Balancing Agile with Contuous Discovery Workshop

The conversation around software development has historically been framed around the software developer’s workflow. As result, most of the product development methodologies that teams typically use work great for developers. However, these methods aren’t ideal for designers. Trying to break down the design process into a series of sprints is like trying to run a race where the finish line keeps moving. So what product development method really works for the design process, allowing for continuous discovery while still keeping on track with development?

In this workshop, we will talk about how we deal with these challenges, and run through a light version of this method by developing a solution to a problem.

Objective:
This workshop is particularly useful for designers and UX professionals, who struggle to adhere to Agile methodologies within the constraints of a final deadline for client deliverables. Project managers, business analysts, startups, and developers will also find the concepts beneficial to help them understand more about the design process and delivery software that’s more useful to their audience and valuable to their business.

In this workshop, you will learn:

* Challenges that designers face on projects
* The pros and cons of some of the most common delivery methodologies
* Why methodologies like Scrum don’t guarantee successful product delivery
* End-to-end, flexible design methodology with numerous exercises that approach projects from a holistic, cross-discipline perspective
* How to deliver successful software through experimenting, vetting ideas, and finding the best solution through a dual-track discovery and delivery model.

Transcript

1. BALANCING “AGILE” WITH CONTINUOUS DISCOVERY UXD SUMMIT 2017
2. TOPICS Balancing “Agile” with Continuous Collaboration & Discovery The Sad Challenges of a UX Designer 1 Contrast Common Methodologies 2 “Agile” vs. Agility 3 Fostering Continuous Collaboration & Discovery 4 Product Development Exercises 5 Intros 6
3. TOPICS Balancing “Agile” with Continuous Collaboration & Discovery The Sad Challenges of a UX Designer 1 Contrast Common Methodologies 2 “Agile” vs. Agility 3 Fostering Continuous Collaboration & Discovery 4 Product Development Exercises 5 Intros 6
4. UX DESIGNER THOUGHTS 4 The Sad Challenges of a UX Designer My hours have been cut and now I don’t have enough time to really dig in and solve problems. The organization has a fear of change that doesn’t allow for the experimentation needed to really solve complex challenges.
5. UX DESIGNER WANTS 5 The Sad Challenges of a UX Designer GROW I want to grow my skillset and abilities within the organization. EXPERIMENT I want to experiment with different ideas so I can solve problems in complex systems. TIME I want enough time to really understand the people whose lives I’m trying to make easier.
6. TOPICS Balancing “Agile” with Continuous Collaboration & Discovery The Sad Challenges of a UX Designer 1 Contrast Common Methodologies 2 “Agile” vs. Agility 3 Fostering Continuous Collaboration & Discovery 4 Product Development Exercises 5 Intros 6
8. WATERFALL 8 Contrast Common Methodologies PLAN BUILD TEST REVIEW DEPLOY FEEDBACK
9. SCRUM 9 PLAN BUILD TEST REVIEW DEPLOY FEEDBACK PLAN BUILD TEST REVIEW PLAN BUILD TEST REVIEW REVIEW Contrast Common Methodologies
10. ITERATIVE WATERFALL (AGILEFALL) 10 PLAN BUILD TEST REVIEW DEPLOY FEEDBACK PLAN BUILD TEST REVIEW DEPLOY FEEDBACK Contrast Common Methodologies
11. Scaled Agile (SAFe) 11 Contrast Common Methodologies
12. LEAN 12 PLAN BUILD TEST REVIEW DEPLOY FEEDBACK PLAN BUILD TEST REVIEW PLAN BUILD TEST REVIEW DEPLOY FEEDBACK DEPLOY FEEDBACK PLAN BUILD TEST REVIEW PLAN BUILD TEST REVIEW DEPLOY FEEDBACK DEPLOY FEEDBACK Contrast Common Methodologies
13. CARDINAL ITERATIVE 13 PLAN BUILD TEST REVIEW DEPLOY FEEDBACK PLAN BUILD TEST REVIEW REVIEW PLAN FEEDBACK FEEDBACK Contrast Common Methodologies
