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What a Design Sprint CAN’T Do (for Enterprise Teams)
Editors Note: This is an excerpt from InVision’s Enterprise Design Sprints Handbook, which highlights the methodology behind successful design operations.
The original design-sprint format popularized by the Google Ventures team has been interpreted by some as a one-size-fits-all model. This was never the intention, and it’s definitely not the case for enterprise-level projects. Although UX, design and product teams have adapted sprints to find new applications for its prototyping value, it can’t be used in every situation.
Below are some situations in which a design sprint is not useful for enterprises. (It’s worth noting that this list is specific to enterprises. In some startups or small innovation groups, a design sprint might be the appropriate tool in these situations.)
For small iterative changes to an existing feature(s) If you have an established product and you’re making small iterative updates, a design sprint is going to be too much tool. Rather, use one of the many exer..
Government’s Content Strategy is the Linchpin of Citizen Experience
The future of good government hinges on content strategy.
This is important for everyone to understand because not just government employees and consultants who work with dot-gov websites are affected by the way agencies deliver content. Ultimately, content planning, organization, usability, and governance for online systems — and the human-to-human interactions they facilitate — affect the lives of people who use them every day. If the content strategy is bad, so goes the citizen experience.
We all can relate to the need for governments to deliver a better customer experience, whether it’s getting the right envelopes in your mailbox or connecting veterans with healthcare commensurate to their selfless sacrifices.
And while content strategy alone can’t fix broken business processes or improve the quality of healthcare, it’s absolutely critical to helping citizens locate, understand, and connect with public services. It’s a tool to help government employees better deliver the right i..
Median UX Salary $95k and More from the UXPA Salary Survey
The median salary for UX professionals is $95,000, according to the just-released UXPA Salary Survey. The survey is conducted every few years and shows both the progress and evolution of UX industry careers.
Results of the 2018 survey indicate:
A greater number of professionals entering the field. More representation outside of the U.S. An increase in jobs in the Southeast and Pacific Northwest. More UX professionals holding senior-level, supervisory roles. A closing of gender-based salary gaps. UX salaries by role A variety of different UX professions were represented, and respondents were able to select multiple titles. “User researcher” was the most popular job title: it was selected by more than half of respondents (56%).
Overall, job titles that include “manager” (department or team) appear to have the highest median salary ($130,500).
This is followed closely by instructional designers. Product managers, technical writers, and technical analysts follow, after a significant de..
Wireframing Tools for Beginners
Wireframing is a key skill for UX design and often used to show layouts or visualize ideas to clients, stakeholders, and developers. Today’s wireframing programs can make it quicker and easier to develop these deliverable. Sketch, Figma, Codepen, Invision, Mindmeister, and many more are available and widely used.
It’s easy to get overwhelmed by the sheer number of available design tools when creating your wireframes. I haven’t even mention Adobe, PowerPoint, and good old pen and paper. Sometimes a sketch on a piece of paper works just as well as presenting digital wireframes. As beginners, many UX professionals get caught up in software – Which ones are the best to use? What will look best on my resume for future jobs? The design stage, project requirements, and even the client or employer will influence which tool to use.
Wireframes range from low fidelity, with placeholders for elements, text, and media, to high fidelity versions that look, and may even function, like the finished ..
Lessons Learned from An Event Apart Denver
Editor’s Note: An Event Apart (AEA) just finished its first event of 2018 in Seattle. For the first time, the 2018 conference series has three Special Edition events, which feature 18 speakers over three-day.
Today we look back at the 2017 AEA Special Edition. UX Booth columnist Jess Vice highlights some of the biggest takeaways.
Use the discount code AEAUXBooth to save $100 on any AEA multi-day event.
From Research to Redesign Jeffrey Zeldman, founder and creative director at studio.zeldman and co-founder of An Event Apart, kicked the conference off with a reminder of why we design in the first place. We can only identify and solve problems when we know who our customers are, who our users are, and which markets we’re reaching. Research is an often overlooked (yet vital) stage of the design process. Research sets us up to not only know who we’re designing for now but helps us discover what we should be solving for next.
Research saves time and money and allows us to build the righ..
Website Personalization Planning
Users’ expectations are high, and attention spans are short. There’s a multitude of alternative destinations if a website doesn’t present messaging, content, or functionality that immediately connects with what a visitor wants and needs. If a company is lucky enough to get users to its website, it should do everything in its power to keep them there and content. Website personalization is a proven way to engage audiences more effectively. Not only does it create better experiences for users, it can increase conversion rates, generate more revenue, and build brand affinity. Organizations who fail to personalize experiences are missing out on opportunities to better connect with prospects, retain existing customers, and generate greater brand loyalty.
What is personalization and why does it matter? Website personalization is about creating a highly relevant, targeted, and individualized experience to suit a user’s needs. It is dynamically presenting something that might be helpful or mo..