theHFIUXMaturitySurvey2009Findings
KathStraubMonaPatelArnoBublitzJavierBroch
HumanFactorsInterna<onal,Inc.
Permanentloca<on:www.humanfactors.com/UXMSurvey‐2009
Introduc<on
TheHFIUXMaturitySurvey–2009/Findings
UserexperienceisthenewdifferenAatorincustomerservice.JustasserviceiskeytocustomersaAsfacAoninface‐to‐faceenvironments,customersaAsfacAonintheinternetageturnsonuser‐centereddesign,whetheryourworkfacesthecustomerortheorganizaAon’sstaff.ProvidingwebsitesthatcustomerscaneasilylearnandconfidentlyuseleadstoimprovedcustomersaAsfacAonandincreasedloyalty.Sites,applicaAons,andtoolsthataretask‐relevantandusableallowstafftocompletetasksmoreefficientlyandcosteffecAvely.ButhowrouAneisusability,really?DoorganizaAonshaveestablisheduserexperiencegroups?OrdouserexperienceprofessionalssAllfloatthrough,doingjust‐in‐(meworkandgrassrootsevangelizing?Whatdoteamslooklike?Howestablishedaretheestablishedgroups?Dotheyuseacommonmethod?Publishedstandards?ToolsthatsupportrobustresearchbestpracAcedesign?Training?DopracAAonersaggregateandsharetheirfindingsordoeseachprojectteamreinventthewheeleachAme?Andwhoreallydoesthework?
TobeYerunderstandthestateoftheindustry,HumanFactorsInternaAonalhasconductedthefirstsurveyofUXmaturitywithinorganizaAons.OurprimarygoalwastodevelopasnapshotoftheuserexperienceoperaAonswithinusabilityawareorganizaAonsworld‐wide.Second,wedevelopedTheUserExperienceMaturityChecklist.Takentogether,thefindingsandchecklisthelpusability/userexperienceprofessionalsunderstandwheretheirorganizaAonisonthepathtomaturity,andwhattodonext.WhileSchaffer’sUsabilityMaturitymodel,below,idenAfiesthehallmarksofafullymatureuserexperienceprogram,thereisnosingletemplateforanyorganizaAontoachieveusabilitymaturity.Aswenoteinourconcludingremarks,interpreAngthesurveyresultsaspartofalargeruserexperiencestrategyisaseparatesteprequiringafullassessmentofyourorganizaAon’ssize,culture,market,andmanagementchallenges.
Whatmakesausabilitygroupmature?
TheHFIUXMaturitySurvey–2009/Findings
Inhis2004book,InsAtuAonalizaAonofUsability:AStep‐by‐StepGuide,EricSchafferdescribesaroadmaptoinsAtuAonalizaAonwithinorganizaAons.Basedon25yearsofobservaAon,hedescribestheelementsandcharacterisAcsofmaturingandmatureusabilitypracAces.HedefinesthestagesofmaturaAon,anddescribesthelandminesthattypicallythwartprogressandthecontextsinwhichtheyoccur.HFI’sUsabilityMaturityModelSchafferindicatesthatusabilityoperaAonsarematurewhentheyintegrateallofthefollowingcomponents:
• AnExecuAveChampion• UserInterfaceStandards• ProfessionalStaff• Tools• Training• ShowcaseProjects
Execu<veChampionsAnexecuAvewhohasmadeaclearandvisiblecommitmenttopromoAngusabilitythroughouttheorganizaAon.TheexecuAvechampion’sroleistoeducatehisorherpeers,securefunding,andremoveorganizaAonalobstacles.TobeeffecAve,theexecuAvechampionmustbeattheSVPorC‐leveloftheorganizaAon,orequivalent,inordertoreachacrossthe“silos”ofparAculargroupsanddepartments.UserInterfaceStandardsDesignstandardsgobeyondbrandandidenAtytodefinetheunderlyinglook,feel,andflowofwebsitesandapplicaAonswithinanorganizaAon.Tobemeaningful,UserExperienceStandardsmustbeeasytofindandeasytouse.(Straub,2004)
ProfessionalStaffTobeeffecAve,usabilityteamsneedstafftosupportbothtacAcalandstrategiciniAaAves.MostesAmatessuggestthatanopAmalusabilitystaffwouldbe1/10ththesizeofthedevelopmentteam(s).Further,teammembersshouldrepresenttherangeofmulA‐disciplinaryskillsthatdefineuserexperiencedesigninthatbusinesssector,includingpsychologistsandresearchers,aswellashumanfactorsengineering,interacAondesign,visualdesignandanalyAcs/measurementspecialists.TeammembersshouldhaveformalusabilitytrainingthatissubstanAatedbydegreesorcerAficaAons.
