Alfred Lui – Jawbone, Dir. of UX
How do you know this idea is going to work?
This question asks you for proof of the future. This is a fair question because designers love change, but businesses do not. This is a balance between pushing change and avoiding risk in business.
Strategy is to determine what to make over a short time and over a long time.
This is a common issue – the balance between disruptive ideas and a business’s idea that they need to mitigate risk/change and save money.
“The innovator’s Dilemma”
“The Design of Business”
“The Lean Startup”
Our Dilemma:
Incredibly hard to prove the future
Breadcrumb of Proof
Idea -> Storytelling -> Solution
Desirable -> Feasible -> Viable (all of these need to overlap)
How does this all come together?
- Look beyond the brief and ask for the whole picture. The brief describes what is missing, not the hole picture. What is the problem that this solves, and what does success look like?
- Agree on the measurements early and expect new ones to come in. Always keep an eye out for new ways to measure success.
- Test frequently, but mind your methods. A design that is usable doesn’t always mean it is new, especially if it is meant to change human behavior.
Why does this service exist?
What does success look like to you?
Are we optimizing for an existing behavior or creating a new one?
This is not about losing our intuition, or about designing by numbers. It just means that intuition is not the only quality that creates good work. It is about having an expanded responsibility.