The AIGA event in London in January reported on the Future of User-Centred Technology Design Mission to the US. We had three speakers, two from the mission, Rachel Jones from Instrata Limited and Dan Hill from BBC Radio and Music Interactive, and James Woudhuysen, Professor of Forecasting and Innovation at De Montfort University who responded. The event was held at the Design Council.

I’m impressed by the document itself, it is definately worth a read, but some of the assumptions and outputs reported by the speakers didn’t strike me as too joined up. Maybe its best not to speak about a report, just read it. A report has time for edit, whereas an off the cuff remarks may be made with less thought.

A few points, personal and biased judgements, of course. First up, why the West Coast US? Why not Scandanavia? Partcipatory design, the precursor to User-Centred Design, started in semi-socialist Sweden in the 70’s. If the objective of a mission is to look at new methods and process, I think the first question is ‘Where is the future happening?’, then, of course, you go there to find out. I think these guys missed the first question.

As I say, I do like the report so its hard to be too critical on detail, but I found the viewpoint given to a hundred user experience professionals that user-centred design techniques had ‘fallen away’ in the UK massively galling. What evidence for this, can we hear it? None, I think, past a belief by the speaker that Ethnography (hear the fanfare) is the one true way and you can’t call yourself a user experience professional if you ain’t been in house down and dirty with users. Now its not as if I don’t agree with this sentiment in principle, but the way it was expressed was discouraging and unnecessary, and actually slightly painful.

And what about hearing that an ‘online diary’ is a novel use of new UCD technology?!Unless I’m mistaken, wouldn’t that be a blog? You know, like we write in our millions?

Reading between the lines, it seemed to me that the US ain’t that far head, and like this country, more and more ground is being gained as we get more established. The report gives a more balanced perspective than this speaker.

I better liked Dans presentation. One aspect he discussed was the idea of the Translation Point. Again, not a new idea, but one that merits a name. I’ve personally been pursuing the idea of usability as a provider of concrete ideas to design for years now, so I’m pleased. But I’m not the only one of course. Bernt Schmitt in his excellent Customer Experience Management book describes the CEM field as one where analytic meets creative. I like the term though, and of course it presupposes the reverse … that design has to translate to usability too.

James Woudhuysen responsed with some interesting provocations. A very interesting and engaging piece busting up our cosy ideals. I can’t do them justice in this short piece, so heres a few bits and a gist.

First up, the customer experience field (my business) exists because of and feeds upon privilege. Filling in the white space of a designed experience with more more more is simply vulgar. The concentration on the detail of our lives orients us wholly to the market and denies innovation. Well, as someone who might be said to have sold out to the suits, I guess this is right. But what in its place, James?

Well, er, technology, creative, insight, messing … And this wild stuff rates higher than labelling our grocery bags nicely. Again, I’d do wild, and occasionally do, but I’d argue that good relevant detail of customer experience makes business and that has to be a key reason to do design. I mean, if it doesn’t sell its not good design, is it? But I agree this orientation to the market does warp User-Centred Design (UCD). It can make businesses very risk averse, and use UCD defensivly to test poor designs to bland destruction.

For myself, I see UCD as an proactive support to design. Used over its translation points, with designers and usability’ers speaking the same language, it is at its most powerful as a prototype-and-test tool. It is a shame our bean counter culture, and more conservative usability practitoners and patrons see usability as a stick to beat design with rather than part of the track to real innovation.

But, hang on … where did PCD come from?!

Share This

Ocado are doing a damn fine job in creating good customer experiences, and making the experience ‘remarkable’.

The attention to detail is the thing here that is making the difference, making a good ‘experience’ from something that Tescos and Sainsburys do OK but no better. Some nice points are the division of goods up into two sets of bags, Fridge and Cupboard, and calling up to see if it is convenient to arrive early.

This is no rocket science, I hear you cry, well no, but its made me choose to stay with Ocado rather than revert back to Tescos and Sainsburys, so it has a hell of a commercial benefit if it happens throughout the country. Its not the service, stupid, its the customer experience that clinches the deal, everytime!

Share This

Please join us for the first meeting of Usability Professionals’ Association (UPA) North in Manchester. To kick off this inaugural event, we have:
** A demonstration of the latest eye-tracking systems from EyeTracker
** A question and answer panel with David Hawdale and Andrew Swartz answering questions on “What is usability, and why should we give a damn?”
** A discussion of how we plan to continue

Date: Wednesday, 2nd February
Time: 6:00
Location: Prospects House, off Oxford Road, Manchester Cost: Free to all this time, but to reserve your place, RSVP to aswartz@usability.serco.com

So, come along and help us make this work in the north, with meeting centred in Manchester, Leeds, and Nottingham. If you are a usability professional, or just interested in it and want to meet and talk to like-minded people while enjoying some wine and nibbles, then you are invited.

Do I need to be a member?
* You do not need to be a member of the UPA to attend this meeting.

Who is organising this meeting?
* Andrew Swartz, from Serco Usability Services. Andrew is a Managing Consultant at Serco Usability Services, designing and leading commercial research projects, with a special focus on mobile hardware and software.

He also has a particular interest in the effects of high technology on society and democracy. Andrew serves as a key instructor for usability and design courses offered by Serco. He also publishes Usability In The Real World, a monthly column for Usability News, which can be found at www.usabilitynews.com. Before coming to Serco, Andrew spent eight years working at Apple Computer on instructional design and usability issues for projects ranging from HyperCard, the first commercial hypertext product, to Newton, the first commercial PDA (personal digital assistant). He also worked for three years at a company that developed police intelligence software. Andrew studied Psychology at Yale University where he graduated summa cum laude (highest honours) as a Scholar of the House.

* David Hawdale, from Hawdale Associates www.hawdale-associates.co.uk. David has degrees in Experimental Psychology and Cognitive Science.David believes passionately that the way to make good design is to understand users and to architect, design and manage the customer experience. Previously Head of Design and Usability with Zendor in Manchester, David has directed projects with LloydsTSB Insurance, dabs.com, totesport, Northern Rock and Sony.

Share This

Bizarre. There you are just minding your own business, thinking that you pretty much have your finger on the pulse of the usability/experience discipline, when BANG! You are confronted, out of the blue, by another TLA.

So, PCD … People-Centred Design. There has been a report come back from the USA, mostly west-coast, called Innovation through people-centred design - lessons from the USA. It’s an interesting report, well worth a read, I’ll write more about it later. But who gave birth to PCD? Do we need it? Does it help? The term is used as if it were part of the furniture, but I know no one that has used it, in my straw poll after a recent AIGA-ED event. I remain to be convinced. What makes it different? Why not HCD (human …) or CCD (cultural …) or SCD (societal …) if we want to broaden out a bit. I need a new, ill-defined TLA like I need a hole in the head.

Share This

My daughter who is seven has just got a Tamagotchi for Christmas. Consequently, she spent the whole of Christmas Day pandering to its needs, playing games, cleaning up its mess, feeding it. What a bizarre effect … I mean, its a postage stamp interface, awful green-screen style graphics, three buttons and very obscure interaction design. The worst usability and aesthetics of anything I’ve seen recently, but it ‘got’ my daughter almost immediately, and its had her ever since!

Thats the raw power of generated emotion, the power of visceral psychological cues. Tapping into our deep down need to nurture and care for, is what drives and motivates our children to spend seemingly unending hours pressing tiny buttons and squinting at a grey-green line drawing. Thats the power of it, it can truly motivate to not care about usability, to not care about about beauty. By hell this effect is strong, use with care.

Share This