Product Design in Agile Environments: Making it Work at ProductCamp Pittsburgh

Product Design
in Agile Environments:
Making it Work
Carol Smith @carologic
ProductCamp Pittsburgh @PGHPCAMP
September 22, 2018
This work is licensed under a Creative
Commons Attribution-NonCommercial
4.0 International License except where
noted otherwise.

Product Design in Agile Environments / @carologic
Everything
is Designed

Working with Agile
1. Partner with team
2. Best practices at smaller scale
3. Clear focus on specific users (not specific customers)
and providing quick value

We Come from Different Places
By Jeff Patton as interpreted by Jim Laing – Source:
http://www.agileproductdesign.com/blog/user_experience_relevance.html

Agile
• Agile is a philosophy, not a specific set of tools
– Principles are not mandates
– UX was not deliberately excluded
• Iterative software development methods
– Scrum, Kanban, XP, etc.
– Not “Waterfall”

Agile UX: The Good
• Most important features are done first
• Working together – not “over the wall”
• Keep up with technology and environmental changes
• Enables iteration of requirements
• Less “design drift” and less wasted design

Agile UX: The Good (continued)
• Issues get fixed
• “Done” can include design or be “Dev ready”
• Satisfying to see designs in real use
• Learn from actual product use
• User data has effect on current release

How can I get my Agile team
onboard with Design?

AGILE
Design stays just in front of the Agile ‘train’
so the train arrives at the right station.

Engage with the team
• They’re not going to “stop the train” for you
• Work to make UX processes fit
• Build trust by providing value of work
• Attend daily standups/scrums

Designers are part of the team
• Participate in Agile ceremonies with the team
• Planning/grooming, review, retro, demo
• Estimating work
• Take turns with Agile roles
• Design doing QA of design work

Squads include UX folk
• Researchers, interaction designers, visual designers
on squads
• Larger products
– Many squads
– Focus on user interactions
– May consult other teams as needed (e.g. review API flow)

Participate in Retrospectives
• Encourage retrospectives
• Information provided enough/too much?
• Questions still open?
• Still confusing/frustrating?
• More effectively communicate user needs?
Image:http://intland.com/blog/project-management-en/tips-and-tricks-to-make-the-most-of-your-retrospectives/

Just Ahead of the Train
• Solve hard problems 1-2 iterations ahead (at most)
– Research is further ahead – building right thing?
• Regular usability testing (iteration-aligned)
– Test whatever is ready that day
– Plus UXR of existing issues and potential future work
• Usability test before dev builds – saves arguments

Welcome the Team to your World
• Invite team to observe tests of features they wrote
– Seeing someone struggle is strongly motivating
• Engage Eng in helping to figure out solutions
• Credit Eng when features they wrote work well

Customers and Lean UX

Customer Feedback – in traditional Agile
• Client focused (what was proposed)
vs. user focused (actual goals and needs)
• Fails to find most learnability and usability issues
• Misses opportunity to inform future design
• Misses opportunity to gain better user insight with
prototypes, observation, etc.

UX brings the end-user
into Agile
and expands the meaning
of “Customer”
to extend to the end-user

Agile train has gone and left the user
alone in the station….. Waiting …….

The Bridge to Nowhere is a concrete road bridge spanning the Mangapurua Stream in Whanganui National Park,
North Island, New Zealand. It has no roads leading to it.
“The biggest waste of all is building
something no one wants.” - Eric Ries
Eric Ries @ericries via @MelBugai on Twitter at LeanStartupMI in 2011

Requirements
• Questions change as you learn more
• Pointless to do ALL requirements gathering up front
• Works better iteratively
• Get prototypes/early designs to those that will use it
• Don't know what we don't know

Make it Quick!
• Get to 80% confidence - good enough
• Continued learning
– User/UX Research
– Usability testing
– Customer visits

Parallel-Track Workflow
a.k.a. Staggered Sprints

Scaling Agile at Spotify via Slideshare of Vlad Mysla
http://www.slideshare.net/vmysla/scrum-at-spotify?qid=2345c3ad-7e68-4383-9673-9e715ff47a75&v=default&b=&from_search=14
Squads, Tribes, Chapters and Guilds

