{
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    "title" : "7 Ways to Ignite User-Centered Design at Your Agency |Digital.gov",
    "description": "7 Ways to Ignite User-Centered Design at Your Agency",
    "home_page_url" : "/preview/gsa/digitalgov.gov/cm-topics-button-component/","feed_url" : "/preview/gsa/digitalgov.gov/cm-topics-button-component/2015/01/27/7-ways-to-ignite-user-centered-design-at-your-agency/index.json","item" : [
    {"title" :"7 Ways to Ignite User-Centered Design at Your Agency","summary" : "So you’ve done a couple of usability studies, and a few people are starting to “see the light.” Now you’d like to take it to the next level and help your organization embrace user-centered design (UCD) as the philosophy that drives all your digital projects. But what is best way to do this? How can","date" : "2015-01-27T10:00:54-04:00","date_modified" : "2024-04-02T09:45:13-04:00","authors" : {"wendy-littman" : "Wendy Littman"},"topics" : {
        
            "design" : "Design",
            "human-centered-design" : "Human centered design",
            "research" : "Research",
            "user-centered-design" : "User Centered Design",
            "user-experience" : "User Experience"
            },"branch" : "cm-topics-button-component",
      "filename" :"2015-01-27-7-ways-to-ignite-user-centered-design-at-your-agency.md",
      
      "filepath" :"news/2015/01/2015-01-27-7-ways-to-ignite-user-centered-design-at-your-agency.md",
      "filepathURL" :"https://github.com/GSA/digitalgov.gov/blob/cm-topics-button-component/content/news/2015/01/2015-01-27-7-ways-to-ignite-user-centered-design-at-your-agency.md",
      "editpathURL" :"https://github.com/GSA/digitalgov.gov/edit/cm-topics-button-component/content/news/2015/01/2015-01-27-7-ways-to-ignite-user-centered-design-at-your-agency.md","slug" : "7-ways-to-ignite-user-centered-design-at-your-agency","url" : "/preview/gsa/digitalgov.gov/cm-topics-button-component/2015/01/27/7-ways-to-ignite-user-centered-design-at-your-agency/","content" :"\u003cdiv class=\"image\"\u003e\n  \u003cimg\n    src=\"https://s3.amazonaws.com/digitalgov/_legacy-img/2015/01/600-x-400-Light-bulb-with-drawing-graph-Jannoon028-iStock-Thinkstock-515705127.jpg\"\n    alt=\"Light bulb with drawing graph\"/\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\n\n\n\u003cp\u003eSo you’ve done a couple of usability studies, and a few people are starting to “see the light.” Now you’d like to take it to the next level and help your organization embrace user-centered design (UCD) as the philosophy that drives all your digital projects.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBut what is best way to do this? How can you change your organizational culture so the UCD seed you’re planting will take root and flourish?\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThat’s the boat we found ourselves in five years ago at the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. So we embarked on a project to raise awareness of UCD and embed UCD processes into our culture. Of course, as with all experiments, not everything went as planned—but many things did, and we certainly learned a lot in the process. Based on our experience, here are some tips for success when introducing UCD to your organization.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"tip-1-know-your-organization\"\u003eTip 1: Know your organization\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFirst, decide if your organization is a good fit for institutionalizing UCD. Start by asking yourself:\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHow willing is the organization to recognize problems and fix them?\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHow open is the organization to embracing change?\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHow is funding allocated for Web-related activities?\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ul\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIf you work for an organization with leadership that embraces change and wants to fix problems, you’ll likely be more successful at introducing UCD. In addition, think about how Web funding is allocated—if it is centrally funded and managed, it can be easier to start a long-term and systemic change such as this.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"tip-2-find-a-champion-or-better-yet-several-champions\"\u003eTip 2: Find a champion (or better yet, several champions)\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe champion is basically the face of this effort, so look for a champion who:\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eCan help the organization understand the value of UCD.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eUnderstands the current development process and how UCD could fit in.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eCan identify pockets of resistance and bring them on board.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHas the authority to direct human and financial resources.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eCan keep the initiative moving over the long term.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ul\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"tip-3-find-the-right-wake-up-call\"\u003eTip 3: Find the right wake-up call\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOnce you have a champion on board, it’s time to wake up the rest of the organization to the need for UCD. Wake-up calls can take many forms; the ones you choose will depend on your organization. Effective wake-up calls can include:\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eCapitalizing on a new product that launches and bombs.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eSharing case studies from other organizations as they go through a UCD process.