UX Research in an Agile World

Hira Javed

November 23, 2014

About Me

Usability Specialist

@hirajaved10

http://lnkd.in/HGSpHW

UX Instructor

“Research is formalized curiosity.

It is poking and prying with a purpose.”

- Zora Neale Hurston

UX Research is about…

Understanding the user:

• What they do

• How they do it

• Why they do it

Why do UX research?

To avoid this…

and this…

and therefore this…

“building the right thing and we’re building

the thing right.”

- Natalie Hanson

Goals of UX Research

• To add context and insight to the the

design process.

• To measure the effectiveness of design

solutions implemented.

Traditional Face of User Research

But times they are

a-changin’

Forces Affecting User Research

Mobile explosion

It’s all about context

Industry speed

Pressure to constantly evolve

Agile development

Sprints don’t wait

UX Culture

People want to be

involved

Traditional methods

take time

We have to make these faster…

Narrow

objectives

Shorter Timelines

Informal deliverables

Brief Documentation

Agile UX Research

• TexAgile is about thinking holistically, working

incrementally.

• UX research process needs to align with this

incremental workflow.

• Research should commence in sprint 0 or

earlier.

• Prototypes will need to be tested one sprint

ahead of development.

Research Methods

• Evaluate part of a design against set of

usability best practises.

• Can be done in 30 minutes

• Can be used to provide usability feedback

in each sprint.

Heuristic Evaluation

• Identify best practices and trends in the

competitive landscape.

• Can be completed in a day (depending on

research objective).

• Can be used to provide feedback during the

discovery phase.

Quick Competitive Review

• Quick, low cost, usability testing “in the wild”

• Can be conducted anywhere

• 3 - 5 participants

• 5 - 10 minutes each

• Low - high fidelity prototype

Guerilla Testing

Can be conducted as soon as the idea is

out of your head

Low-fidelity prototype Med to High-fidelity

prototype

...with any type of prototype

How to Plan a Guerilla Test

1. Identify test goal

Determine what is the purpose of doing

the test.

Example goal statement:“Assess the latest version of the mobile video player.”

2. Identify target participants

Determine participant characteristics.

Example participant screener:

• Users must own a smartphone.

• Users must access mobile video content at least

once a week.

3. Identify test objectives

Determine what you’re trying to learn.

What questions are your trying to

answer?

Example test objectives:

• Can users easily and effectively use the video

player?

• Can users interact with the scrubber?

• Do users understand how to share a video?

4. Create tasks

Create user tasks that will allow you to

assess your objectives.

Example tasks:

• Play a video and view comments

• Share a video

5. Create scenarios

Create realistic scenarios of when users

may do those tasks.

Example scenarios:

• Let’s say a friend told you about a great comment

Rob Ford made at the end of this video clip. Can

you play the clip and go to the comment?

• You loved the clip and want to send it to another

friend. Can you show me how you would do that?

6. Prepare the prototype

Create a prototype that can be tested.

Sketches Wireframes Live

site/app

Interactive prototype

• Rapid Iterative Testing & Evaluation (RITE)

• Developed by Microsoft Games Studio and

Microsoft Research.

• Similar to typical usability testing

• Changes to interface are made as soon as

an issue is identified and a solution is clear.

RITE Method

• The improved interface is tested with the next user.

• Requires a dedicated researcher, and designer or

developer.

• Used to make design changes in small increments.

• Can be completed in one day or over a few days.

• Key decision makers must observe the test sessions.

RITE Method

RITE: Process

9amV0.1

Edit 11amV0.2

Edit 1 pmV0.3

Edit 3 pmV0.4

Edit

Final Iteration

User 1 User 2 User 3 User 4

• Collaborate Rapid Iterative Testing & Evaluation

• Used by Android teams in Google

• 6 research sessions in 2 days.

• Prototype changes between day 1 and 2.

• Stakeholders collaborate in all UX phases.

C-RITE Method

Collaborative design workshop for

each day.

• Designers demonstrate problem solving skills.

• Engineers solve technical constraints.

• Researchers guide insight interpretation.

• PM gives business and scheduling input.

• Can be repeated weekly.

C-RITE Method

C-RITE Method

Traditional roles

Collaboration in C-RITE

C-RITE Method

C-RITE Process

Key Take-Aways

• The agile approach of incremental delivery needs

continual design input.

• There’s a fundamental shift in the way we

conduct research in agile projects.

• Narrow scope, faster methods, fewer participants

but frequent testing, and less documentation.

User research

won’t hold you back

Any Questions?