Collaborative Design: Lessons & Observations

Slides from my talk on the things I've learned by comparing the collaborative process as it is carried out in many modern organizations to the creative process of artists and makers.

Transcript

1. Collaborative Design Lessons & Observations ADAM CONNOR EXPERIENCE DESIGN DIRECTOR @ADAMCONNOR MADPOW.COM
2. A group of people working together to make or do something.
3. WORKING TOGETHER IS Required.
4. Initiator Something NEW
5. Information Technology Information Technology Information Technology Marketing Marketing Marketing Subject Matter Experts Subject Matter Experts Subject Matter Experts Initiator Information Technology Design Subject Matter Experts Stakeholder Marketing Project Management Something NEW Stakeholder Stakeholder Stakeholder Design Design Design Project Management Project Management Project Management
6. A group of people working together to make or do something.
8. The ever-dreaded Swoop Poop n
9. A group of people working together to make or do something.
10. COLLABORATION ORDINATION
11. Coordination the act of aligning individual work efforts to produce outcomes that will eventually be assembled into or utilized in the formation of an end product. Collaboration the act of making decisions as a group in order to build a shared understanding while respecting and utilizing individual areas of expertise and skills.
12. Collaboration the act of making decisions as a group in order to build a shared understanding while respecting and utilizing individual areas of expertise and skills. Coordination the act of aligning individual work efforts to produce outcomes that will eventually be assembled into or utilized in the formation of an end product.
13. Information Technology Information Technology Information Technology Marketing Marketing Marketing Subject Matter Experts Subject Matter Experts Subject Matter Experts Initiator Information Technology Design Subject Matter Experts Stakeholder Marketing Something NEW Stakeholder Stakeholder Stakeholder Design Design Design Project Management Project Management Project Management Project Management
14. How will I make it? How will it work? What kinds of things will it do? What will it look like? Am I crazy? Something NEW How will people use it?
15. The design process is one of evolution, not production.
17. The leader is the one who sees the vision and facilitates team members’ contributions to its creation and execution.
19. Elements of a collaborative environment Transparency Mutual Trust & Unified Goals Iteration
20. Elements of a collaborative environment Transparency Mutual Trust & Unified Goals Iteration
21. Elements of a collaborative environment Transparency Mutual Trust & Unified Goals Iteration
22. Elements of a collaborative environment Transparency Mutual Trust & Unified Goals Iteration
23. Methods for facilitating collaboration Sketching Critique Problem Framing Workshops Rapid Prototyping
24. Methods for facilitating collaboration Sketching Critique Problem Framing Workshops Rapid Prototyping
25. Goals Desired, measurable outcomes of the user interacting with the product or service. Can be user oriented, business oriented or both. Scenarios Short narratives that the describe the desired behaviors, thoughts, reactions, emotions, etc. of the user. Describes what happens, but not how. Personas User Archetypes that describe their average behaviors, goals, expectations, knowledge, etc. Principles Desired qualities or characteristics of the solution. Describe what happens, but not how.
26. Methods for facilitating collaboration Sketching Critique Problem Framing Workshops Rapid Prototyping
28. Wait! I can’t DRAW!!!
29. Rectangle Ellipse Wavy Line Triangle
30. Methods for facilitating collaboration Sketching Critique Problem Framing Workshops Rapid Prototyping
31. It’s laid out too much like [popular service]. We should be different. The new Spotify design is perhaps even worse than the old Spotify design. The visual hierarchy and underlying IA are terrible. No. That won’t work. What if we do it this way... It needs more flululululuh!! The wireframes are still not answering our problem and are not providing enough an easier solution for the page. Change the order of the screens so that the 3rd and first one are switched. It doesn't have enough spunk. What kind of company shuts down a much-loved service like Google Reader but keeps the vegetative Google Plus? We're disappointed in this solution. We're going to have our own designers come up with one. Looks ugly. Make it pretty. What. The hell. Is this? I would never use this. I don’t like the layout. We should make that a dropdown instead of radio buttons. None of this is what I asked for. This is terrible. I have no idea what the lines mean. I like the paper form better. I'm just not feeling it. I don't know what, but it isn't right yet. Just needs to be more innovative. Make it look more like SharePoint. Here is a rewrite. My intention is to sharpen the language, make it more precise.
33. Methods for facilitating collaboration Sketching Critique Problem Framing Workshops Rapid Prototyping
34. >
35. Methods for facilitating collaboration Sketching Critique Problem Framing Workshops Rapid Prototyping
37. Divergent Thinking Convergent Thinking
38. Design Studio
39. x3 Sketch Present Critique
40. 1 WHAT HAPPENS Individuals sketch as many ideas as they can come up with in 5-8 minutes. WHY Generate as many ideas as possible without time for over-analyzing.
41. 1 2 WHAT HAPPENS Individuals sketch as many ideas as they can come up with in 5-8 minutes. WHAT HAPPENS Individuals sketch 1 idea in 5-8 minutes based on ideas & critique from the previous round. WHY Generate as many ideas as possible without time for over-analyzing. WHY Allow individuals to form their own conclusions on the strongest ideas.
42. 1 2 3 WHAT HAPPENS Individuals sketch as many ideas as they can come up with in 5-8 minutes. WHAT HAPPENS Individuals sketch 1 idea in 5-8 minutes based on ideas & critique from the previous round. WHAT HAPPENS Teams collaboratively sketch 1 idea for 20-25 minutes based on the previous 2 rounds. WHY Generate as many ideas as possible without time for over-analyzing. WHY Allow individuals to form their own conclusions on the strongest ideas. WHY Understand how groups compromise & where consensus has surfaced.
44. Collaboration is a mindset... ...not a byproduct of colocation.
46. If you have a good grasp of the patterns in the creative process as carried out by the artists and makers we all so admire, you can see the weak points in collaboration as it is carried out in many organizations... ...and fix them.
47. Thanks! ADAM CONNOR EXPERIENCE DESIGN DIRECTOR ACONNOR@MADPOW.COM @ADAMCONNOR MADPOW.COM