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHaving your site reviewed by an external user experience (UX) consultant.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eUsing inexpensive \u003ca href=\"https://www.google.com/search?q=heat+mapping\u0026amp;oq=heat+mapping\u0026amp;aqs=chrome.0.0j69i60l3j69i65j0.1167j0j7\u0026amp;sourceid=chrome\u0026amp;es_sm=93\u0026amp;ie=UTF-8#safe=active\u0026amp;q=heat+mapping+software\"\u003eclick tracking tools\u003c/a\u003e to show customer click patterns.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eConducting a small pilot usability study of your own site.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ul\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAt DOE, we used a combination of wake-up calls at different times, and for different parts of the organization, which proved to be an effective strategy for us.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"tip-4-partner-with-a-ux-consultant\"\u003eTip 4: Partner with a UX consultant\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAt some point, consider hiring an external UX consultant—the right consultant will help you move down the UCD road more quickly than you can on your own.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eConsultants can help you decide on your strategy, train staff on UX processes, provide templates and examples, and assist with overflow UX work as the demand grows.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLook for UX consultants who:\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eAre leaders in their field.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eAre a good cultural fit.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eEnjoy mentoring.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eAre easy to work with.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eAre experienced helping organizations with UCD.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ul\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIf you don’t have the budget to hire a consultant, look for some free resources. For example:\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003ePrograms like GSA’s \u003ca href=\"/preview/gsa/digitalgov.gov/cm-topics-button-component/resources/digitalgov-user-experience-resources/\"\u003eDigitalGov User Experience program\u003c/a\u003e.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eFree templates and other resources available on sites like \u003ca href=\"http://www.usability.gov/\"\u003eusability.gov\u003c/a\u003e.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eTraining and mentoring available through the \u003ca href=\"http://uxpa.org/\"\u003eUser Experience Professionals Association\u003c/a\u003e (UXPA).\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ul\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"tip-5-grow-ucd-from-the-top-down-and-from-the-bottom-up\"\u003eTip 5: Grow UCD from the top-down AND from the bottom-up\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFor UCD to really take root and grow, it needs to be embraced by people at all levels of the organization—from the strategic decision-makers to the designers and writers. So information and training at all levels of the organization is key.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"tip-6-raise-awareness-firstthen-introduce-the-rules\"\u003eTip 6: Raise awareness first—then introduce the rules\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhenever you are introducing a change, some people will resist it—so start by simply raising people’s awareness of the value of UCD. At DOE, we did this by:\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003col\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eGiving talks on what UCD was and why it was valuable.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eDemonstrating UX tools to spark curiosity.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003ePromoting our pilot project so people could see what we were doing and learning.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ol\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOnce you have some support for UCD, you can introduce governance processes to help standardize how you practice UCD as an organization.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"tip-7-put-an-infrastructure-in-place\"\u003eTip 7: Put an infrastructure in place\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOnce you have people excited about UCD, it’s time to build an infrastructure to ensure lasting success. Some things you’ll want to plan for are:\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eOngoing knowledge and skills trainings\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eRules, standards, and processes\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eTemplates and examples\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eAnalysis and design tools\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eTesting facilities\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ul\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFor some additional information on introducing UCD to your organization, here is a presentation I gave at the 2014 DC User Focus conference—\u003ca href=\"https://s3.amazonaws.com/digitalgov/_legacy-img/2014/01/UXPA-DC-2014-Wendy-Littman.pptx\"\u003e Igniting User-Centered Design Thinking at the Department of Energy\u003c/a\u003e (PowerPoint presentation, 5.7 MB, 14 slides).\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003chr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWendy Littman\u003c/strong\u003e is a UX researcher who contracted to DOE’s Office Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy for 13 years.\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n"}
  ]
}