Lean UX: Getting out of the deliverables business

Lean UX
Getting out of the deliverables business
http://img.blog.yahoo.co.kr/ybi/1/1c/f6/cliffordmlarsen/folder/717992/img_717992_1359004_3?1103025176.jpg

Who is this guy?
I’m just doing this for the lanyards.
Jeff Gothelf
Currently:
Director of UX at TheLadders.com
Previously:
Publicis Modem, Webtrends, AOL, Fidelity and an assortment of startups
Blog:
www.jeffgothelf.com/blog
Twitter:
@jboogie
Email:
jgothelf@theladders.com
#LeanUX

In the beginning…
UX began with Information Architecture which no one had ever heard of
#LeanUX | @jboogie
http://www.ucdesigners.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/stockxpertcom_id21589-world1-1024x794.jpg

Deliverables helped define the practice
And this was good
#LeanUX | @jboogie

IA evolved and expanded into IxD and her sisters
Darwinism at work
#LeanUX | @jboogie

Deliverables helped define the practice
And this was good
#LeanUX | @jboogie

Value has ultimately been placed on the deliverable
Not on the experience being created
#LeanUX | @jboogie

With interactive experiences evolving rapidly
The deliverable is just not enough
#LeanUX | @jboogie

Lean UX
Inspired by Lean Startup and Agile development theories, it’s the practice of bringing the true nature of our work to light faster, with less emphasis on deliverables and greater focus on the actual experience being designed.
#LeanUX | @jboogie

Agile
Individuals and interactions over processes and tools
Working software over comprehensive documentation
Customer collaboration over contract negotiation
Responding to change over following a plan
Lean
Lean Startup initially advocates the creation of rapid prototypes designed to test market assumptions, and uses customer feedback to evolve them much faster than via more traditional software engineering practices.
#LeanUX | @jboogie

It goes a little something like this…
Look familiar?
Just the UX process
Prototype
Concept
Validate Internally
Test Externally
Learn from user behavior
Iterate
#LeanUX | @jboogie

You can’t hide behind your monitor any more!
Seriously. It’s time to come out.
#LeanUX | @jboogie
http://www.flickr.com/photos/yamagatacamille/4799648425/sizes/l/

Get it out there. Fast.
In public. (Yes, where people can see it.)
#LeanUX | @jboogie

What Lean UX is NOT
#LeanUX | @jboogie

Lazy.
Sorry. You still have to work hard.
“…the best part … is that the team is doing a F@&K-TON of UX. They document a ton of stuff explicitly on the walls and implicitly in shared understanding among team members.”
Austin Govella
commenting on Whitney Hess’s “Why I Detest the Term Lean UX”
http://whitneyhess.com/blog/2011/02/27/why-i-detest-the-term-lean-ux/
#LeanUX | @jboogie
http://www.steadyburn.net/wp-content/uploads/2008/12/lazy-cat5.jpg

The only thing being removed is waste.
You leave that stuff laying around and it starts to stink!
#LeanUX | @jboogie
http://www.flickr.com/photos/mims/326748812/sizes/l/

This is NOT design-by-committee!
We all know where that leads
#LeanUX | @jboogie
http://www.flickr.com/photos/mims/326748812/sizes/l/

What Lean UX is…
#LeanUX | @jboogie

Control
You’re still in charge
#LeanUX | @jboogie

But I’m giving up control of my work!
You’re not, actually. It just feels that way.
#LeanUX | @jboogie
http://www.flickr.com/photos/alshepmcr/4561517216/sizes/l/

You don’t need “The Spec” to keep control
It’s the last mile of the value you bring to the team
#LeanUX | @jboogie
http://talkingtraffic.org/wp-content/images/stack_documents.jpg

If you spend 3 months perfecting a design only to find out it fails to meet customer and/or business needs, you’ve just wasted 3 months of your life, not to mention your team’s
#LeanUX | @jboogie

Designers shouldn’t be expected to get it right the first time
Nobody else has to
From Design Criticism and the Creative Process by Cassie McDaniel on A List Apart, 11 Jan, 2011.
http://www.alistapart.com/articles/design-criticism-creative-process/
#LeanUX | @jboogie

You are the “Keeper of the Vision”
The greater goal of the design is YOUR responsibility
#LeanUX | @jboogie
http://www.flickr.com/photoshttp://www.flickr.com/photos/kubina/1386979654/sizes/l/

Momentum
Everyone’s engaged. Everyone’s motivated.
#LeanUX | @jboogie

Keep everybody moving forward
Your clients, stakeholders, your design and you.
#LeanUX | @jboogie
http://www.flickr.com/photos/37541410@N03/3901861703/sizes/l/

Quality
Don’t compromise
#LeanUX | @jboogie

“Speed first. Aesthetics second.”
– Jason Fried, 37Signals.com
#LeanUX | @jboogie

“Going for the bronze.”
– A Creative Director I used to work with
#LeanUX | @jboogie

What about the quality of the design?
Iterations mean quality continually improves.
#LeanUX | @jboogie
http://stockthemind.files.wordpress.com/2008/04/project-cartoon.jpg

