1. User Centred Design
Laura Massa

2. Summary UCD (User Centred Design) Introduction Standard ISO 13407
Methods to realise standard ISO 13407
TRUMP Project
Generalities
Methods
Applications

3. What Is User Centred Design?
Is an approach to software development which focuses specifically on making products usable
The usability of a product is defined in a standard: ISO 9241, part 11 as
‘the extent to which a product can be used by specified users to achieve specified goals with effectiveness, efficiency and satisfaction in a specified context of use’

4. Why User Centred Design?
To obtain a software which
is easier to understand and use, thus reducing training costs
improves the quality of life of users by reducing stress and improving satisfaction
significantly improves the productivity and operational efficiency of individual users and consequently the organisation

5. UCD and Other Methods
In other methods for designing software applications the stress is placed on meeting the technical and functional requirements for the software
In this method it is equally important to consider usability requirements

6. Summary UCD (User Centred Design) Introduction Standard ISO 13407
Methods to realise standard ISO 13407
TRUMP Project
Generalities
Methods
Applications

7. UCD Standard
User centred design is based on a standard: ISO (Human Centred Design Processes for Interactive Systems)

8. Main Principles In line with the ISO 13407 standard
appropriate allocation of function between user and system
it is needed to determinate which aspects of a job or task should be handled by people and which can be handled by software
active involvement of users
to utilise people who have real insight into the context in which an application will be used
iteration of design solutions
iterative software design entails the feedback of end-users following their use of early design solutions
multi-disciplinary design teams
user-centred software development is a collaborative process which benefits from the active involvement of various parties, each of whom have insights and expertise to share

9. The Four Essential Activities(1)
According to the ISO standard there are four essential user-centred design activities which should be undertaken to incorporate usability requirements into the software development process
understand and specify the context of use
specify the user and organisational requirements
produce designs and prototypes
carry out user-based assessment

10. The Four Essential Activities(2)
The activities are carried out in an iterative fashion, with the cycle being repeated until the particular usability objectives have been attained
start
Understand and specify the context of use
Carry out user based assessment
Specify the user and organisational requirements
Produce prototypes
Meets requirement

11. Understand and Specify the Context of Use for the System(1)
The quality of use of a system depends very much upon the context in which a system will be used
In some cases contextual information may already be known; although, where a new product or system is to be introduced, then it will be necessary to collect the relevant contextual information

12. Understand and Specify the Context of Use for the System(2)
At the end the following aspects are understood
the characteristics of the intended users
the tasks the users will perform
the environment in which the users will use the system
The results of this initial activity are embodied in a document which describes the context of use for the proposed software

13. Specify the User and Organisational Requirements
Building on the context of use description obtained before, an explicit statement of the user-centred requirements for the new software should be formulated
There are various methods which can help define these requirements, but some elements (as listed in ISO 13407) should be covered in the specification (next slide)

14. Important Elements
identification of the range of relevant users and other personnel in the design
provision of a clear statement of design goals
an indication of appropriate priorities for the different requirements
evidence of acceptance of the requirements by the stakeholders or their representatives
acknowledgement of any statutory or legislative requirements, for example for health and safety

15. Produce Designs and Prototypes
explore design solutions by creating simple mock-ups of the proposed system and then later presenting them to a representative sample of users
the initial design will be refined in light of user feedback
the key goal is to
simulate the design solution(s) using paper or computer-based mock-ups

16. Avantages of Using Prototypes
The activity fosters greater communication between the development team and end-users
Simple prototypes also allow different design options to be explored prior to coding allowing future problems to be identified early on in the development process

17. Carry Out User-based Assessment of the System or Prototype
help providing further information for refining the design
is comprised of the following steps:
evaluation plan
data collection and analysis
reporting the results and recommendations for change
iterate this activity until design (and usability) objectives are met
tracking changes, maintenance and follow-up

19. Summary UCD (User Centred Design) Introduction Standard ISO 13407
Methods to realise standard ISO 13407
TRUMP Project
Generalities
Methods
Applications

20. Methods (1)
There is a range of methods which can be used to achieve the goals of user-centred software development
Planning
Usability planning
For each feature in which an investment is to be made in usability work, one or more tasks are identified
Cost-benefit analysis
a generic framework for identifying the costs and benefits associated with user-centred design activity
Usability context analysis
a structured method for eliciting detailed information about a product and how it will be used

