Bottommost Bottom Line

46. Comments / questions ?
Ran.Liron@NICE.com