participatory design workshop at the ux strategies summit 2015

Participatory Design UX Strategies 2015

Katie McCurdy UX Designer & Researcher focusing on healthcare @katiemccurdy

Susan Dybbs Head of Design Collective Health @dybbsy

Tell us your name, what you do, why you’re here

AGENDA +  What is Participatory Design, & how can I use it?

+  Exercise 1

+  Break

+  Exercise 2

+  ‘How to do it’

+  Reflect

WHY WE’RE HERE

Designing without our end users just doesn’t work.

Participatory Design!

WE WANT YOU TO WALK AWAY WITH:

+  Practical experience as a participant +  Excitement about participatory design +  Confidence to plan your own session

We want you to have fun!

WHAT

Participatory design brings your end users into the design process, usually in a workshop format. Also called co-designing.

WHAT

Can be used to help design digital or physical products…or services, workflows, systems, policies, etc.

WHY

+  Research emotionally charged subject matter

+  Uncover users needs and mental models

WHY

Creative, hands-on process means you have amazing artifacts to refer to later

WHY

Helps you find the real problems and make sure you’re designing the right thing

WHAT NOT

Not about firing the designer and hiring users to design our products

IT’S ABOUT DESIGN OPPORTUNITIES

Requirements, behaviors, roles, mental models, priorities

BUILDING EMPATHY

Bringing the end user’s voice into our process, building deep empathy and collaboration

WHEN

+  Beginning of a project +  Middle of a project

Preconditioning Participatory Session

Conversation & Analysis

HOW

1 EXERCISE

E X E R C I S E 1 • 1 5 M I N U T E S

Emotionally charged subject matter

Fill out the questionnaire

Using the materials provided, create a map of your ER experience

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EXAMPLE

What was your ER experience like?

ON FACILITATING

+  Ask open-ended questions: +  Why is that important? +  How do you use that? +  Could you say more about that? +  Can you give me an example?

+  Understand why they’re doing things, and in what order


Distilling themes

Take turns interviewing and taking notes (write one idea per sticky note)

Cluster related sticky notes together

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EXAMPLE

THIS IS GOOD FOR

Understanding users’ experience and mental models

THIS IS NOT GOOD FOR

Prioritizing features

OTHER EXAMPLES OF WHEN YOU MIGHT USE THIS METHOD:

+  Explore how people got into debt +  Explore feelings around getting your first bra +  Understand a negative travel experience +  Map out challenging work collaborations and

look for fundamental breakdowns

Take a break

RECAP

+  Early in design process, participatory design can act as investigation tool

+  Once you learn more about the problem you’re solving, participatory design can act as a generative tool

EXERCISE 2

WE’VE IDENTIFIED A BIG OPPORTUNITY:

Give patients a more transparent view into where they are in the ‘ER process’ and what will happen next


Plan & hold your own generative mini-session

You’re the researcher. With your team, create a quick + dirty hand-drawn ‘design kit’

Then you will take your kit and practice conducting a participatory design session with another team

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EXAMPLE

Participatory Session


Preconditioning Exercise

+  Interview +  Walk-through/tour +  Survey +  Diary study





+  UI elements +  Objects +  Devices +  People +  Words +  A ‘blank canvas’ to

work with





+  UI elements +  Objects +  Devices +  People +  Words +  A ‘blank canvas’ to

work with

+  Ask open ended questions

+  Understand the meaning behind the elements

+  What is included is important as not included

What did you learn?

THIS IS GOOD FOR

Gathering information, hierarchy and experience needs

THIS IS NOT GOOD FOR

Creating a final design

OTHER EXAMPLES OF WHEN YOU MIGHT USE THIS METHOD:

+  Envisioning your ideal collaboration tool +  …ideal travel app +  …ideal bra-fitting experience

Participatory Design: how to do it

There’s no perfect way

1. UNDERSTAND YOUR GOALS

+  What information do you need from participants? - Emotional, physical, task-based needs? - One point in time or spanning time?

2. UNDERSTAND WHO SHOULD PARTICIPATE

Photo credits: https://www.flickr.com/photos/nic/

2. UNDERSTAND WHO SHOULD PARTICIPATE

+  Who has knowledge of the domain area? +  What are their attributes? +  Where can you find them? +  Start a screener – 6 to 9 is usually a good

number of people

3. PICK EXERCISES

+  What activities will reveal the best insights? +  Collage, timeline, etc? +  How can participants play off each other? +  How many people? +  Plan pre-conditioning +  Resources at katiemccurdy.com/participatory-design

4. PLAN, PLAN, PLAN

+  Down-to-the-minute session plan

+  Be realistic with time +  Be on top of recruiting

5. PREP EXERCISE MATERIALS

+  ‘Just enough’ for personal expression +  Fewer options helps people work faster +  Cut-outs, stickers, tape, glue…?

6. RESERVE A SPACE

+  Re-arrangeable is good +  Walls to put up and review work +  Casual

7. COME UP WITH AN A/V PLAN

+  How will you capture the session? +  Photos, video +  (Something will go wrong-so plan for it)

8. THINK ABOUT FOOD & DRINK

+  Festive atmosphere, keep energy up +  How much should you get? What time should

you order it? How will it arrive? +  How messy is it?

9. GET AN ASSISTANT

+  Help take notes, ask & answer questions, deal with A/V issues, etc.

10. DO A DRY RUN

+  Helps you work out the kinks, make sure the session will go smoothly

11. BE A CHECKLIST FREAK

+  Week before +  Day before +  Day-of

BE A CHECKLIST FREAK Leading up to session !  Get participant compensation together !  Prepare NDA and consent forms !  Make sure all exercise supplies are ready/printed/purchased !  Session plan is created, down to the minute !  Remind participants – by email or phone – the day before the session !  Make a list of everything you need to bring to the session

Day-of !  Plan & order food, get napkins/kleenex !  Make signs/tell front desk person where to send people !  Test A/V !  Put out exercise materials, set up your space & seating arrangements !  Have your session plan handy, make sure you can see a clock

12. ON FACILITATING

+  Ask open-ended questions: +  Why is that important? +  How do you use that? +  Could you say more about that? +  Can you give me an example?

+  Understand why they’re doing things, and in what order

13. DISTILLING INSIGHTS

+  Review physical artifacts, watch session video; gather pithy comments & insights

+  See what themes arise +  Include your team +  How can you creatively communicate

findings?

R E F L E C T • 5 M I N U T E S

How can you bring it back?

On a note card: write down at least 1 way you can bring participatory design back to your work life

Share

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@dybbsy @katiemccurdy

Thanks!

katiemccurdy.com/participatory-design