21. Methods (2) Expert-based evaluation and inspection Early prototyping
Heuristic evaluation
technique used to identify potential problems that operators can be expected to meet when using a computer or a telematics application
Usability walkthrough
users, developers and usability specialists review a set of designs individually, and then meet to discuss each element of the design in a walkthrough meeting
Early prototyping
Paper prototyping
Paper prototyping: Designers create a paper-based simulation of interface elements (menus, dialogues, icons etc.) using paper, card, acetate, and pens
Video prototyping
Video prototyping: this is a variant of paper-prototyping that makes use of video equipment to create short movies of the paper interface

22. Methods (3) Usability performance evaluation Subjective assessment
User-based observation
A small number of participants work with system while an observer makes notes
Co-operative evaluation
Users employ a prototype as they work through task scenarios. They explain what they are doing by talking or 'thinking-aloud' and this is recorded on tape and/or captured by an observer
Subjective assessment
Cognitive workload
For example this can be obtained from questionnaires
Focus groups
bring together various stakeholders in the context of a facilitated but informal discussion group
Individual interviews
are a quick and cheap way to obtain subjective feedback from users

23. Summary UCD (User Centred Design) Introduction Standard ISO 13407
Methods to realise standard ISO 13407
TRUMP Project
Generalities
Methods
Applications

24. Trump Project (1)
has, in its objectives, the integration of user centred methods into the development process
is part funded by the European Commission under ESPRIT project 28015
involved three partners and one subcontractor; Serco Usability Services co-ordinated the project and provided the usability expertise to the user partners, Inland Revenue and Israel Aircraft Industries. Lloyd's Register provided independent assessment of the usability maturity before and after the application at IR

25. Trump Project (2) gives some methods which respond to ISO 13407
Stakeholder Meeting, Paper Prototyping, Usability Testing are three basic methods

26. Stakeholder Meeting (1)
To collect and agree information about
Why is the system being developed? What are the overall objectives?
Who are the intended users and what are their tasks?
What are the technical and environmental constraints?
What key functionality is needed to support the user needs?
How will the system be used? What are typical scenarios of how and why users will interact with the system?
What are the usability goals?
How will users obtain assistance?
Are there any initial design concepts?

27. Stakeholder Meeting (2)
Method
Planning
Arrange a one-day meeting
Invite stakeholders who have knowledge about the intended users and usage, including project manager, different types of user and developer(s)
Need a facilitator and a person to record the information provided during the meeting
Produce a list of issues to be discussed and a detailed context of use checklist
Before the meeting
Identify the key issues you need to explore
Provide all participants with the agenda and a copy of the context checklist

28. Stakeholder Meeting (3)
At the meeting
After discussing the major issues, discuss and fill in each item on the context checklist
After the meeting
Obtain any missing information; if the information is not easily available, arrange a field study to observe users in their work environment
Circulate to all participants a summary of the conclusions of the meeting, and the filled in checklist.

29. Paper Prototyping(1) Method
To enable draft interaction designs and screen designs to be very rapidly simulated and tested
Method
Planning
Arrange a workshop attended by user(s) and developer(s)
You will also need a facilitator and a person to record the issues raised during the meeting
Four stages of paper prototyping may be required
concept design
interaction design
screen design
screen testing

30. Paper Prototyping(2) 1. Concept design 2. Interaction design
Sit round a table and sketch out possible approaches in a brainstorming environment
Evaluate the extent to which each approach meets the objectives agreed in the stakeholder meeting
2. Interaction design
Brainstorm possible screens or page types based on user tasks
Write the name of each suggested screen or page on a post-it-note.
Put each post-it-note on the wall close to related notes.
Group the post-it-notes in clusters that are meaningful to users.
Consolidate duplicates
Give a name to each cluster

