Re: [IxDA Discuss] UX Design Process
Well put, Uday! The main thing that makes it work for our team is mutual respect and appreciating what the other side brings to the table. For example, the developers have learned to appreciate personas and context scenarios because they reduce the amount of time wasted on arguing what "the user" would do. A concrete persona gives us a really clear idea of who that person *really *is so we can say, there's no way Julie would do that. End of story. Personas also protect the project from feature creep. We can put the kabosh on extra unnecessary bells and whistles that stakeholders ask for by explaining that, while that feature may be nifty, it's not something Julie would ever use. By the same token, I have leaned to appreciate the quick turn-around that an agile development process provides. The developers use use 2 week iteration cycles that happen continually in parallel wireframe and design phases. This lets us perform testing early enough in the project to make substantive design changes, when needed. Conversations are really important. Not only do they help clarify assumptions, dependencies, and expectations. They also set the tone of inter-discipline harmony. You never want to approach developers with an attitude of "I drew this design, now go code it." Involve them early on when you just starting research. While they're fixing bugs or working on other projects, I like to invite them to "collaborative check-in" meetings where I learn about what they're working on and share my research findings with them. Over time, the meetings allow me to introduce the personas that we'll be using for a project, and then we start talking about the data attributes and requirements that my research suggests. By the time I'm ready to make a wireframe, the developers already have context and more importantly, they feel that they've contributed to the decisions that have been made. I try to provide a wireframe as an artifact of design exploration. Typically it's hand-drawn sketches. Agile developers like this quick and dirty approach ;-) It's not until I'm in the design phase, working through my context scenarios that I start creating a pixel-perfect spec (to which developers, marketing, and QA all refer). By that time the developers have at least thought about, if not seriously jumped into creating the back-end to support the designs. And because I've spent so much time talking to them, I know the difference between what's possible and seriously do-able. Good luck and remember, mutual respect is the key. -Angel Anderson Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
[IxDA Discuss] (Job) Recruiter - Jr and Sr IA openings- Southern CT
Hi! Our client, an online agency in southern CT, is seeking both a Jr. and Sr. Information Architect for onsite work. Detailed job descriptions are below: -- The Junior Information Architect will assist information architects with various IA tasks and deliverables. This position provides many opportunities for growth in Information Architecture, Content Strategy and Usability. Key responsibilities: * Assisting the Information Architect with IA tasks and deliverables * Documenting existing website content structure * Assessing and identifying site user needs * Develop IA communication pieces through competitive analyses, content inventories, site maps, wireframes, user flow diagrams and use cases * Collaborate with clients, project managers, technical developers, and art directors * Ensuring implementation reflects the business requirements and functional requirements and is technically feasible * Be able to multi-task and work on several projects, in various stages, at any time Qualifications: * Excellent analytical skills and experience * Ability to work in a collaborative environment and deliver in tight deadlines * Strong attention to detail and good presentation skills * Knowledge of MSOffice, MSVisio * Understanding of HTML, DHTML, Flash, multimedia * 2+ years experience related to web information architecture: layout design and navigation systems * Agency experience preferred -- The Senior Information Architect will have agency experience and be responsible for developing the content strategy, information architecture and possible usability testing for projects from start to finish. The Senior IA will work closely with our clients to translate their business needs into functional requirement for media-rich, web-based projects. * Defining client business and functional requirements * Assessing and identifying site user needs * Leading client and internal meetings for discovery and recommendations * Develop IA communication pieces through competitive analyses, content inventories, site maps, wireframes, user flow diagrams and use cases * Collaborate with clients, project managers, technical developers, and art directors * Ensuring implementation reflects the business requirements and functional requirements and is technically feasible * Ability to perform or understanding of usability testing * Be able to multi-task and work on several projects, in various stages, at any time Qualifications: * Excellent analytical skills and experience * Ability to work in a collaborative environment and deliver in tight deadlines * Strong attention to detail and good presentation skills * Knowledge of MSOffice, MSVisio * Understanding of HTML, DHTML, Flash, multimedia * 3+ years of experience in web information architecture * Agency experience desired -- Please respond in confidence to jackie at ttspersonnel dot com Jackie O'Hare | Manager of Interactive Recruitment TTS Personnel, Inc www dot ttspersonnel dot com Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
