Demystifying UX Design

•

The Infinite Diamond

I am a firm believer that there is no one-size-fits-all solution when it comes to User Experience Design. This isn't one either.

This is a breakdown of my versatile personal approach to UX Design based on pragmatism with a sharp focus on getting shit done.

UX is not a Miro board full of sticky notes. Nor is it a usability report or a persona. It's not a beautiful high-fidelity screen or a state-of-the-art component-based design system. User Experience is the delightful orchestra of emotions a person feels when interacting with an intuitive, stunning, and seamless product that addresses their needs.

Overview

I would stipulate that User Experience Design can be distilled down to an elegant scheme comprising of two closely interconnected parts:

1. Exploration and understanding.

By adhering to principles of curiosity and open-mindedness and applying research methods in combination with critical thinking, we attempt to gain a wider and deeper knowledge of the subject at hand.

2. Meaningful output.

By extracting the knowledge learned in the first step, we focus our efforts on a singular goal of producing impactful results that will drive the process forward.

As a baseline for my concept The Double Diamond approach by The Design Council [1] was used. It was further simplified into the fundamental building blocks of User Experience Design. I call the emerging shape an Infinite Diamond because it represents a process that repeats endlessly in the life of a designer and can be scaled and chained together flexibly.

'Exploration and Understanding' delves into the roots of design thinking. It is represented by the diverging sides of the diamond signifying the process of learning and widening of horizons. There are countless ways to approach this stage, but I would like to outline some common examples:
- Brainstorming session
- Product requirements card-sorting workshop
- Interaction patterns comparison and analysis

- Usability testing

'Meaningful Output' doesn't imply that your deliverables will ever be objectively perfect. It simply means they need to support other stakeholders and move the process forward. It is represented by the converging sides of the diamond signifying the sharp focus on final output. Let's look at some examples:

- Annotated ideas sketched on paper
- Product vision
- High-fidelity screen design

- Usability report

Research without output is mere contemplation. Producing work without proper understanding is like building a house of cards.

Examples

This is not a guide on how to plan a product design process or which methods to use. There is excellent literature available on that [2], and there are no shortcuts around learning, trying things out, and gaining experience.

What this concept can do is offer insight under the hood of the User Experience Design process to see what really makes it tick. For aspiring junior designers, it can demystify the whole thing and make it more approachable. Meanwhile, more senior designers can use it to troubleshoot pain points and gain a new perspective on the way they do things.

Let's move to some concrete examples. The cases I present below are simplified flows only meant to illustrate the framework in action.

simplified PRODUCT DESIGN CYCLE

The framework can be used to map out an overall plan for a product design cycle. The only constant is always combining understanding with output; other parts are flexible. It's possible to stack both the research / comprehension methods and the outputs, to encapsulate more complex steps in a single diamond or chain together more simpler diamonds to achieve the same effect.

specific task planning

The framework can be used to map out specific tasks in day-to-day life. The principles are the same, the only difference being the specificity of the tasks.

key Principles to consider

Occam's Razor approach [3]: plan for the expected minimum viable number of steps in the process.
Feedback is critical: constantly scrutinize the output through both internal and external feedback, and adapt based on it.
Add collaboration: when the path is unclear or the focus is on innovation or staying in sync; add collaborative steps to the process.

Future considerations

While working on the Infinite Diamond concept, some ideas came to mind that I didn't have the time to fully explore. There are obvious drawbacks to the sketches above concerning scaling the process based on a team structure, the perceived time some tasks might take, and the parallelization of tasks. Another drawback of my framework is that it's only been been put to the test in terms of an agile startup culture. I see the potential how it could be scaled at a bigger corporation but have no real data on it. These drawbacks could present fun concepts to play around with in the future.

Closing thoughts

The Infinite Diamond is a first draft condensing my thoughts and experiences into a tangible approach. It's also an open invitation for criticism, feedback, or suggestions for improvements, so I would be grateful for any of that.

In case my concept doesn't resonate, I would like to offer some general tips that I wish I had known at various stages of my career and have contributed to the creation of this framework.

Early career:

- Don't fall prey to the method anxiety. Pick something you are comfortable with, like a brainstorming / sketching session, and run with it. You might never use 'The Love Letter & The Breakup Letter' method in your life and still have a fulfilling career crafting delightful experiences.
- Stick to small iterations. The overall User Experience Design process might seem daunting, but breaking it down into small specific tasks will get you a foot in the door. Your early output will probably suck, and that's okay. Stick with it and enjoy the journey.
- Seek feedback often. Feedback is the single most impactful way to grow as a UX Designer. Learn how to receive constructive criticism, never get defensive, and always look for a valuable lesson.

Mature career:
- Farm for dissent [4]. One of the big pitfalls of an experienced designer is the danger of forming a strong opinion too fast. The trick is to always keep an open mind and actively seek other perspectives and input.
- Don't be afraid of large meetings. There is a growing resistance to meetings in the tech world. Make sure to prepare for them well: send out an agenda, moderate the discussion, focus on expected results, and table non-productive discussions for separate workshops.

If you are interested you can check out what we achieved over at CITIES by putting this approach into practice:
https://www.behance.net/gallery/185820303/CITIES-next

I am looking forward to hearing your thoughts in the comments down below.

Reference

1. The Double Diamond
https://www.designcouncil.org.uk/our-resources/the-double-diamond/

2. Goodwin, K. (2011). Designing for the digital age: How to create human-centered products and services. John Wiley & Sons.

3. Occam's Razor
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Occam%27s_razor

4. Farming for dissent
https://jobs.netflix.com/culture