User Experience (UX) is probably one of the fastest evolving and most exciting disciplines to be a part of these days. As the practical value of UX-work has become more and more obvious in the past few years, the demand for UX Designers and Experts has grown exponentially. Unfortunately, there are no official educational paths or certifications yet and the confusion around UX is very broad - UX is becoming a buzzword. As a result, the market is not only confused or has at best a very narrow understanding of the term, but this also offers a soil for many amateurs and fake representatives of the discipline to evolve. Over the past few years, I have had the (dis)pleasure to meet and work with some highly promoted UX Charlatans, so that over time I started spotting the patterns - some of their similarities and tactics. My aim is to share my observations in this presentation, in the hope to save you some time, money, and frustration - no matter if you are an evolving UX Designer or a Business/Project owner in need of UX expertise.

1. Diagnosis: UX Charlatans
How to SpotThem Quickly and Stop Wasting
Time, Money and Nerves
@MartinaMitz17th October 2018

2. The Plan™
• Who Am I to Diagnose?
• Situation on the Market
• Diagnosis: UX Charlatans - 9 Symptoms
• What to Look for in a Good UX?
@MartinaMitz

3. image: http://thebqb.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/frust3.jpeg
@MartinaMitz
…Me in the Past FewYears

4. images: 1st - source unknown, 2nd - http://imgur.com/gallery/GUcVw.jpg
@MartinaMitz
One Explanation…

5. THAT’STHE EASY
EXPLANATION!
Let me tell you where I am really coming from…
@MartinaMitz

6. @MartinaMitz
1stTransition
From passion to profession
PSYCHOLOGY
(profession)
WEB
DESIGN
(passion)
• Certified Psychologist - 2001 - 2007
• Clinical Psychologist - 2008 - 2009
• Web Designer - 1999 (2001) - 2005

8. Analysis:
What was Wrong?
ME?
(or crazy?)
@MartinaMitz
• Wait, there was something…
• Quarter-life crisis?
• Theory vs. Reality?
• Quarter-life crisis
• Theory vs. Reality
WEB DESIGN
(passion)
PSYCHOLOGY
(profession)

9. WEB DESIGN
(passion)
@MartinaMitz
2ndTransition
Join passion and profession:
UX
(passion)
• Concept Developer - 2009 - 2010
• All things UX - since 2010
• since 2016 on a mission
• since 2018 → UX Psychologist
😁
PSYCHOLOGY
(profession)

10. MEANWHILE
… on the market
@MartinaMitz

11. We Haven’t Done What We Preach -
"Talking Our Users' Language"!
Spreading of misunderstandings:
• UX is only User Research
• UX is more expensive Web / UI Design
• UX is only digital
• UX is a linear process
• UX is like pixie dust, like magic
• UX Designers are unicorns - supposed to know/can everything
image: https://www.vectorportal.com/StockVectors/People/MAGICIAN-VECTOR-GRAPHICS/12895.aspx
@MartinaMitz
🤥

12. Example:
@MartinaMitz

13. Example:
@MartinaMitz#UXCharlatans
😳

14. Hardly Any Official
Educational Paths
Confused colleagues:
• Diverse / unclear backgrounds
• Different educations
• Lack of clear entry-possibilities
• Multiple methods / approaches
• etc.
image: https://media.postgrad.com/editorial/question_marks_-_road1.jpg
@MartinaMitz
🤔

15. Huge Demand
@MartinaMitz
sources: LinkedIn.com + de.indeed.com in August 2018
🤑

16. Huuuuuge Demand
@MartinaMitz
SOME REPRESENTATIVE NUMBERS:
from 26 482* jobs registered with the
German Federal Employment Agency
in Berlin in August 2018
across all sectors
*source: https://statistik.arbeitsagentur.de/Navigation/Statistik/Statistik-nach-Regionen/Politische-Gebietsstruktur/Berlin-Nav.html
And the
non-representative:
~ 1000 UX jobs
= ~ 4%
of ALL jobs in Berlin
🤑

17. Summary - Market Situation:
image: http://granitegrok.com/wp-content/uploads/charlatan.png
@MartinaMitz
A PERFECT BREEDING GROUND FOR CHARLATANS
🤥
UX is more and more involved
BUT in a very misunderstood way
🤔
There is a huge demand for skilled experts
BUT it is hard to know who the right one is
🤑
UX has become very trendy
BUT there are not enough experts