[IxDA Discuss] JOB Sr Interaction Designer (New York, NY and Norwalk, CT) Digitas, Full-Time
Sr. Interaction Designer Digitas has an opportunity for a full time Sr. Interaction Designer who excels in interaction/experience design. The optimal candidate will be well versed in the underlying ideas behind Web 2.0, while being grounded in the fundamentals of usability. Please have balanced Interaction Design skills (IA and UI), visual design sensibilities and an understanding of how all disciplines must exist together to create experience design solutions. This person will work closely with the creative team, marketing strategists and account planning to develop customer research and insights that drive the ideas within the work. Think social engagement, distributed application and content development and using marketing as a service rather than a bland sales tactic. Additional Responsibilities: Interaction Design: * Analysis and modeling of audiences, processes & tasks * Information architecture * Conceptual and functional user interface design * Documentation, such as site maps, wireframes, flow charts or user cases, functional & presentation specifications, and style guides Collaboration: * Partnership with technology on design feasibility * Partnership with design team on content and visual design integrity Research and Analysis: * Planning and conducting research * Application of research methodology to research plans * Analysis and implementation of research findings * Competitive or content assessments Experience: * Graduate Degree in Human Factors, Interaction Design or a related program with 1-2 years of related work experience OR * 4 years designing interactive experiences, including information architecture, user interface, and information design * Experience generating audience insights, conducting research, and creating customer experiences. * Experience with documentation, such as site maps, wireframes, flow charts or user cases, functional & presentation specifications, and style guides Please send resume and wireframe/work samples to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with "Senior Interactive Designer" in the subject line (please do not reply to this email). Thanks for your interest and we look forward to hearing from you! Amanda E. Holder | Recruiting Coordinator | D I G I T A S 355 Park Avenue South | New York, NY 10010 | USA Office: +1 646 735 7362 | Fax: +1 212 350 7850 Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] www.digitas.com 2007 "Best Places to Work" NY State Society for HR Management Members of the Paris-based Publicis Groupe S.A. (Euronext Paris: FR130577), the world's fourth largest communications group, second largest media counsel and buying group, and a global leader in digital and healthcare communications. The information in this email and subsequent attachments may contain legally privileged, proprietary and confidential information that is intended for a particular recipient. If you are not the intended recipient, you are hereby notified that any disclosure, copying, distribution, retention or use of the contents of this email information is prohibited. When addressed to Digitas clients or vendors, any information contained in this email is subject to the terms and conditions in the governing contract. If you have received this email in error, please immediately notify us by telephone or by return email, and delete the email. Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
[IxDA Discuss] JOB # Interaction Designer # Seattle, WA # Big Fish - Full Time
If you're a problem solver, product designer, brilliant, talented, and have great visuals to show for it- of course we'd like to speak with you immediately! In this role, you'll have an opportunity to concept for very innovative products and make a mark. With a growing department, this is a key time to join the organization. You'll actually get to tap into every skill you have wanted to use, brainstorm, and not niched into just one minor cog in the big wheel. We need Interactive Designers that can communicate well, problem solve, work with outside agencies, and pick up the project from the beginning or make it great mid-stream. Key responsibilities include: -Conceptualizing new products and services through design -Brainstorming and sketching/storyboarding -An ability to present to senior leaders across a global organization -Work in collaboration with other designers and usability engineers. Qualifications: -Bachelors Degree in Graphic Communication, Art, Design, Multimedia, Fine Arts or related field, or equivalent experience required. -4+ years as a professional designer in software or web design, mobile design, game design, etc. -Strong conceptual and design skills. Strong sense of style and excellent fit-and-finish skills across mediums. -Highly skilled with design tools such as Illustrator, Photoshop, Image Ready, Flash, Dreamweaver. HTML, Action Script, and other technical design/development skills a plus. -Excellent writing and communication skills. -Solid understanding of the fundamentals of user interface design; should have experience working through the entire design lifecycle and be familiar with user-centered design methods. -Consumer-centric creative vision. Re-location is available. Excellent salary and benefits. Please apply online at www.gobigfish.com/jobs. Select Job# 4533 and sign up!! Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] UX Design Process
