Once upon a time, in a green city, lived a green man.
The green man lived in a green house with green doors
and green windows. He had a green wife and two green
kids. During the night, he slept in his green bed and
dreamt green, green dreams.
One day, the green man woke up to a green morning, wore
his green shoes, green shirt and green pants. He put on
a green hat and went out. The green man entered his
green car and drove on the green road. On one side of
the road he saw a green ocean and on the other side he
saw many green flowers. It was a beautiful day, and the
green man was happy and sang green songs and ate green
bananas.
Suddenly, the green man saw a blue man, and immediately
stopped his car and…
The sixteenth sheep, by Yonatan Geffen
Nice to meet you, I am the blue man. I am the sole
usability practitioner in a world of green programmers,
green managers, green webmasters and a green VP R&D. how
do green people feel when they meet a blue usability
expert? How does it feel to be the only blue person on
the team? Sometimes it feels like a scene from The War
of the Worlds.
But although we may come from different worlds, I’ve
found it’s possible to survive and even thrive in a
world of green technologists – provided you play the
game right. So, for all you blue usability experts who
live in a world of green, here are my top 10 tips for
improving your situation (and theirs though they might
not realize this):
10. Don’t push too hard
You see a usability catastrophe in the making and your
first reaction is to demand it be fixed. You are
probably right but you may not be doing the right thing.
Your company has priorities other than usability and
your role is usability advocate – not usability police.
If the boss wants to disregard your advice and live
through a usability catastrophe, let him or her do so.
Experience has taught me if you are patient and
constructive, they will eventually come to see the value
of your position.
9. Find usability champions
Find one or more executives who will carry you on their
wings. Your champions will fight for you, promote your
services and help you become effective. Talk to as many
influencers as you need to until you find those who
fully understand the importance of user-centered design.
Once you’ve found your champions, make them proud.
8. Collect usability knowledge and share it
Buy books, collect articles, print images, hang posters
and do whatever it takes to make people understand that
you have good answers to their problems. My bookshelf
grabs attention and I am more than willing to share
materials with others in my company. Because I am seen
as knowledgeable about usability research and best
practices, people in my company come to me for advice.
And when they ask questions like, “Do you have any
recommendations regarding the use of frames?” or “How
should a site map work?” I can poit to credible material
to support my answers.
7. Pick your battles carefully
It is easy to find things to fight about but it is
usually better to avoid conflict. Earlier in my career I
broadcast an email complaining about the usability of
our corporate Web site. It was a serious error. I
offended the person responsible for the site and created
a bad atmosphere. Today I would hand the relevant person
(not his or her boss) a well-thought-out document
identifying usability issues and suggesting what can be
done to solve them. I would also offer to help implement
the solution. I’ve learned that peace is better than
war.
6. Gather your users
Companies care what users think. When developers hear
users’ opinions their reaction is often, “Wow, is this
what our users are saying? Well, we should fix it.” When
I realized the value of such feedback I established a
usability advisory council comprised of some of our main
product users. From time to time, I ask their opinions
on various design dilemmas. I am always careful to limit
my demands on their time, make certain that
participation is okay with their managers and thank them
for their time and effort.
5. Spread the word
On a regular basis, I send an email that I call a
UsabiliTip to the entire company. I select a topic that
I think will be of interest and present both a usability
problem and solution. I keep these emails short and
focused. Publishing these UsabiliTips has contributed to
the recognition of the value of usability, and from time
to time has resulted in invitations to help refine
processes within the company.
4. Make friends with the Product
Management team
I joined my company as a member of the Creative
department. After a month I moved to the Product
department, then to Professional Services and finally
found a home back in Product. Why was I forced to play
musical chairs? I found that product management is where
my work is most influential and appreciated. Product
managers are responsible for defining product and want
their products to be easy to use.
3. Write short reports
In today’s hectic business environment most people want
short, informal reports. Keep your reports focused and
appropriate for the needs of the recipient. If you are
writing to a programmer, for example, make a “to-do”
list be the focus. If it’s for an executive, make it
short and to-the-point, focusing on the actions needed.
I try to make most reports no longer than two to three
pages.
2. Write long reports
On the other hand, sometimes a shiny cover page, an
executive summary, graphs, charts, test participant
descriptions, analyses, problems, background materials,
severity ratings, extent ratings and detailed
recommendations are what is needed. When there are
critical decisions, some people want the full picture.
When this is the case, I will often produce a brief
document and offer a detailed version to those who want
it.
1. Show how your work saves money
The bottom line is the bottom line. Nothing you can do
will go further than presenting cost savings to decision
makers. ROI should be one of your best friends.
While being a blue usability professional in a green
world can be uncomfortable at first, I’ve realized that
you can thrive and be effective if you learn how to
adapt. It’s never totally comfortable being alone, but
standing out does have its advantages and you can make a
difference.
About Tomer Sharon
Tomer Sharon is a
usability expert at Check Point Software Technologies, based in
Ramat Gan, Israel, and the chairman of
the Israeli usability community. He can be reached at
tsharon@checkpoint.com.