Parallel Tracks – Introduced at Autodesk in 2001
Dev track: Focus is on production code
Interaction Designer track: Focus is on learning via user contact
- both user experience research and interaction design
“Adapting Usability Investigations for Agile User-Centered Design” by Desirée Sy.
Journal of Usability Studies, Volume 2, Issue 3 https://uxpa.org/sites/default/files/agile-ucd_0.pdf

2018: 3 Types of Work
Track Tasks Goal Sprint Timing
Learning Fast UX Research.
Validation with prototypes/usability
testing.
Strategic discovery through
ethnography.
Research,
prepare and
validate
2+ sprints ahead
🌧 🌧 Research sprinkles down - Informs work 🌧 🌧
Problem
Solving
Interaction design of detailed
communication pieces (e.g.
wireframes)
Create
solution ideas
1-2 sprints ahead
(no more)
Development
Support
Visual design and interaction design
support.
Translate solution to code.
Ship software
at velocity
With Dev
Carol Smith and Thyra Rauch, UXPA 2018

Two was hard enough. Why 3?
• It can’t all be done at once
• Talk through issues with team
• Realize what works and what doesn’t
• Work to teams’ strengths
– Focus on solving right problems for users
– Not sticking to strict guidelines

Iteration 1: Development Support Track
• Underlying architecture work
• Critical features with minimal user interface design required
Development Support: Ship Software
Iteration 1
Implement high
dev cost low UI
cost features Adapted from “Adapting Usability Investigations for Agile User-Centered Design” by Desirée Sy.
Journal of Usability Studies, Volume 2, Issue 3 http://www.uxpajournal.org/

Iteration 1: Problem Solving Track
• Design language, style guide
• IA work (if basic knowledge of user needs)
• Prototypes for future studies
Problem Solving: Interaction Design
Iteration 1
Groundwork
for Design
Implement high
dev cost low UI
cost features Adapted from “Adapting Usability Investigations for Agile User-Centered Design” by Desirée Sy.
Journal of Usability Studies, Volume 2, Issue 3 http://www.uxpajournal.org/

Iteration 1: Learning Track
• UX Research to understand user needs (open questions)
• Begin to plan usability testing and other studies
Learning: Research, prepare, validate
Iteration 1
Gather user
information for
iterations 2-5
Implement high
dev cost low UI
cost features
Groundwork
for Design

Learning: Research, prepare, validate
Iteration 1
Gather user
information for
iterations 2-5
Implement high
dev cost low UI
cost features
Groundwork
for Design
Research sprinkles down ideas
so that designs can continue to grow
🌧 🌧 🌧 🌧 🌧 🌧 🌧 🌧 🌧 🌧 🌧 🌧 🌧 🌧 🌧 🌧 🌧 🌧 🌧 🌧 🌧 🌧

• Learning informs all future work as appropriate
Development
Iteration 1
Problem Solving
Learning
Gather user
information for
iterations 2-5
Groundwork
for Design
Implement high
dev cost low UI
cost features

Iteration 2: Development Support
• Make verified interaction design a reality
Development
Iteration 1 Iteration 2
Problem Solving
Learning
Gather user
information for
iterations 2-5
Groundwork
for Design
Implement
designs
Implement high
dev cost low UI
cost features

Iteration 2: Problem Solving
• Work on next problems to solve.
• Create prototype for usability testing.
Iteration 2
Learning
Development
Problem Solving
Iteration 1
Gather user
information for
iterations 2-5
Groundwork
for Design
Implement
designs
Implement high
dev cost low UI
cost features
Design for
Iteration 3

Iteration 2: Learning
• Continue research
• Set up study for next iteration
Development
Problem Solving
Learning
Gather user
information for
iterations 2-5
Groundwork
for Design
Implement
designs
Implement high
dev cost low UI
cost features
Design for
Iteration 3
Gather user info
and plan studies

Iteration 3: Development
• Continue implementing new features.
• Technical debt, etc. as needed.
Iteration 3
Development
Problem Solving
Learning
Gather user
information for
iterations 2-5
Groundwork
for Design
Implement
designs
Implement high
dev cost low UI
cost features
Gather user info
and plan studies
Implement
designs
Design for
Iteration 3

Iteration 3: Problem Solving
• Integrate research findings.
• Work on next problems to solve.
Iteration 3
Development
Problem Solving
Learning
Gather user
information for
iterations 2-5
Groundwork
for Design
Implement
designs
Implement high
dev cost low UI
cost features
Implement
designs
Gather user info
and plan studies
Design for
Iteration 3
Design for
Iteration 4