> from corporate environments, so I'm curious if anyone out there, > particularly those in small/medium-sized groups or teams using Agile methodology, can share their design lifecycles. We're in the midst of doing a similar thing here at Cisco, which really speaks to a broader problem of cross-cultural change (engineering/mkting/design) and there is no simple solution. (which is another discussion :-) However, a few hi-level pointers I've learned along the way (and previously at places like Oracle and Adobe): ** Start with conversations, not a visio or excel template Brainstorm and sketch it out, hash over a few beers or coffees what's meaningful for your team (what works for Cooper or IDEO or Adobe or Google might not work for you), get key players in that room and start talking! ** Clarify assumptions, dependencies, and expectations (from all parties' POV's)...this will involve lots of awkward and blunt conversations but do it now, before false assumptions get hardened and you'll really be yelling (and quitting) later at delivery time ** The presentation of your design process matters Convoluted visio diagrams with spaghetti lines all over, shrouded in obscure insular acronyms do little to shape a valuable process or great products, especially the UX team. Ditto for excel spreadsheets. Stay away from them! They bore, confuse, and alienate...and persist that "corporate heaviness" people react against. Instead, sketch out on the whiteboard the core phases (~ 3-5), activities, deliverables, leads/players/liaisons, milestones/ checkpoints...that should be it! Make a compelling document out of it (or poster, banner) and turn it into a concise internal UX rally flag, and external vehicle for communications. (and evolve it as things change) The biggest challenge is the sync-ups with what Engin and QA and Mkting want and expect. (hint: lots of specs, which shows how little they typically understand about what designers do and provide) See my blog post about "where's the spec?" :-) Frog has the process tagline of "discover, design, deliver"--sure it's cute but effective in communicating to non-design clients, something to hang their hat on. I'm suggesting something like "explore, propose, specify" for us at Cisco... ** Don't bind yourself to the process, it should be a guide for adaptation visio, excel, MS project almost ensure enslavement...Resist! (if you can :-) I know they're standard biz tools, can't escape them... ** For Agile to work well, the Agile team or process leader must respect and value design This means understanding fairly that design is about defining the indeterminate, involves iteration and re-working ideas, lots of fast failure, some "feeling out" stuff, etc. If your Agile leader doesn't get that upfront and believes that designers are "lipstick artists" or "spec monkeys", the chances for success between UX and engineering/QA shrink :-( We were extremely fortunate to have a wonderful Agile team leader for the company I was consulting for when I was with Involution. Without him and his positive attitude for design, it would've been much harder for all of us, client and studio alike. I have more thoughts on shaping a useful design process on my blog: http://www.ghostinthepixel.com/?p=78 http://www.ghostinthepixel.com/?p=71 I know these aren't at the tactical level of an Agile recipe or toolkit you can uptake like tomorrow, but hopefully the high level thoughts are still useful :-) Thanks, Uday Gajendar Sr. Interaction Designer Voice Technology Group Cisco | San Jose -- [EMAIL PROTECTED] +1 408 902 2137 Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] UX Design Process
Hi Jonathan, A good methodology should allow you to be as heavy or lite as the project requires. I work as an in-house IxD with a team of developers in Los Angeles and India. The developers use Agile methods that overlap rather nicely with my process, which is the Goal-Directed Design methodology created by the folks at Cooper. You might like Goal-Directed Design for identifingy how the design team works with project management, developers, and stakeholders. And it offers a good guideline for selecting and structuring tools/deliverables. Depending on the schedule and resources, the thing that changes the most from project to project is the level of polish we put on artifacts and documentation. For example, on a large project with a reasonable schedule I'll create a lovely user & domain analysis document to provide context to stakeholders & developers. It summarizes our research, introduces the personas, and provides a nice narrative for each persona's scenarios. When there's no time to make a nice document out of all of this, we still do quick and dirty research but it stays on note pads, and white boards rather than getting compiled in a document. Then we'll just hold a meeting to share our research conclusions and introduce the personas. So in one project, the research phase may take months but if we're pressed for time it gets squeezed into days. Hope this helps :-) Angel Anderson Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