14. TOPICS Balancing “Agile” with Continuous Collaboration & Discovery The Sad Challenges of a UX Designer 1 Contrast Common Methodologies 2 “Agile” vs. Agility 3 Fostering Continuous Collaboration & Discovery 4 Product Development Exercises 5 Intros 6
15. THE BRAIN 15 “Agile” vs agility “Agile doesn’t have a brain” – Jeff Gothelf
16. THE STAKEHOLDER DILEMMA “The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place.” – George Bernard Shaw A common occurrence among stakeholders is they may say they agree on a strategy, but the way they actually understand the strategy differs.
17. THE STAKEHOLDER DILEMMA “The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place.” – George Bernard Shaw A common occurrence among stakeholders is they may say they agree on a strategy, but the way they actually understand the strategy differs.
18. THE STAKEHOLDER DILEMMA One of our core focuses when developing a product strategy is to work closely with business stakeholders to help them come to a consensus and develop a shared understanding so they both agree upon and understand the product strategy.
19. THE STAKEHOLDER DILEMMA One of our core focuses when developing a product strategy is to work closely with business stakeholders to help them come to a consensus and develop a shared understanding so they both agree upon and understand the product strategy.
20. TOPICS Balancing “Agile” with Continuous Collaboration & Discovery The Sad Challenges of a UX Designer 1 Contrast Common Methodologies 2 “Agile” vs. Agility 3 Fostering Continuous Collaboration & Discovery 4 Product Development Exercises 5 Intros 6
21. Product Backlog SPRINT Scoped User Stories Releasable Software Scoped User Stories Releasable Software Scoped User Stories Releasable Software Scoped User Stories Releasable Software Priority L H SPRINT SPRINT SPRINT TRADITIONAL AGILE PROCESS
22. REQUIREMENTS
23. ASSUMPTIONS
24. RISK
25. RISK DEVELOPMENT (WEB, MOBILE, DATA, PRODUCTIVITY)
26. RISK DEVELOPMENT (WEB, MOBILE, DATA, PRODUCTIVITY) PROJECT SERVICES (BUSINESS ANALYSIS, PROJECT MANAGEMENT)
27. RISK DEVELOPMENT (WEB, MOBILE, DATA, PRODUCTIVITY) PROJECT SERVICES (BUSINESS ANALYSIS, PROJECT MANAGEMENT) CLIENTS (PRODUCT OWNERS, STAKEHOLDERS)
28. RISK DEVELOPMENT (WEB, MOBILE, DATA, PRODUCTIVITY) PROJECT SERVICES (BUSINESS ANALYSIS, PROJECT MANAGEMENT) CLIENTS (PRODUCT OWNERS, STAKEHOLDERS) USER EXPERIENCE (RESEARCH, USABILITY, INFORMATION ARCHITECTURE INTERACTION DESIGN, VISUAL DESIGN)
29. RISK DEVELOPMENT (WEB, MOBILE, DATA, PRODUCTIVITY) PROJECT SERVICES (BUSINESS ANALYSIS, PROJECT MANAGEMENT) CLIENTS (PRODUCT OWNERS, STAKEHOLDERS) USER EXPERIENCE (RESEARCH, USABILITY, INFORMATION ARCHITECTURE INTERACTION DESIGN, VISUAL DESIGN) DESIGN (INTERACTION DESIGN, VISUAL DESIGN, MOTION DESIGN)
30. RISK DEVELOPMENT (WEB, MOBILE, DATA, PRODUCTIVITY) PROJECT SERVICES (BUSINESS ANALYSIS, PROJECT MANAGEMENT) CLIENTS (PRODUCT OWNERS, STAKEHOLDERS) USER EXPERIENCE (RESEARCH, USABILITY, INFORMATION ARCHITECTURE INTERACTION DESIGN, VISUAL DESIGN) DOUBT CERTAINTY DESIGN (INTERACTION DESIGN, VISUAL DESIGN, MOTION DESIGN)
31. LIFECYCLE OF A REQUIREMENT IDEAS
32. LIFECYCLE OF A REQUIREMENT IDEAS IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA DELIVERY BACKLOG
33. LIFECYCLE OF A REQUIREMENT DELIVERY BACKLOG IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA
34. LIFECYCLE OF A REQUIREMENT FRAME ASSUMPTIONS MAKE SENSE OF THE PROBLEMS BRAINSTORM SOLUTIONS DETERMINE FOCUS AREAS DISCOVERY CYCLE VALIDATION CYCLE LEARN BUILD 1 2 3 4 7 6 5 MEASURE IDEA EA EA
35. LIFECYCLE OF A REQUIREMENT DEA FRAME ASSUMPTIONS MAKE SENSE OF THE PROBLEMS BRAINSTORM SOLUTIONS DETERMINE FOCUS AREAS DISCOVERY CYCLE VALIDATION CYCLE LEARN BUILD 1 2 3 4 7 6 5 MEASURE VALIDATED IDEAS
36. LIFECYCLE OF A REQUIREMENT ME ON BRAINSTORM SOLUTIONS DETERMINE FOCUS AREAS DISCOVERY CYCLE VALIDATION CYCLE LEARN BUILD 1 3 4 7 6 5 MEASURE VALIDATED IDEAS DELIVERY BACKLOG
37. LIFECYCLE OF A REQUIREMENT VALIDATED IDEAS DELIVERY BACKLOG SCOPED ITERATION
38. LIFECYCLE OF A REQUIREMENT DELIVERY BACKLOG SCOPED ITERATION WORKING SOFTWARE