18. Diagnosis: UX Charlatans
9 Symptoms
@MartinaMitz#UXCharlatans

19. WARNING!
You will find yourself in some of the symptoms,
this still does not qualify you! ;)
… it highly depends on:
severity of the symptom + scale of the company/projects
@MartinaMitz#UXCharlatans

20. 1st Symptom
ONLY USERS ARE IMPORTANT
• Getting lost in User Research
• Not creating any valuable outcomes
• Dismissing business/stakeholder needs, pains or questions
"It’s all about the users…the business has no clue."
USERS
BUSINESS
@MartinaMitz#UXCharlatans

21. 1st Symptom
Sanity-Check:
• The business (+ other colleagues) are also your users
• We should be more user-centred with them too
• We all won’t have a profession, if it wasn’t for them
"It’s all about the users… but business is the driver."
USERS BUSINESS
@MartinaMitz#UXCharlatans
"It’s all about the users…the business has no clue."

22. 2nd Symptom
DO WHAT THE BUSINESS WANTS
• React only to the demands of the business or other stakeholders
• Do, do ,do - deliver, deliver, deliver - no critical thinking
• Care more about “networking” and their salary/title
"It’s all about the money…it’s just a job!" or "Users are stupid!"
BUSINESS
USERS
@MartinaMitz#UXCharlatans

23. 2nd Symptom
Sanity-Check:
• Being reactive, doesn’t help the business at all
• It empowers the manifestation of mistakes
• And btw. it won’t let you ever enjoy or love your job!
"I affect people’s lives with my job!" or "My decisions weren’t right!"
BUSINESS USERS
@MartinaMitz#UXCharlatans
"It’s all about the money…it’s just a job!" or "Users are stupid!"

24. 3rd Symptom
KNOW-IT-ALL
• Trust-me attitude + strong ego
• Know all the answers straight away
• Give solutions, rather than understanding the problem first
"We have to do ‘Agile’, it’s what Google and Netflix are doing."
BUSINESS
USERS
@MartinaMitz#UXCharlatans

25. 3rd Symptom
Sanity-Check:
• No one alone can be in possession of the ultimate truth! → collaboration
• We can only strive to uncover it in an objective, informed, continuous way → iteration
• Instead of Imposter Syndrom → being honest about one’s limits
"Let’s see if ‘Agile’, as Google implement it, makes sense for us…"
@MartinaMitz#UXCharlatans
BUSINESS USERS
"We have to do ‘Agile’, it’s what Google and Netflix are doing."

26. 4th Symptom
SWEET TALK
• Say things that sound right
• Make strong and confident statements
• No substance, no practical coverage of their words, no reality-check
"I have over 15 years experience in the digital area!"
BUSINESS
USERS
@MartinaMitz#UXCharlatans

27. 4th Symptom
Sanity-Check:
• If you want to convince, then you’ll need rational examples
• You’ll also need to talk about the bad/hard stuff and about fails
• And we all know, that no one is perfect anyway!
"I've worked over 15 years in the digital area, as … and it wasn’t always easy"
@MartinaMitz#UXCharlatans
BUSINESS USERS
"I have over 15 years experience in the digital area!"

28. 5th Symptom
MASK IT WITH JARGON
• Tend to hide behind jargon and love buzzwords
• Concentrate on “What?” rather than “Why?"
• Feel more expert-y / raises their ego, when no else understands them
"We definitely need a Design Sprint to finish the MVP!"
BIZ
MVP
@MartinaMitz#UXCharlatans

29. 5th Symptom
Sanity-Check:
• First agree on the “Why?”, then together figure out the rest
• Better to explain, than to state that “{fill in a buzzword} is THE magical cure!”
• If no one understands you, then no one will see your value either!
"We need more alignment/insight to finish the minimal version of our product."
@MartinaMitz#UXCharlatans
BUSINESS USERS
"We definitely need a Design Sprint to finish the MVP!"

30. 6th Symptom
PASS THE BALL
• Good at delegating and/or fishing for info and ideas
• Better in adapting to the current situation, but not visionary
• Can’t really say “I don’t know”
"Remind me again what a CTA was?"
EGO
AUDACITY
@MartinaMitz#UXCharlatans

31. 6th Symptom
Sanity-Check:
• Asking further questions will make this Charlatan insecure
• Admitting one’s (knowledge-)limits helps create trust/proficiency
• For psycho hygiene, you might need to let it get funny sometimes:
"What do YOU think a CTA was?”
@MartinaMitz#UXCharlatans
BUSINESS USERS
"Remind me again what a CTA was?"