Whatmakesausabilitygroupmature?
TheHFIUXMaturitySurvey–2009/Findings
ToolsAllindividualswhoaretaskedwithinterfacedesignshouldhaveopenaccesstoacommonsetofresourcestoeducateandsupportbestpracAcesinresearchprocessesandinterfacedesign.ThetoolsetshouldincludereusablearAfactsthatpracAAonerscanemploytostreamlinetheirwork.Thetoolsshouldbecustomizedtoreflecttheuserinterfaceandbrandingstandards.Aswithstandards,tobeuseful,toolsmustbeeasytofindandeasytouse.TrainingDifferentindividualsatdifferentlevelswithinorganizaAonsneedtounderstanddifferentinformaAonaboutusability.PracAAonersneedongoing,advancedtrainingonemergingmethods,evolvingbestpracAces,andcurrenttrendsacrossindustries.DevelopersneedtounderstandhowtoapplybestpracAcesandwhere/howtolookforaddiAonalguidanceortools.ExecuAvesmustbeabletocalculatereturnoninvestment(ROI)—whetherinimprovedrevenues,enhancedcustomersaAsfacAon,oranyothercriteriaspecifictothatorganizaAon—withoutnecessarilyknowingthemechanicsofusabilityorthecurrentbestpracAcesinuserexperiencedesign.MatureorganizaAonsofferongoing,regular,level‐appropriatetrainingopportuniAestoindividualsacrosstheorganizaAon.
ShowcaseProjectsMatureuserexperienceprogramsunderstandthatusabilityawarenessbeginswithexposure.Showcaseprojectsarehigh‐visibilityprojectsthatreceivesupportandrecogniAonthroughouttheprojectAmelineacrosstheorganizaAon.Matureprogramscreateanddistributecasestudiestorecognize,validate,anddisseminatethesuccessesoftheusabilitygroup.
Whatmakesausabilitygroupmature?
TheHFIUXMaturitySurvey–2009/Findings
ThematuritycomponentsthatSchafferdefinedin2004sAllholdtoday.However,sincethepublicaAonofhisbook,SchafferhasaddedtwoaddiAonalcomponentstothedefiniAonofmaturity:
• EnterpriseKnowledgeManagement• DigitalUXStrategy
EnterpriseKnowledgeManagementTheusabilityknowledgemanagementsystemshouldbethesingle,centralrepositoryforallresourcesandarAfactsrelatedtousabilityandthepracAceofusabilitywithinanorganizaAon.Usabilitygroupsaggregateandsharetheircharter,strategy,standards,reusableresearch,anddesignarAfacts(e.g.,personas,graphicslibrary)inacommonlocaAon.Matureusabilitygroupsalsoshareandcross‐referencereportsandobservaAons,streamliningtheresearchprocess,andcreaAngcostefficiencies.Whenkeylearningscanbeefficientlyaccessedandapplied,organizaAonsdonothaveto“startfromscratch”witheverysubsequentproject.DigitalUXStrategyMatureusabilityorganizaAonshaveaclear,acAonableDigitalUXStrategythatidenAfiestouchpointsandsynergiesofusabilityacrosstheinwardandoutward‐facingcustomercommunicaAonsystems.TheDigitalUXStrategyprioriAzesuserexperienceasanorganizaAonalsuccessdriverbycreaAngaccountabilityformeasurablesuccesscriteriawhicharereportedtoanexecuAvegovernancecommiYeeatregularintervals.Buildingtheseelementsandresourcestakesleadership,Ame,andeffort.Butthefirststepisawareness.IfyouparAcipatedinthesurvey,atleastonepersonatyourorganizaAonisaware.ReadontofindouthowyourorganizaAon’susabilitymaturitycompareswiththatofusability‐awareorganizaAonsaroundtheglobe.
TheSurvey
TheHFIUXMaturitySurvey–2009/Findings
TheSurveyHFIdevelopedtheUserExperiencePracAceMaturitySurveytocaptureacomparaAvesnapshotofthematurityofusabilityoperaAonsaroundtheworld.ThecomponentsofmaturitywerederivedprimarilyfromSchaffer(2004).ThesecomponentswereaugmentedbyHFI’ssubsequentfieldresearch/consulAngobservingthesequenceforemergenceofkeysuccesscomponentswithindevelopingusabilitypracAces.SurveyrespondentswererecruitedthroughHFImailinglistsandvariousaffiliatedsocialnetworkingchannels.Someevidenceofviralrespondingwasobserved.Thesurveywaspresentedin3languages(English,SpanishandGerman).Individualscouldrespondfrom1April2009through15April2009.Inall,1836individualsiniAatedthesurvey.1123respondentscompletedtheenAresurvey.Thesummariespresentedherereflectcompletedsurveys.Inreturnfortheireffort,parAcipantswereenteredintoadrawingtoreceiveafree1hourstrategicconsulAngsessionwithDr.EricSchaffer,FounderandCEOofHFI,andauthorofInsAtuAonalizaAonofUsability:AStep‐by‐StepGuide.