31. Paper Prototyping(3) 3. Screen design 4. Screen testing
Sit round a table and sketch out design ideas in a brainstorming environment
Use this as a basis for rough sketches of each screen
Produce a rough design for each screen drawn by hand, or using a drawing package or prototyping tool
4. Screen testing
Ask the user to carry out a realistic task
As the user selects options on each screen, the developer explains what happens, and either points to the next screen or presents the next screen to the user
To test more detailed interaction, prepare pieces of paper with menus, scroll boxes, dialogue boxes, etc., and present these to the user when they select the appropriate option. The user simulates pointing and clicking using a pencil, and simulates typing by writing on paper

32. Usability Testing(1) Method
To identify usability problems and obtain measures of usability
Method
Planning
Select the most important tasks and user groups to be tested
Select users who are representative of each user group
Produce a task scenario and input data and write instructions for the user
Plan sessions allowing time for giving instructions, running the test, answering a questionnaire, and a post-test interview
Invite developers to observe the sessions
If possible use one room for testing, linked by video to another room for observation

33. Usability Testing(2) Running sessions
Welcome the user, and give the task instructions
Do not give any hints or assistance unless the user is unable to complete the task
Observe the interaction and note any problems encountered
Time each task
At the end of the session, ask the user to complete a satisfaction questionnaire
Interview the user to confirm they are representative of the intended user group, to gain general opinions, and to ask about specific problems encountered
Assess the results of the task

34. Usability Testing(3) Reporting
Produce a list of usability problems, categorized by importance (use post-it-notes to sort the problems), and an overview of the types of problems encountered
Arrange a meeting with the project manager and developers to discuss whether and how each problem can be fixed
If measures have been taken, summarise the results of the satisfaction questionnaire, task time and effectiveness (accuracy and completeness) measures

35. Case Study of LAHAV
TRUMP applied methods to realize UCD in the LAHAV division of Israel Aircraft Industries (IAI) in Israel
IAI LAHAV division has a group of about 100 people developing aircraft avionics and uses a well-established development methodology, but their process for specifying operational requirements is not supported by any specific methods and techniques
The TRUMP project was undertaken as one of the process improvement activities at IAI

36. Benefits from Joining TRUMP
They found out that most methods are quiet intuitive and can be learnt on the job
The methods were practised by developers
They liked them and recommended to make them a standard in the development process
Another important point is a close link between process improvement and product improvement
In the TRUMP project the methods cost was extremely low and the results were obvious in the very short term

37. Cost benefits Cost-benefits were calculated Maturity assessments
The maturity briefings and assessments cost $5K in staff time
Development cost/benefits
IAI estimated that all the methods used resulted in savings in development costs of between $5K and $70K for each method, with a total saving of $330K. The cost of using the methods was only $22K, giving a cost-benefit ration of 1:15
Sales cost/benefits
Increased sales because customers would be more likely to buy the product were estimated to be $400K
Support cost/benefits
Reduced costs of training and support were estimated at £50K
Overall cost benefits
The overall costs of the maturity assessments and use of methods was $27K. The total estimated savings and increased sales is $780K, giving a cost-benefit ration of 1:29

38. References Handbook of User-Centred Design
Trump Project:

39. Usability Maturity Assessment
is used to identify any gaps in the organisations’ ability to apply user centred design
the assessment is based on the Usability Maturity Model, which consists of a list of activities that represent good practice in user centred design
in the assessments, each activity is rated on the scale:
Not performed Partly performed Largely performed Fully performed

40. Evaluation Plan any evaluation activity is planned for in advance
it’s needed the identification of relevant stakeholders
a group of representative end-users should be contacted to asking them to use the new system to achieve assigned tasks
at a more specific level the evaluation plan should identify
the roles for those people who will run the evaluation sessions
the aspects of the system to be evaluated
the tasks to be assigned to the users
the methodology and resources required for the evaluation

41. Data Collection and Analysis
users should normally work with the system to accomplish tasks
the evaluation should be carried out in accordance with the evaluation plan
the results should be treated as an integral part of the development process for the new system; they can be used to
obtain design feedback
compare the results with set criteria to decide whether the objectives have been met

42. Iterate This Activity Until Design (And Usability) Objectives Are Met
it is possible to carry out several iterations of the process in order to achieve the particular design or usability objectives (cost is relative low)
the process may shift from a relatively informal assessment of the prototype to more formal evaluations in a realistic context where the user is not helped or interrupted by the evaluator