THE UNICORN IS DEAD. Soft Skills Trump Coding Skills. Paul Sherman

Transcription

1 THE UNICORN IS DEAD Soft Skills Trump Coding Skills Paul Sherman

2 OBJECTIVES Deconstruct the UX unicorn. Identify critical soft skills for user experience practitioners. Discuss how we can better formalize and train soft skills in our industry. 2

3 OBJECTIVES Deconstruct the UX unicorn. Identify critical soft skills for user experience practitioners. Discuss how we can better formalize and train soft skills in our industry. Marvel at rainbowpooping unicorns. 3

4 ME Trained as an aviation human factors researcher. I ve built small and large UX teams. Teach at Kent State s UXD program. Provide user experience research and design consulting. 4

5 I m also a Pixar plot device. 5

6 The Current UX Landscape 6

7 Median User Experience Practitioner Salary Everything is awesome! Source: UXPA 2014 International Salary Survey 7

8 Make it rain! Woo! Source: The Creative Group 2016 Salary Survey 8

9 53K+ jobs on LinkedIn! 9

10 So what s the catch? 10

11 We still struggle for a seat at the grownup table. 11

12 SOME TYPICAL SCENARIOS We need better UX how long will it take to fix the product by the next release? What? There s no time to do that much research! 12

13 SOME TYPICAL SCENARIOS Do we really need a UX researcher? We should use that headcount for another developer. 13

14 SOME TYPICAL SCENARIOS Talk to sales. They know what the customer wants. 14

15 Company: [ REDACTED ] Location: [ REDACTED ] Job Title: Senior UI/UX Consultant Check out this job posting Job Description: Iteratively prototype and build clean and intuitive user interfaces. Optimize frontend CSS performance and stay on top of latest techniques. Build and test complex multi-tiered Web Apps and UI Framework Components. Support technical lead with creating clean, organized code in an easily enhanced and maintained structure. Active support and participation from design to screen layout. Maintain a high level of unit and integration test coverage across projects to catch and prevent feature regressions. Practice and encourage adoption of agile development methodologies. Maintain user-interface and design patterns with live style guides to establish site-wide UX consistency. Ensure implementations follow web standards, accessibility, and usability best practices. Utilize responsive web design techniques to mitigate cross-browser and cross-device inconsistencies. Qualifications: Bachelor's Degree or equivalent experience. 6+ years of experience with Strong Front End UI/UX skills in a corporate environment. Knowledgeable in information architecture, human computer interaction, and usability design principles. Ability to create logos and graphics for websites, proposals, and marketing materials. Creativity and ability to work with others on iterative design. Experience completing mockups and wireframing. Experience with usability/user feedback test design and execution for mockups, prototypes, pre-release functionality, and production systems. Understanding of UX principles. Experience with typography, layout, and color theory. 15

16 RESEARCH Experience with usability / user feedback test design and execution for mockups, prototypes, prerelease functionality, and production systems. 16

17 RESEARCH DESIGN Experience completing mockups and wireframing. Ability to create logos and graphics for websites, proposals, and marketing materials. 17

18 RESEARCH DESIGN DEVELOP Iteratively prototype and build clean and intuitive user interfaces. Optimize frontend CSS performance and stay on top of latest techniques. Build and test complex multi-tiered Web Apps and UI Framework Components. 18

19 RESEARCH DESIGN DEVELOP TEST Maintain a high level of unit and integration test coverage across projects to catch and prevent feature regressions. 19

20 RESEARCH DESIGN DEVELOP TEST STANDARDIZE & MAINTAIN Maintain user-interface and design patterns with live style guides to establish site-wide UX consistency. Support technical lead with creating clean, organized code in an easily enhanced and maintained structure. 20

21 RESEARCH DESIGN DEVELOP TEST STANDARDIZE & MAINTAIN EVANGELIZE AGILE & PLAY NICE Practice and encourage adoption of agile development methodologies. Creativity and ability to work with others on iterative design. 21

22 This isn t just a unicorn 22

23 This unicorn poops rainbows, puppies, and sunshine.

24 UX Unicorn 24

25 UX Unicorn 25

26 Have you seen similar job posts? 26

27 UX Competency Areas 27

28 User Information Content Interaction Visual Front end research architecture strategy design design development Adapted from Patrick Neeman. Hunting Unicorns: What Makes An Effective UX Practitioner. 28

29 Typical UX skill set groupings User research Content strategy Visual design Front end dev Information architecture Interaction design 29

30 Maybe you ve seen this User research Content strategy Visual design Front end dev Information architecture Interaction design 30

31 I ve even seen this Content strategy Visual design Front end dev User research Information architecture Interaction design 31

32 User Information Content Interaction Visual Front end research architecture strategy design design development Soft skills 32

33 Soft skills User Information Content Interaction Visual Front end research architecture strategy design design development 33

34 SOFT SKILLS CONSIST OF Effective communication A focus on problem-solving, learning, and personal improvement Ability to work effectively in teams Self-motivation, initiative and good judgment Irena Grugulis & Steven Vincent. Whose Skill Is It Anyway? Soft Skills and Polarization. Work Employment & Society, December 2009, Vol. 23, No

35 PEOPLE WITH SOFT SKILLS ARE Empathic Fearless Curious Self-aware Systematic Articulate Pragmatic Passionate Patrick Neeman. Hunting Unicorns: What Makes An Effective UX Practitioner. 35