Animportantnotetoreaders…
Thedatareportedhereoffersaprac<<onerlevelanalysisofUXmaturity.ItanswersthequesAon:WhatproporAonof(responding)pracAAonersfeeltheyworkinamatureusabilitypracAce?ThisstudyisNOTanorganizaAonallevelanalysis.Thatits,itdoesnotanswertheques<on:Whatpercentageorganiza<onshavematureusabilityprac<ces?
Thisisbecausewithinthecurrentanalysis,mulAplerespondentsfromthesameorganizaAonarecounted.IndividualorganizaAonsarerepresentedmorethanonce.WhenyouarethinkingabouttheimplicaAonsofthissurveyinrelaAontoyourorganizaAon,pleasebemindfulofthatdisAncAon.
WebsiteBuilders:Wedesign/buildwebsites(includingweb‐basedapplicaAons).Applica<on/So[wareBuilder:Wedesign/build/selloff‐the‐shelfand/orcustomizedsoowareproducts.Applica<on/WebsiteUsers:WebuyorbuildapplicaAonsorwebsitestorunourbusiness,butourcustomerstypicallydon'tseethem.eCommerceBusiness:Wedomostorallofourcustomer‐facingbusinessviatheweb.WebsiteDesigners:Wedesignwebsitesand/orapplicaAons,butwedon'tbuildthem.ProductDesigner:Wedesignphysicalproducts.
Howinterfacedesignfits….?
TheHFIUXMaturitySurvey–2009/Findings
ArgenAnaAustraliaAustriaBelgiumBoliviaBrazilBulgariaCanadaChinaColombiaCostaRicaCountryCzechRepublicDenmarkEgyptEstoniaFinlandFrance
GermanyHongKongIndiaIrelandIsraelItalyLithuaniaMalaysiaMexicoNetherlandsNewZealandNorwayPakistanPanamaPeruPhilippinesPolandPortugal
RomaniaRussianFederaAonSerbiaSingaporeSloveniaSouthAfricaSpainSwedenSwitzerlandTaiwanTurkeyUnitedArabEmiratesUnitedKingdomUnitedStatesUruguay
Whereweretherespondentsfrom?
>100respondents40‐99respondents10‐39respondents>10respondents
TheHFIUXMaturitySurvey–2009/Findings
Conclusions
TheHFIUXMaturitySurvey–2009/Findings
Ifyoueavesdropinelevators,youwillhearthatusabilityhastransformedfromabusinessdifferenAatortoarouAnecomponentofbusinesspracAce.Tosomeextentthisistrue.HFI’sUXMaturitySurveyindicatesthatstable,visible,internalusabilityanduserexperiencegroupswithexecuAvesupporthavebecomesignificantlymoreprevalentsinceSchaffer(2004)outlinedtheelementsofamatureusability/userexperiencepracAce.ButhavingapresenceisnotthesameashavingapracAce.ThemostcommonchallengesfacedbydevelopingUsabilityPracAcestodayare:
• NorealexecuAvechampion• NocentralizedfuncAon• EnergyandExecuAvesupport,butnoStrategy• Ateamthatreinventsthewheel
NoRealExecu<veChampionOverhalfofrespondentsindicatedthattheirusabilityeffortslackedatrueexecuAvechampion.BecauseofthelackoforganizaAonalrecogniAonand,byextension,funding,theseteamsareconstantlyin“triage”mode.Theydogreatwork–butitisjust‐in‐Ame.Becausetheyarejustkeepingup,thegrouprarelyhasAmetodevelop–muchlessdisseminate–thefoundaAonalresearchortoolsthatcouldbebenefittheorganizaAonasawhole.OverAme,teamsinthissituaAonlosetheirmomentum.Teammembersarereabsorbedintorolesthatsoundlikeusabilityroles(e.g.,BusinessAnalyst)orrelatedcomponentsoftheorganizaAon.CulAvaAngatrueexecuAvechampionisthenecessarynextstepforusabilitypracAcesatthisstage.
NoCentralizedFunc<onOrganizaAons–eventhosewithusabilityawareness–canfailtorecognizetheimportanceofavisible,centralizedfuncAon.Free‐floaAngtalentimprovesuserexperience,butinaspoYyway.UsabilitypracAAonerstendtofindthemselvesdoingothertypesofwork(e.g.,coding.)Further,thelackofvisiblerecogniAonthatusability/userexperiencerepresentsadiscreteskillsetreinforcesthemyththatusabilityisjustcommonsense.IndividualswithoutausabilitybackgroundconAnueto“dousability.”Evenwitharealchampion,distributedprofessionalscanrarelyachievethemomentumnecessarytobuildtheresourcesthatmarkamaturepracAce.(Thosewhodo,findthemselvespartofacentralizedgroup.)CreaAngacentralizedpracAceorfuncAonisthenextstepfororganizaAonsatthisstage.
