Revolutionizing development strategies

As web technology and practices mature, and as worldwide markets adopt devices of all sizes and capabilities, it's becoming clear that we should give more consideration to technology- and device-agnostic processes. We will discuss strategies for this approach, as well as some of the benefits and potential obstacles.

Presented by Tara Bazler and Chris Basham for the Indiana University Statewide IT Conference on October 30, 2013.
http://statewideit.iu.edu/2013/

Transcript

1. Revolutionizing
   development strategies
   Crafting next-generation web software
   !
   Tara Bazler & Chris Basham
   

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2. Indiana University has long been a
   leader in providing faculty, students,
   and staff with the most up-to-date
   technology support for teaching,
   learning, research, and
   administration.
   http://www.iub.edu/faculty/technology.shtml
   

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3. Though purchased and homegrown
   systems often represent the state of the art
   or best choice at the time of their selection,
   users’ expectations continue to change as
   they desire newer technologies or more
   integration. It is difficult to back into
   improved user interfaces and integration
   with other systems after the fact.
   —Empowering People
   Indiana University’s Strategic Plan for Information Technology 2009
   

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4. Current
   work process
   

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5. Developers,
   the alpha & the omega
   

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6. Over-the-fence
   deliverables
   

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7. Arbitrary walls of responsibility
   UX
   Designers
   Backend
   Developers
   

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8. In order to effectively design
   for today and tomorrow’s Web,
   we must replace outdated design
   artifacts with real collaboration and
   communication.
   !
   For a lot of people, this is scary…
   —Brad Frost
   http://bradfrostweb.com/blog/post/development-is-design/
   

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9. Proposed
   work process
   

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10. Expectations
    Assumptions
    Common ground
    

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11. UI
    User System
    UX
    Business
    Technology
    Users
    UX verses UI
    

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12. Design is more than decoration.
    Development is more than plumbing.
    —Cameron Koczon
    paraphrased from http://alistapart.com/article/an-important-time-for-design
    

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13. Great developers are “designers” in
    their own domain. Design can even be
    our common thread, uniting two
    groups with a shared love of detail,
    craft, and building things.
    —Cameron Koczon
    http://alistapart.com/article/an-important-time-for-design
    

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14. Design Process
    Research Ideate
    Insight Decide
    

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15. Design is
    insightful
    intentionality
    

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16. We design
    together
    to solve
    human problems
    

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17. Distributed responsibility
    UX
    Designers
    UX/UI
    Developers
    Backend
    Developers
    

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18. Front-end developers often exist in a
    weird purgatory, somewhere between
    the design world and the ultra-geek
    programming world. We serve as
    translators between these two worlds,
    and I feel it’s our responsibility to
    bridge this chasm between design and
    development.
    —Brad Frost
    http://bradfrostweb.com/blog/post/development-is-design/
    

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19. Kuali Student is
    Agile
    

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20. Current app architecture
    Data Backend UI
    Data Backend UI
    Data Backend UI
    

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21. Proposed app architecture
    API
    API
    Data Backend Web UI
    Android UI
    Web UI
    Service Bus
    Services Apps
    API
    iOS UI
    Web UI
    Data Backend
    Data Backend
    

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22. Action 40: To the extent practicable, IU
    should adapt current systems and
    require new systems to work
    effectively with a multitude of
    commonly used devices.
    —Empowering People
    Indiana University’s Strategic Plan for Information Technology 2009
    

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23. The best user interfaces usually arise
    from teams who are able to focus on
    less to go deeper into details.
    —Lucas Rocha
    http://thelayout.cc/on-scope-and-time/
    

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24. Benefits
    • More focused roles
    • UI is not an afterthought
    • Better user experience
    • Less support contacts
    • Non-disruptive technology upgrades
    • Student/external partnerships
    

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25. Moving forward
    

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26. Action 38: IU should ensure that any
    system developed, acquired, or being
    revised maximizes usefulness,
    perceived ease of use, flexibility, and
    aesthetic appeal to the greatest
    extent possible.
    —Empowering People
    Indiana University’s Strategic Plan for Information Technology 2009
    

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27. Obstacles
    • Change is scary
    • Upfront cost
    • New skill sets & roles
    • Communication is difficult
    • Braving how it should be done
    

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28. Next steps
    • We don’t have all the answers
    • Collaborate & communicate 

    across disciplines
    • Challenge the status quo
    

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29. Be a snowflake that takes
    responsibility for an avalanche.
    —Sharlene King
    http://stemmings.com/snowflakes-avalanches/
    

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30. Tara Bazler
    @taranoba
    tbazler@iu.edu
    !
    Process Experience Architecture
    Indiana University
    !
    Statewide IT Conference
    October 2013
    Chris Basham
    @chrisbasham
    csbasham@iu.edu
    

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