39. DUAL TRACK DISCOVERY / DELIVERY DISCOVERY DELIVERY DISCOVERY CYCLE VALIDATION CYCLE DISCOVERY CYCLE VALIDATION CYCLE SPRINT SPRINT DISCOVERY CYCLE VALIDATION CYCLE IDEAS IDEAS IDEAS
40. TOPICS Balancing “Agile” with Continuous Collaboration & Discovery The Sad Challenges of a UX Designer 1 Contrast Common Methodologies 2 “Agile” vs. Agility 3 Fostering Continuous Collaboration & Discovery 4 Product Development Exercises 5 Intros 6
41. HOUSE RULES 41 Product Development Exercises No phones No Computers 1 No Tablets 2 3
42. TEAM FORMATION (5 MIN) 42 CHOOSE A FACILITATOR AND DECISION MAKER SCRIBE Note taker Time keeper Voice for the group DECISION MAKER Tie-breaker
43. DETERMINE WHAT YOU WANT TO BUILD IDEA GENERATION (8 MIN)
44. Generate as many ideas as possible. 8 minutes. 8 sketches. CRAZY 8’s
45. Generate as many ideas as possible. 8 minutes. 8 sketches. CRAZY 8’s
46. Generate as many ideas as possible. 8 minutes. 8 sketches. CRAZY 8’s
47. THINK BIG AND THEN FOCUS STRATEGY BLUEPRINT (40 MIN)
48. Strategy implies the need for change, a desire to move from point A to point B. Focus on customers and users, but you may also have internal challenges you want to list here too. CHALLENGES POTENTIAL QUESTIONS • What problems are you trying to solve? • What obstacles must you overcome? • What opposing forces need to be overcome to reach your desired outcome? EXAMPLES • Lack of consistency • Migration of customers • Internal constraints • Lack of consistent standards • Little or no governance
49. Go beyond the generic goals like “be consistent.” Instead, strive for something more aspirational. Consider how you will impact your customers’ work and daily lives. ASPIRATIONS POTENTIAL QUESTIONS • What are the ideal desired outcomes? • What do you want to achieve? • What experience do you want to deliver? • How does your solutions transform what they’re capable of doing? EXAMPLES • Unification of experiences • Accelerated adoption • Market recognition • Transformational impact on users
50. Strategy is about trade-offs. Indicating your focus areas helps concentrate effort on the things that matter most. Note this doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll be ignoring everything else not listed, just that the elements listed here are of higher priority FOCUS AREAS POTENTIAL QUESTIONS • What is the scope of the strategy? • Who will use your solution? • What will you focus on for the most impact? • What products, services, platforms, and technologies are included in the strategy? • What are some key scenarios of use? EXAMPLES • A specific service or subset of a service • Use cases and scenarios • Learnability • Discoverability
51. This section shouldn’t read like project plan, rather it’s an inventory of the types of activities required to reach your aspirations. Keep in mind you may need new capabilities to execute your strategy. ACTIVITIES POTENTIAL QUESTIONS • What types of activities solve the problems? • What capabilities achieve your aspirations? EXAMPLES • Research methods • Design activities • Prototyping and testing • Skill development
52. Ultimately, your measurements should support the business goals. Try to find metrics that show the positive impact the effort has on business. Be specific with goals. MEASUREMENT POTENTIAL QUESTIONS • How can you show progress and success? • What types of measurements will you employ? • What metrics will be used to gauge success? EXAMPLES • Increase in user satisfaction • Decrease time to market • Improve maintainability • Better task completion • Higher frequency of use • Increased self-support
53. Strategy emerges from experimentation towards a goal to prove value. VISION CANVAS 1. VISION Ultimate view of where the business line is going. Think long term. In will be . TIME FRAME COMPANY VISION STATEMENT 2. CHALLENGE The first business goal that must be achieved to accomplish the vision. Focus on ideal states, objectives, and KPIs. In order to reach our vision, we must by . MEASUREABLE OBJECTIVE TIME FRAME 3. TARGET CONDITION The first, smaller, measurable objective to explore now. In order to reach our Challenge, first we must MEASUREABLE OBJECTIVE 4. CURRENT STATE The reality compared to the Target Condition. After measuring, we know our current state is MEASUREABLE STATE