[IxDA Discuss] Job 001A, Interaction Designer, San Rafael, CA, Groove11
Want to help create immersive brand experiences? Groove 11 is seeking a contract/freelance Interaction Designer for a variety of ongoing projects ranging from enterprise-level corporate communication portals to rich elearning applications. Candidates should be skilled at filtering brand and business objectives through best practice thinking to design creative features and elegant User Interfaces. The UX designer will play a key role in establishing product definitions and IA structure and may, on any given project, be involved in user research and requirements writing as well as the development of sitemaps and wireframe documents. A successful candidate will assume the role of 'thought leader" in the UX space on a project team and will be expected to present and interface with a variety of clients. Skills, Experience & Responsibilities: Excellent strategic, organizational, analytical and user interface design skills. Excellent writing, speaking, presentation and interpersonal skills. Ability to play an active role in user research . Create and revise, site maps, concept diagrams, navigation models, user scenarios and personas. Develop written design rationales. Ability to work on deadline for multiple project timelines. Maintain understanding of current best practices in user interface design / information architecture, usability and testing techniques. Solid understanding of web development and its associated technologies. Proficiency with design and prototyping with tools such as Visio, illustrator, Flash and/or InDesign. Rapid prototyping skills a plus. 5+ years of experience in interactive media design. Bachelor's Degree or higher in Human Computer Interaction, Design or a related field. Our Agency: Groove11 is an experiential creative agency, which means we don"t just tell people things. We make them feel something and inspire them to act by engineering unforgettable experiences that immerse them in the message. Our clients include Fortune 500 companies and industry leaders in Technology, Entertainment, Retail, Spirits, Cosmetics, and more. Our services include brand strategy, identity, integrated marketing campaigns, product launches, event and trade show production, web design, executive presentations, e-commerce and e-learning, online media buying, and film/video production. We work in these media: Interactive (Flash, Aftereffects and 3D modeling); Web (HTML, Flash, Java, PHP, DHTML, and Oracle for e-commerce); Print collateral (brochures, direct mail, signage, datasheets, business cards); Presentation graphics (PowerPoint, InDesign, Keynote, Director); Online advertising (banners, microsites, rich email); Event production (writing, staging, lighting, direction); Film/video (writing, direction, editing, production, sound design, special effects). For more information, visit www.groove11.com. Compensation: We pay our contractors at current market hourly rates. Specific rate commensurate with experience, and depends on scope of project. To apply: Individuals only, please. [We do not hire other companies.] Please email a cover letter and resume to [EMAIL PROTECTED] [put "UX" in the subject line]. -- Karen Patton Accounting/Office Assistant An experiential creative agency [EMAIL PROTECTED] . 1101 5th Ave., Suite 210 . San Rafael, CA 94901 . tel. 415.526.1491 . fax 415.526.1454 Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
[IxDA Discuss] UX Design Process
I work in a small open-source software development team within a medical informatics research group. Until last year, our development methodologies had been haphazard -- there were only two or three of us working in the same room, and we were devising our software's requirements as needed. Now we have a substantial relationship with a corporate partner, the group is growing rapidly, and we're implementing more formal development workflows, lifecycles, and conventions. As the "UI guy," I've taken it upon myself to devise a User Experience Design Process. Ideally, it will identify how the UX "team" will work together with project management, the engineering team, and external stakeholders, and describe what tools/deliverables will be used (personas, user stories, use cases, mockups, wireframes, etc.). The materials I've found about "process" have been very heavy, seemingly from corporate environments, so I'm curious if anyone out there, particularly those in small/medium-sized groups or teams using Agile methodology, can share their design lifecycles. Thanks, Jonathan __ Jonathan Abbett [EMAIL PROTECTED] IndivoHealth PCHR Children's Hospital Informatics Program http://www.indivohealth.org/ http://www.chip.org Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
[IxDA Discuss] (recruiter) Job Opening - Sr. User Experience Designer, Chicago
