User research your team will actually give a sh!t about

Hi! Editorial & magazine designer Graphic designer Web/digital designer UX/UI designer UX consultant User researcher

What is user research?

There are known knowns.

These are things we know that we know.

There are known unknowns.

That is to say, there are things that we know we don't know.

But there are also unknown unknowns.

There are things we don't know we don't know.

  • Donald Rumsfeld

Simpsons' gif - Homer "Okay, now, let's not jump to conclusions, everyone."

Invention is not the same as innovation. – Tim Brown Change by design

Without user research, you won’t know what problems you’re trying to solve, what to build or if the service you create will work well for users.

  • GDS Service Manual

Venn diagram: Organisation needs / UX / User needs

UX bridges the gap between organisation and user needs

“If your work doesn’t support the business, you have failed, no matter how good the design.”

  • Erika Hall, Just enough research

A shared understanding

GOV.UK identity guidelines • Start with user needs • Do the hard work to make it simple • Design with data • Iterate. Then iterate again • This is for everyone • Understand context • Make things open: it makes things better

User research 
 is a team sport . https://userresearch.blog.gov.uk/2014/08/06/have-you-had-your-recommended-dose-of-research/

“In a multidisciplinary team each individual becomes an advocate for their own technical specialty… likely resulting in a grey compromise…

…in an interdisciplinary team there is collective ownership of ideas and everyone takes responsibility for them.”

  • Tim Brown Change by design

How might we?

Example post-its from a how might we session

Sharing our research

If a research report sits on a server and no-one reads it, does it exist?

Storytelling

The power of words

Report style finding

Users are not receptive to this idea.

Real life quote

“Don’t go there. Only an idiot would go down that thought process.”

  • User interview participant

Making research easily accessible (and engaging)

GDS user research wall

GDS Trello board for recording research findings

Interactive Google map to show the locations of user research participants and the type of research conducted.

“Everyone is responsible for looking out for the user.”

  • Erika Hall, Just enough research

Questions?