36 THE NATURAL LIAISON Businesses have always needed people who can bridge the gaps between functional areas. There are those people I call them the natural liaisons who have always existed between camps. They bridge the gulf between groups, enable communication between them, and understand the frustrations they feel. A certain quality often brings them to the role, whatever their job title happens to be. Adam Polansky, Changing Perceptions: Getting The Business To Value User-Centred Design Processes. 36

37 IT TAKES SOFT SKILLS TO Identify people s emotions and aspirations. Communicate the information to product and development. Design solutions that successfully engage emotional needs and aspirations. Kelly Goto, Beyond Usability: Adaptive and Assistive Technology. UXPA 2016 Keynote Address. 37

38 You want evidence? Because I have some. 38

39 My question: What should UX practitioners be learning to be successful? 39

40 COMMUNICATION COLLABORATION JUDGEMENT EMPATHY INFLUENCE INITIATIVE 40

41 COMMUNICATION INFLUENCE Researchers and designers need to work on how they present their research findings and designs in a compelling way that inspires the rest of the team to act on them. - Kit Unger, Director of UX, Smartsheet 41

42 COMMUNICATION INFLUENCE Economy of information. Being understood is more important than using all your big-kid words and buzz-words. All your deliverables need to be usable for your team and stakeholders. - Adam Polansky, UX Strategist, Bottle Rocket Studios 42

43 COMMUNICATION INFLUENCE That 40-page usability study report that you got a 4.0 on at school won't be useful for (or read by) most companies. Your work must always have something that can be acted upon by your client / team. - Rebecca Destello, Senior UX Researcher, Atlas Informatics 43

44 COMMUNICATION INFLUENCE How to influence executives to give you funding for the team / goals. - Wendy McKibben Spies, Director of Engineering Strategy, Microsoft 44

45 COLLABORATION The concept of that's not my job deserves a Batmanslapping-Robin kind of reply. The product's success IS your job. And if that means you need to stay late with the developers, so be it. - John Athayde, VP Design, Cargosense 45

46 46

47 COLLABORATION Dive in to understand the business needs as well as user needs. - Patrick Neeman, whisky aficionado / troublemaker 47

48 JUDGEMENT INITIATIVE That synthesis and analysis are not the same thing, they are actually the opposite of each other. Rigorous analysis (take apart / deconstruct) and synthesis (put back together / reconstruct) methods make or break a good researcher. - Kelly Goto, Principal, Goto Research 48

49 JUDGEMENT INITIATIVE Critical thinking, scaffolding hypotheses and assumptions, interpreting insights. - Ha Phan, Principal Designer, GoPro Critical thinking and the art of taking [criticism]. - Rachel Nabors, web animation expert 49

50 JUDGEMENT INITIATIVE Grit. - Amy Chenault, Experience Architect, IBM 50

51 EMPATHY Learn about the technologies that your designs will be implemented in. You should have a conceptual understanding of HTML, CSS, Javascript, jquery, or whatever technology stack the development team is using. - Anonymous (no not /that/ Anonymous) 51

52 EMPATHY Apply your UX skills (and that famous empathy ) to your coworkers, especially those who are not designers. - Christian Crumlish, Head of Product, 7 Cups 52

53 COMMUNICATION COLLABORATION JUDGEMENT EMPATHY INFLUENCE INITIATIVE No one said learn to write production HTML/CSS and Javascript. Nor did they say learn Sketch or tool X. 53

54 Can Soft Skills Be Taught? 54

55 ARE NATURAL LIAISONS BORN THAT WAY? [Natural liaisons] bridge the gulf between groups, enable communication between them, and understand the frustrations they feel. A certain quality often brings them to the role, whatever their job title happens to be. 55

56 Soft skill interventions work. 56

57 In 1989: 40 fatal commercial aviation accidents. In 2014: 9 accidents. 57

58 BACK IN THE MID-1980 S More than 2/3 of crashes were due to pilot error. Analysis of flight deck recordings from crashes revealed that junior officers often knew something was wrong, but didn t speak up. Commercial pilots were taught that the captain was never to be questioned. 58

59 STARTING AROUND 1990 Pilots were taught new ways of working together that reflected these ideas: Human error is inevitable. The captain is not always right! Junior officers have a duty to speak up if they think something is wrong. Crews should cross-check each other and question each other s assumptions. Crews should debrief and critique after }Soft skills each flight. 59

60 The results speak for themselves. 60

61 These same techniques have also been successfully deployed in medicine. Have you noticed that each caregiver now asks you your name and why you re there? 61

62 How Do We Evolve UX To Focus On Soft Skills? 62

63 IT S (INTER) PERSONAL AND ORGANIZATIONAL 63

64 YOU RE A UX CHANGE AGENT What sub-cultures exist in your organizations? Where are the leverage points? UX Who are the leverage points? 64

65 START THE UX SOFT SKILLS REVOLUTION Say no to the unicorn. 65

66 START THE UX SOFT SKILLS REVOLUTION Say no to the unicorn. Start - or join - the soft skills training conversation in your organization. 66

67 START THE UX SOFT SKILLS REVOLUTION Say no to the unicorn. Start - or join - the soft skills training conversation in your organization. Hire people who can communicate, collaborate, influence, and show good judgement. 67

68 START THE UX SOFT SKILLS REVOLUTION Say no to the unicorn. Start - or join - the soft skills training conversation in your organization. Hire people who can communicate, collaborate, influence, and show good judgement. Set goals for and measure demonstration of these skills. 68

69 START THE UX SOFT SKILLS REVOLUTION Last and not least Teach soft skills to UX students at the beginning of their careers. 69

70 We re at the very beginning of this journey. 70

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