1. 44 Tech Talk
Careers in Information Technology
Interaction Designer:
The User’s Advocate
When browsing a website or using an application, be it on a computer, laptop,
smartphone or a tablet, what counts is the ease of use and navigation.
Providing you with a seamless experience is the job of an Interaction Designer.
by pri yank a t ilve
T
here are millions of websites and apps is smooth,” explains Ashish Tibrewal, Principal
vying for your attention. So what makes Interaction Designer at Oracle Financial Services
some popular while others slip under the Software Ltd.
radar? Apart from content and design, an impor- He states further, “When I design, I need to
tant factor that plays a crucial role is the ease of keep in mind which platform and which device I
use and navigation. With the evolution of touch am designing for. For instance, if I am designing
interfaces, interaction design has gained a whole for the iPhone, I need to make sure that my con-
new meaning. It determines how an individual trols over the website are large enough so that my
interacts with any computing device, be it com- fingers can accommodate easily. A lot depends on
puters, laptop, smartphones or tablets. the screen size because a screen of a laptop differs
Gone are the days when a single Web designer from a screen of a Blackberry or the iPhone. On a
would do everything from designing to coding. device like the iPhone, I can present very limited
These days, you will find that the roles are well amount of information, whereas on an iPad, I have
organized and there is a specialist onboard for a much bigger screen size, so I will have to design
every aspect of development. There are those who in a completely different format.”
specialize in design, there are specialists for cod- “For instance, on any bank website, if you see
ing, there are research specialists, and lastly, there the website on the iPhone, you will find only four
are specialists in interaction design. With current buttons due to the limited screen size, whereas on
evolution of touch interfaces, there is a growing the iPad it will be in a completely different format
demand for an interaction design specialists. as there is more space. So we have to scale down
the site according to the size of the device and it
Role of an interaction has to be a logical decision. Its not that you can
designer show whatever you feel like. While you are on the
“Interaction designers design the interfaces and mobile phone, you may not be interested in the
they need to make user-friendly applications, additional products and services that the bank
which could be from the Web, mobile or tablet is selling. You would be more interested in just
perspective. Interaction on each of these plat- checking your balance or transferring funds. So
forms is different. If I were to give you an exam- that’s the kind of decision that we have to take a
ple, when you browse a website on your desktop call on.”
or laptop, you use your mouse, but when you use it This knowledge comes from a deep under-
on your iPhone, you use your fingers. As the inter- standing of what the users want. “We do extensive
action between the two platforms is different, it’s user research wherein we try to understand the
the responsibility of an interaction designer to end users who would be using the application. We
ensure that the interaction on both the platforms try to understand their needs, what they are look-
April 2011  intelligent computing CHiP insider Supplement

2. Tech Talk 45
Neha Mithbawkar
ing for, what is their primary purpose, etc. So we nies want their devices to adopt the new interface.
do a lot of user research before getting into the “There is huge potential. Companies are looking
design and we do a very high level wire framing for new talent because there are so many things
after which we reach to the technical design. So that are coming up, including different ways of
we interact a lot with the end users to come up interacting, as we have seen in the past couple
with the actual design. It’s primarily from the end of years. This includes the types of devices as
users perspective,” Tibrewal explains. well as the OS they run on. Apart from this, there
are also many companies that are constantly
Challenges involved experimenting in ways to communicate
The biggest challenge, he says, is the evolution of information. Today it is the iPad, tomorrow it
newer mediums of interaction. “First, it was just might be something else.”
the PC, then came the laptop, and then we moved We asked Tibrewal about the keys to success
to small screens like the iPhone, and recently in this profession. “You need to be the user’s
came the iPad and the other tablets. So we need advocate. You need to listen to the users, and you
to ensure that whatever application we develop is need interactional and communication skills so
compatible with almost everything. For instance, that you can talk to the users and can understand
if we design an application for the iPhone, it may their psychology. You must possess skills to probe
not necessarily function on the Blackberry or and get information from the users. Apart from
Android. Each of these devices has their pros and all the technical skills that may be required, hav-
cons, features and functionalities, which we need ing good interactional skills is very crucial.”
to keep in mind when designing applications for His advice to students wanting to establish a
each of them. The objective is that the end-user career in interaction design is to gain a proper
should get the information that it is trying to give education in the field and spend a couple of
and that should be uniform across any platforms years working closely with senior interaction
or any device.” designers. “What I have seen in the last ten years
is that people just come in and they want to do
p
otential and growth everything, but they have to be focused. There
prospects are various mediums to work on so they need to
Tibrewal believes that there is tremendous poten- have a clear focus on what they need to do and
tial for the profile of an Interaction Designer. With what they want to achieve. But a good education is
the current trend of touch devices, most compa- vital,” he concludes.
intelligent computing CHiP insider Supplement  april 2011

3. 46 Tech Talk
Producers Consumers
Experience
Overview of
the Process
Data
of interaction Information Knowledge Wisdom
design
Stimulus Understanding
Research Presentation Conversation Contemplation
Creation Organization Storytelling Evaluation
Gathering Integration Interpretation
Discovery Retrospection
Global Local Personal
Context
Chaitanya Surpur
Get A Headstart spoken and written communication, and ability
There are a few institutes in India that offer full- to understand and use technology help,” Joshi
fledged courses in interaction design with the explains.
Industrial Design Centre (IDC) at the Indian Insti- He states further that the ever growing num-
tute of Technology (IIT Bombay) being at the fore- ber of people adopting interactive products, many
front. We spoke with Anirudha N Joshi, Associate of whom are new to technology, calls for new
Professor at IDC to gain an insight into the course approaches to design of products and services for
offered and the aptitude required. them. He believes the growth potential is huge. In
The Interaction Design course being offered his advice to students who wish to pursue interac-
at IDC covers user studies, design, prototyping, tion design, he says, “Be knowledgeable about what
and evaluation with a user-centric approach to is happening in the world, but also be sensitive to
products and services. “At times, this profes- the problems around you - the real needs of the
sion overlaps with the professions of human- people. Be creative in synthesizing solutions; be
computer interaction, information architecture, broad, multi-disciplinary and open minded. Don't
and usability analysis. It is a multi-disciplinary be afraid of technology, but don't get carried away
field with influences from computer science, by it either. Be enthusiastic and rigorous, but also
design, cognitive psychology and library sciences. brave to try out new things.”
Other influences come from fields of ergonomics, Joshi believes that the scope for an interaction
anthropology, ethnography and technical writing. designer in the creation of interactive products is
People in any of these disciplines with an apti- vast. These include Websites, mobile phone apps,
tude for design can pursue a course in interaction desktop software, entertainment devices (such as
design (or related) and practice in the field. The MP3 players and gaming devices), public devices
core aptitudes required to be good in this profes- (such as ATMs or ticket vending machines), medi-
sion are sensitivity, creativity, analytical ability, cal equipment, machine tools or almost anything
holistic thinking, problem solving ability, atten- that can be called an interactive device (including
tion to detail, and rigor. Having skills in drawing, lifts and electronic voting machines).
April 2011  intelligent computing CHiP insider Supplement