Sr. User Experience Designer - E-business Location: Chicago, north suburbs Salary up to $110K In this senior level role, you will apply user-centered design methods to translate user needs, business objectives, and technology capabilities into an online user experience. This will include: - Creating and documenting information organization, navigation structure, search and browse functions and other user/system interactions - Managing documentation including site maps, wireframes, user flows, graphs, and use cases - Ensuring user interface best practices are followed while maintaining corporate style guidelines and documentation - Managing all changes to the user interface, including top level navigation, search interfaces, and other key conversion areas of the site - Using segmentation data to create online differentiated experiences through new interfaces - Simplifying interactions using transactional data and behavioral insights to identify critical tasks vs. tertiary tasks - Overseeing usability studies to optimize the online experience for various customer types To be considered for this excellent opportunity with an established, stable company with fantastic benefits, you must have: - Masters degree preferred in design-related discipline such as: Interaction, Information or Interface design; Human-Computer Interaction; Design Planning; Graphic Design - 7+ years of web design experience, with a preponderance in an e-commerce environment - Solid understanding of social, cognitive and cultural aspects of User Experience - Candidate must be expert in user-centered design methods and techniques - Proficient to expert in: Illustrator, Photoshop, Visio, Microsoft Office - Familiarity with online optimization tools, web analytics packages - Experience working with interactive agencies, as well as brand and other related agencies - Excellent interpersonal and presentation skills To express interest in this position, go to: http://jobs.aquent.com/myaquent?PROC=AWUIDrawJobDesc=intl=1=41290 Be sure to include a link to your URL or portfolio website. Judi Wunderlich Director of Recruiting AQUENT Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Use Case / Requirements Management Tools
I've used ReqPro/Rose as well as Enterprise Architect by Sparx. I found ReqPro to be pretty useful though it did require some administration and occasionally encountered a few bugs. I liked the traceability of the package. In EA, which I am currently using, I don't have the same requirements management, only the UML. I have tried using it for requirements management but its just not as powerful as the IBM tools (cheaper though.) Hope this helps, Pam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Posted from the new ixda.org http://www.ixda.org/discuss?post=27682 Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Windows -- what would you change in interaction?
1) Oh, for tab completion in file-path fields! 2) Spotlight-esque search (does vista do that?) 3) The ability to keep programs open but loose the windows (a la os x) thereby removing the load time. 4) Expose 5) A way to ensure that docking and undocking a laptop and using a second screen doesn't swap the identities of the screens at random. It might be a driver issue, but there should be an upstream method of fixing it. Well, those are my biggest quibbles. Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Windows -- what would you change in interaction?
1. Focus stealers: I'm just sick and tired (juvenile enough?) ... 2. Pop those balloons: ... Oh thank you I am not alone on this. I dislike 2 but seriously dislike 1. You busy typing and IE throws a popup with a file you were busy downloading being taken from the temp file and wham, you cancelled it by accident because you were busy typing in word. And Maxim, Total Commander is the second program I always install after Windows. :) Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Don't listen to your customers.
On 28/03/2008, Kristof Versluys <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > What people tell they do & What people actually do = completely different > > Listen to your customer. Get him involved. > But even better, see him use a product/website/... > Give him simple tasks. Ask him to describe what he's doing. I say take it up a level. You're right what they do is the key here NOT what they want. My focus has been on finding out what they do not even mentioning the product or website. This sets the 'universe' that the product/site exists in. To me this is the basis of any final solution, even redesigns. The users are going to use it to do something - how does that fit with their world. It's very contextual and I find it scares many folks as they expect us to start by testing the website and I totally ignore 90% of the time when talking to users. So the 'faster horse' thing is spot on. I try never to ask the user 'what do you want on the website' but instead 'what would make what you do easier'. There's then a series of steps to get from that to actual interaction design which can be squeezed into suprisingly short amout of time and radically improve the quality of the end project (and make it much simpler). > Pay attention to the underlying issues; > if he/she wants a faster horse, you don't have to build or find a faster > horse. > Extraction: you now know they want to go faster Get the questioning level right, I've found, and you can get them to tell you that they just want to go faster. In short let the users set the scope and what functionality is important to them and what information they need and when - we can do the rest :) -- Stewart Dean Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