32. UX IS ALL IN THE TOOLS
• In love with specific (design) tools/methods
• Caring rather about the "How?" than the "Why?"
• Only concentrating on tangible outputs, not on outcomes
"I make Wireframes, of course I am a UXD."
7th Symptom
WIRE-
FRAMES
BUSINESS
@MartinaMitz#UXCharlatans

33. 7th Symptom -Tool Madness
@MartinaMitz

34. 7th Symptom - BestTool so Far!
image: https://pilgrimroad.com/wp-content/uploads/prc-ux-ui-design-tools-rocketbook-wave-sketchbook.jpg
@MartinaMitz

35. 8th Symptom
UX IS JUST DIGITAL
• Also, only concentrating on tangible outputs
• Usually, acting only on one channel/touch-point in isolation
• Thinking, their part is most crucial for any success
"We are responsible only for the website" or even better… *drum roll please*:
USABILITY
@MartinaMitz#UXCharlatans

36. A Highly-Rated UX Charlatan:
"User Experience
is obviously
what the user sees”
@MartinaMitz#UXCharlatans
sees"
😂

37. Don Norman - the 1st UX-Architect:
video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9BdtGjoIN4E
@MartinaMitz

38. 8th Symptom
Sanity-Check:
• The experience, is the eco-system of a product/ (it's) service
• Even with the "perfect website", the experience can be bad
• …and user = actual human + emotions + ambiguities, not an algorithm
"Let’s get together with {customer facing colleagues} to get their viewpoint."
@MartinaMitz#UXCharlatans
BUSINESS USERS
"We are only responsible for the website"

39. UX9th Symptom
I CAN DO THAT TOO
• _
• _
• _
best explained with examples…
@MartinaMitz#UXCharlatans

40. UX9th Symptom
I CAN DO THAT TOO
The UX/UI thing
@MartinaMitz#UXCharlatans
😱

41. I CAN DO THAT TOO
The Recruiter thing
UX9th Symptom
@MartinaMitz#UXCharlatans
🤔

42. 9th Symptom - Best Example
I CAN DO THAT TOO
The Colleague thing
@MartinaMitz#UXCharlatans
UXX? 🤣

43. 9th Symptom
Sanity-Check:
• Clarify the actual X, when hiring
• Create solid structures/handovers, before leaving
• If you hear others using your ideas/language, you've won!*
"As long as it is done right, it doesn’t really matter who’s idea it was initially!"
@MartinaMitz#UXCharlatans
UX
EXPERIENCE
*paraphrase: Jim Kalbach - opening key-note, IA Konferenz 2018

44. The 9 Symptoms:
If 3 or more of the following symptoms
appear on more than 3 encounters,
then you are most probably dealing
with a UX-Charlatan:
@MartinaMitz#UXCharlatans
1. ONLY USERS ARE IMPORTANT
2. DO WHAT BUSINESS WANTS
3. KNOW-IT-ALL
4. SWEET TALK
5. MASK IT WITH JARGON
6. PASS THE BALL
7. UX IS ALL IN THE TOOLS
8. UX IS JUST DIGITAL
9. I CAN DO THAT TOO!
image: https://www.learngeek.co/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/IMAGE-Symptom_Icons.jpg

45. WHATTO LOOK FOR
IN A GOOD UX
Some similarities in great thinkers:
@MartinaMitz

46. Some UX-Mindset Observations
Great Design-Thinkers and Problem-Solvers:
• Will hardly give you a direct solution - rather ask a questions first
• Need context/insights before jumping into decisions/commitments
• Realise that collaboration is key, as they can’t know everything in detail
• Learn to be comfortable with being proven wrong - become modest, egos vanish
• Have the ability to zoom out and look at the bigger picture, while discussing details
@MartinaMitz

47. Some Psychological UX-Traits
Great Design-Thinkers and Problem-Solvers:
Are
curious / analytical / critical /
empathetic / self-reflected / confident but humble
comfortable dealing with uncertainty
Are NOT F***ING UNICORNS!
image: http://1wkf705fg6e2aisrw22uhig6.wpengine.netdna-cdn.com/files/2013/09/UOiOtakn8ds-600x350.jpg -
@MartinaMitz
Thanks for the image-inspiration @tWolo!

48. @MartinaMitz
DANKE!
Martina Mitzieva-Veglia
UX Psychologist, Strategist & Designer
martina.mitz@gmail.com
web, skype, twitter, LI: Martina Mitz
currently:
Berlin, Germany
World Usability Congress, Graz 2018