Iteration 3: Learning
• Run usability study on prototype
• Field studies for detailed information needed for upcoming iterations
Iteration 3
Development
Problem Solving
Learning
Gather user
information for
iterations 2-5
Groundwork
for Design
Implement
designs
Implement high
dev cost low UI
cost features
Gather user info
and plan studies
Implement
designs
Design for
Iteration 3
Design for
Iteration 4
Run usability study
and UXR (4-7)

Research made Agile
• How do you fit Research in?
• Consumer Interviews - Usually 2 sprints
– Sprint 1: Plan, recruit, start interviews
(assumes some pre-work done)
– Sprint 2: Complete interviews, analyze, synthesize, report

And so on…
• Constant communication between tracks is essential for success
• These are not just hand-offs
Iteration 4
Development
Problem Solving
Learning
Iteration 1 Iteration 2 Iteration 3
Gather user
information for
iterations 2-5
Groundwork
for Design
Implement
designs
Implement high
dev cost low UI
cost features
Gather user info
and plan studies
Implement
designs
Design for
Iteration 3
Design for
Iteration 4
Run usability study
and UXR (4-7)

Dual Track Development is not Duel Track
Dual Track Development is not Duel Track, May 10, 2017 By Jeff Patton
http://jpattonassociates.com/dual-track-development/

Constant Communication
• Between all tracks is essential for success
• Not just hand-offs
• All work will not move to development.
• Learning efforts must be picked strategically and
constantly reviewed for priority alignment with team.
• All at once – 3 tracks, not 3 teams

During Each Iteration
• Be present with developers day to day
• Are they building what you expect?
• Get their feedback on your designs in progress
© Copyright 2014 Desirée Sy & John Schrag. All rights

Look Back
• Validate the work done in previous iteration

Look Ahead
• Design [problem solve] for next iteration (n+1)
• Research [learn] for future iterations (n+2, n+3…)

Who will frequently, actively
use your product?
What do they need to do?

Designing for Everyone
is
Impossible

Who are the Primary users?
• What are their goals?
• How many are there?
• Common complaints/biggest issues?
• Most important/frequent tasks?

Same Job Title, May Differ in…
UserExperience
Frequency of use
Priority of tasks Jobs to be Done
Motivations
and attitude
Expectations

Case Study
• Creating a site for University students
• Think about the student you are designing for
– What kind of program?
– How old are they?
– What else?

Which Student?
Rick Connie
http://www.flickr.com/photos/mrjkbh/ via http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/deed.en
http://www.flickr.com/photos/caharley72/ (Christopher Alison Photography) via
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/

Include PWD in Research
• People with disabilities
– “We are all only temporarily able-bodied. Accessibility is good for
us all.”
– Not “disabled” or “handicapped”
– Get to spirit of the law (Section 508, WCAG 2.0)
• Disability
– any condition that impedes the completion of daily tasks using
traditional methods (Wikipedia)
-@mollydotcom at #stirtrek 2011 via @carologic

True Statements
• All interfaces have usability problems
• Limited resources to fix
• More problems than resources
• Less serious problems distract
• Intense focus on fixing most
serious problems first
Rocket Surgery Made Easy: The Do-It-Yourself Guide
to Finding and Fixing Usability Problems. By Steve Krug

Usability Testing is…
• Representative users
• Doing real tasks
• Being observed
• Using prototypes
or live products
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/raphaelquinet/513351385/sizes/l/in/photostream/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/raphaelquinet/

Tweak, Don’t Redesign
• Small iterative changes
– Make it better now
– Don’t break something else
• Take something away
– Reduce distractions
– Don’t add – question it
Rocket Surgery Made Easy: The Do-It-Yourself Guide
to Finding and Fixing Usability Problems. By Steve Krug

Products are better…
1. Partner with team
2. Best practices at smaller scale
3. Clear focus on specific users – provide quick value

Share What You Learn

Contact Carol
LinkedIn – CarolJSmith
Twitter - @Carologic
Slideshare – carologic
SpeakerRate - CarolJSmith