Feasibility
Make sure it can be built (and built well)
#LeanUX | @jboogie

Prototype it!
But not all of it.
#LeanUX | @jboogie
hthttp://3.bp.blogspot.com/_mQ4dc8irsc0/S_TZkx7B_3I/AAAAAAAAAM0/lwh7NTbtKMo/s1600/PopGlider+assembled+2.jpgtp://www.flickr.com/photos/alshepmcr/4561517216/sizes/l/

Once validated, demo to the team.
Presto! Instant documentation (no additional deliverable needed).
No additional deliverables are needed!
#LeanUX | @jboogie
http://www.flickr.com/photos/koolwaaij/152426460/sizes/o/

Then show it to your customers.
Keep it light and cheap.
#LeanUX | @jboogie
http://www.flickr.com/photos/forakerdesign/3657336793/sizes/l/

Fill in the gaps
What did you not think about?
#LeanUX | @jboogie

The more you talk about it
The more you realize what’s missing
#LeanUX | @jboogie
http://www.flickr.com/photos/adysmiles/4822749055/sizes/l/

Can it be done?
A tale of two cultures.
#LeanUX | @jboogie
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kadelmann/3564028694/sizes/z/

The internal software/web design shop.
Well within your grasp.
#LeanUX | @jboogie
http://www.istudyathes.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/microsoft-20team-201978.jpg

You are in the problem-solving business and you don’t solve problems with design documentation. You solve them with elegant, efficient and sophisticated software.
#LeanUX | @jboogie

The interactive agency.
Tougher sell. Worth it in the end.
#LeanUX | @jboogie

Agencies are in the deliverables business.
#LeanUX | @jboogie

Recapping the “internal” Lean UX process….
Remember?
Just the UX process
Concept
Validate Internally
Test Externally
Iterate
Prototype
#LeanUX | @jboogie

For agencies it looks slightly different
Give your clients the power. They like that.
Validate w/client
Validate w/client
Concept
Prototype
Iterate
#LeanUX | @jboogie

Consultants are specialized mini-agencies
Success with Lean UX will be determined by attention level
#LeanUX | @jboogie

Reducing deliverables efforts reduces revenue
In theory…
Fewer deliverables
Fewer billable hours
$$$$
Project delivered faster
Happier, more empowered client
Repeat customer
#LeanUX | @jboogie

Invest in your client’s success
It shows the confidence you have in your work
#LeanUX | @jboogie
http://www.flickr.com/photos/19638298@N00/143127498/sizes/z/

Is this good for every project?
Use it where it makes sense.
#LeanUX | @jboogie
http://www.krackblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/david_hasselhoff_gary_coleman-e1275077640952.jpg

Functional, task-flow projects work well.
There’s a clear end goal.
#LeanUX | @jboogie

Highly experiential marketing projects will struggle.
Time to ideate and create options is essential.
#LeanUX | @jboogie

What about content heavy experiences?
Some up front planning is necessary.
#LeanUX | @jboogie

Distributed teams do it remotely!
If they’re a part of you, it’s on! If not, not bloody likely.
#LeanUX | @jboogie
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2361/2076450897_be1b8ace7c.jpg

Case Study
100 Days of Collaboration
#LeanUX | @jboogie

Problem Statement:
“You’re like Monster, but I have to pay for it.”
#LeanUX | @jboogie

3 days, 3 themes:
Acquisition and conversion
Resume services
A human in every interaction
#LeanUX | @jboogie

#LeanUX | @jboogie

How do I get started?
Here’s one way. Get everyone involved early.
#LeanUX | @jboogie

Can you guess who sketched this?
The answer will shock you!
#LeanUX | @jboogie
http://www.flickr.com/photos/janekeeler/4677093058/sizes/l/

The whole execution team did in a modified “design studio.”
You can also call it collaborative sketching.
Design studios
Cross-functional team
Everybody draws, presents and critiques
Refine ideas through 3 rounds
Generate tons of raw ideas
Huge headstart for UX
Early team-wide alignment
Team-wide feeling of ownership
#LeanUX | @jboogie

Start small.
6 of your best ideas as fast as possible.
#LeanUX | @jboogie

Refine to 3 or 4 better ideas.
Add detail.
#LeanUX | @jboogie

And once more to one, final, detailed idea.
Let your one best idea shine.
#LeanUX | @jboogie

Designers are used to being heroes.
Lean UX is distinctly, anti-hero.
#LeanUX | @jboogie
http://www.abegoodman.com/Images/greatest-american-hero.jpg

This is an evolution. Not a revolution.
Evolve to stay relevant.
#LeanUX | @jboogie
http://www.flickr.com/photos/freejay3/2387714157/sizes/l/

Let’s get back to the experience design business.
It’s where it’s at (as the kids say)
#LeanUX | @jboogie
http://www.flickr.com/photos/expressmonorail/3057998218/sizes/l/

Thanks!
Ask me some questions. Here. Now. Or later.
jgothelf@theladders.com
@jboogie
www.jeffgothelf.com/blog
www.slideshare.net/jgothelf
bit.ly/LeanUX
#LeanUX | @jboogie

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Lean UX: Getting out of the deliverables business

by Jeff Gothelf on Jan 19, 2011

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Lean UX: Getting out of the deliverables business — Presentation Transcript