54. 10 Minutes BREAK
55. Who is going to use this product? PERSONAS
56. Who is going to use this product? PERSONAS DRAW A FACE GIVE A NAME BEHAVIORS NEEDS/GOALS HOW WILL WE SERVE? ROLE RESPONSIBILITIES
57. Who is going to use this product? PERSONAS DRAW A FACE GIVE A NAME BEHAVIORS NEEDS/GOALS HOW WILL WE SERVE? ROLE RESPONSIBILITIES
58. Who is going to use this product? PERSONAS DRAW A FACE GIVE A NAME BEHAVIORS NEEDS/GOALS HOW WILL WE SERVE? ROLE RESPONSIBILITIES
59. Who is going to use this product? PERSONAS DRAW A FACE GIVE A NAME BEHAVIORS NEEDS/GOALS HOW WILL WE SERVE? ROLE RESPONSIBILITIES
60. Who is going to use this product? PERSONAS DRAW A FACE GIVE A NAME BEHAVIORS NEEDS/GOALS HOW WILL WE SERVE? ROLE RESPONSIBILITIES
61. CRAFT STORY, PRIORITIZE, & SLICE USER STORY MAPPING (40 MIN)
62. FRAMEWORK FOR BRAINSTORMING PRODUCTS USER STORY MAPPING 1. TELL A STORY The story is simply a list of steps or actions that the hypothetical user you’re designing for makes during a specific timeframe. ACTION ACTION ACTION ACTION ACTION ACTION ACTION ACTION
63. FRAMEWORK FOR BRAINSTORMING PRODUCTS USER STORY MAPPING 2. GROUP THE ACTIONS Actions should be grouped to help us understand which parts of the story we’re discussing. ACTION ACTION ACTION ACTION ACTION ACTION ACTION ACTION GROUP NAME GROUP NAME GROUP NAME
64. PERSONA PERSONA PERSONA FRAMEWORK FOR BRAINSTORMING PRODUCTS USER STORY MAPPING 3. ASSIGN PERSONAS Assign the appropriate personas that would interact with various pieces of the story. You will have duplicates. ACTION ACTION ACTION ACTION ACTION ACTION ACTION ACTION ACTION GROUP ACTION GROUP ACTION GROUP ACTION ACTION ACTION ACTION ACTION ACTI ACTION GROUP PERSONA PERSONA PERSONA PERSONA
65. PERSONA PERSONA PERSONA FRAMEWORK FOR BRAINSTORMING PRODUCTS USER STORY MAPPING 4. BRAINSTORM IDEAS Break the story down into tasks and user interface details. Don’t be afraid to split ideas, rewrite, and reorganize. ACTION ACTION ACTION ACTION ACTION ACTION ACTION ACTION ACTION GROUP ACTION GROUP ACTION GROUP ACTION ACTION ACTION ACTION ACTION ACTI ACTION GROUP PERSONA PERSONA PERSONA PERSONA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDE IDE
66. PERSONA PERSONA PERSONA FRAMEWORK FOR BRAINSTORMING PRODUCTS USER STORY MAPPING 5. PRIORITIZE IDEAS Break the story down into tasks and user interface details. Don’t be afraid to split ideas, rewrite, and reorganize. ACTION ACTION ACTION ACTION ACTION ACTION ACTION ACTION ACTION GROUP ACTION GROUP ACTION GROUP ACTION ACTION ACTION ACTION ACTION ACTI ACTION GROUP PERSONA PERSONA PERSONA PERSONA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDE IDE
67. OPTIONAL PRIORITIZATION EXERCISE WHEN NEEDED VALUE/EFFORT PRIORITIZATION VALUE EFFORT LOW HIGH LOW HIGH
68. OPTIONAL PRIORITIZATION EXERCISE WHEN NEEDED VALUE/EFFORT PRIORITIZATION VALUE EFFORT LOW HIGH LOW HIGH IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA
69. OPTIONAL PRIORITIZATION EXERCISE WHEN NEEDED VALUE/EFFORT PRIORITIZATION VALUE EFFORT LOW HIGH LOW HIGH IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA DANGER ZONE IGNORE THESE
70. OPTIONAL PRIORITIZATION EXERCISE WHEN NEEDED VALUE/EFFORT PRIORITIZATION VALUE EFFORT LOW HIGH LOW HIGH IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA LOW HANGING
71. OPTIONAL PRIORITIZATION EXERCISE WHEN NEEDED VALUE/EFFORT PRIORITIZATION VALUE EFFORT LOW HIGH LOW HIGH IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA DANGER ZONE BREAK THESE DOWN
72. OPTIONAL PRIORITIZATION EXERCISE WHEN NEEDED VALUE/EFFORT PRIORITIZATION VALUE EFFORT LOW HIGH LOW HIGH IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA IDEA FOCUS HERE
73. 10 Minutes BREAK
74. MAKE IT REAL PROTOTYPE (40 MIN)
75. TIME TO SHOW OFF DEMO