Recommended Readings
6
4

• Adapting Usability Investigations for Agile User-Centered Design by
Desirée Sy
• Journal of Usability Studies, Volume 2, Issue 3
(the most-cited paper in JUS)
• https://uxpa.org/sites/default/files/agile-ucd_0.pdf

Recommended Sites
• Usability.gov
– https://www.usability.gov/
• W3C Web Accessibility Initiative
– http://www.w3.org/WAI/
• Accessibility Standards in US (Section 508)
– https://www.access-board.gov/
• Jakob Nielsen
– http://www.useit.com
• UXPA – User Experience Professionals Association
– http://uxpa.org/
• Information Architecture Institute
– http://iainstitute.org/

References
• Albert, Bill, Tom Tullis, and Donna Tedesco. Beyond the Usability Lab.
• Barnum, Carol M. (Jan. 2003). What’s in a Number? STC Usability SIG Newsletter, Usability Interface.
http://www.stcsig.org/usability/newsletter/0301-number.html Retrieved: 20080323
• Beyer, Hugh. User-Centered Agile Methods (Synthesis Lectures on Human-Centered Informatics)
• Cato, John. User-Centered Web Design. Addison Wesley Longman; 2001.
• Dini, Dino. (March 2008). Wikipedia: Design. 2005 Game Design and Technology Workshop, Liverpool JM University.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Design Retrieved on 2008-03-23. Retrieved: 20080323
• Faulkner, Christine. The Essence of Human-Computer Interaction. Prentice Hall PTR; 1997.
• Gale, S. A Collaborative Approach to Developing Style Guides. Conference proceedings on Human factors in Computing
Systems April 13 - 18, 1996, Vancouver Canada. ACM Press, (pp. 362-367).
• Gaffney, Gerry. (2000) What is Card Sorting? Usability Techniques Series, Information & Design.
http://www.infodesign.com.au/usabilityresources/design/cardsorting.asp

References
• Galitz, W. O. (2002). The essential guide to user interface design: An introduction to GUI design principles and techniques
(Second Edition). Wiley: New York, NY.
• Gothelf , Jeff. http://blog.usabilla.com/5-effective-ways-for-usability-testing-to-play-nice-with-agile/
• Grudin, J. 1989. The case against user interface consistency. Commun. ACM 32, 10 (Oct. 1989), 1164-1173.
• Hackos, JoAnn T., PhD and Redish, Janice C. User and Task Analysis for Interface Design. Wiley; 1998.
• Henry, Shawn Lawton. Just Ask: Integrating Accessibility Throughout Design.
• Henry, S.L. and Grossnickle, M. Accessibility in the User-Centered Design Process. Georgia Tech Research Corporation, Inc;
Atlanta, Georgia, USA; 2004. http://uiaccess.com/accessucd/personas.html
• Henry, S.L. and Martinson, M. Evaluating for Accessibility, Usability Testing in Diverse Situations. Tutorial, 2003 UPA
Conference.
• Kuniavsky, Mike. Observing the User Experience: a Practitioner's Guide to User Research. Morgan Kaufmann, 2003.
• Krug, Steve. Rocket Surgery Made Easy: The Do-It-Yourself Guide to Finding and Fixing Usability Problems.

References
• Lewis, Clayton and Rieman, John. (1993, 1994) Task-Centered User Interface Design A Practical Introduction.
http://hcibib.org/tcuid/chap-4.html
• Mandel, Theo. The Elements of User Interface Design. Wiley; 1997.
• Neisser, Ulric. (1967) Cognitive Psychology
• Nielsen, Jakob and Robert L. Mack. Usability Inspection Methods. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 1994.
• Powell, Thomas A. The Complete Reference: Web Design. Osborne/McGraw-Hill; 2000.
• Ratcliffe, Lindsay and Marc McNeill. Agile Experience Design: A Digital Designer's Guide to Agile, Lean, and Continuous.
• Rubin, Jeffrey and Dana Chisnell. Handbook of Usability Testing: How to Plan, Design, and Conduct Effective Tests.
John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
• Schaffer, Eric. Institutionalization of Usability: A Step by Step Guide. Human Factors International, 2004.
• Slatin, John M. and Sharron Rush Maximum Accessibility: Making Your Web Site More Usable for Everyone. Addison-
Wesley Pub Co., 2002.
• W3C Web Accessibility Initiative - http://www.w3.org/WAI/intro/accessibility

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