Conclusions
TheHFIUXMaturitySurvey–2009/Findings
EnergyandExecu<veSupport,butNoStrategyAnunanAcipatednumberoforganizaAonshaveestablishedusabilitygroupswhichoperatewithnoclearcharter,governance,oraccountability.WithinthisconfiguraAon,usabilitygroupscandrivesubstanAalandvaluableimprovementstouserexperience.ButtheseimprovementsarenotopAmallylinkedtothecurrentbusinessstrategyorprioriAes.Assuch,Ame‐sensiAveopportuniAescanooenbemissed.EngagingtheexecuAvesuitetocreateavision&direcAondocumentandengageinstrategyisthenextstepfororganizaAonsatthisstage.ATeamthatReinventstheWheelOrganizaAons–includingthosewithmatureUsabilitypracAces–systemaAcallyfailtorecognizethevalueinreusablework.Reportsaregeneratedbutrarelycollectedandcategorizedforfutureuse.Withoutacentralrepositorytogatherfindingsandaninfrastructurethatsupportsmeta‐taggingandaccess,organizaAonsmaygatherthesameinsightsoverandover.Theinsightsarethere–ifyouknowtherightpersontoask.LongAmeteammemberscanbecomea“warehouse”forinsightsonagivenconsumergrouporproduct.TheperceivedcontribuAonsandvalue‐to‐costraAoofusabilitygroupsinthissituaAonislimited.OrganizaAonsinthissituaAonneedtocreateasystemtoarchiveandtagtheiroutputthatencouragesfindability,use,andreuse.
Havingapresenceisnotthesameashavingaprac<ce
AsmanysurveyparAcipants(andreaders)know,havingatalentandpassionforusabilityisnotenough.Forateamtobetrulysuccessful,seniorleadershipmustparAcipateacAvely.UlAmately,eachofthesescenariosreflectsafailureofexecuAveleadershiptounderstandandcommitthenecessaryenergy,supportandresourcestorealizethefullpromiseofusability.
What’snext…
TheHFIUXMaturitySurvey–2009/Findings
HFI’slong‐standingrelaAonshipwithnumerousFortune500companies–halfoftheFortune50,infact–enablesustoperformongoingresearchonthesynergisAcbenefitsthatlong‐terminsAtuAonalizaAonofuserexperience,supportedbyconAnuousexecuAvechampionship,isprovidingsuccessfulenterpriseorganizaAons.UsabilitymaturityisbydefiniAonlong‐termratherthanaquickfix,andouranalysisconsistentlyrevealsincreasinglydeeplevelsofbenefitthataccruetotheorganizaAon.
Wheredoyoustand?HumanFactorsInternaAonalconductedthissurveytodevelopasnapshotoftheuserexperienceoperaAonswithinusability‐awareorganizaAonsaroundtheworld.ThenwedevelopedtheUserExperienceMaturityChecklist(seeAppendixA).ThechecklistevaluatesyourownorganizaAon’susabilitymaturityandactsasanext‐stepguide.EvenwithSchaffer’susabilitymaturitycriteria,however,thereisnoone‐size‐fits‐allapproachtousabilitymaturity.Inthefinalanalysis,thesetofusabilitychallengesyourorganizaAonfacesisunique.Thesize,structure,marketandcultureofyourorganizaAonalldeterminethepathitneedstotaketousabilitymaturity,inaddiAontoitspresentlevelofuser‐centricityandthetypesofmanagement“syndromes”thatmustbeovercome.ForsomeorganizaAons,theresultsofthissurveywillclearlysuggestauserexperiencestrategythatwillmoveittowardstheinsAtuAonalizaAonofusability.Formany,however,workingwiththeexperienceduserexperiencestrategistsatHumanFactorsInternaAonalwillbethemosteffecAvewaytointerpretandapplythesurveydatafromthissurveytotheirpresentlevelofusabilitymaturity.
References
TheHFIUXMaturitySurvey–2009/Findings
Schaffer,E.(2004),TheInsAtuAonalizaAonofUsability:Astep‐by‐stepguide.AddisonWesley:NewYork.Straub,K.(2004),OntheMeta‐UsabilityofUserInterfaceStandards(orIfthedevelopercan'tuseit,thestandardisnotthere).UserInterfaceDesignUpdatenewsleYer,availablefromwww.humanfactors.com/downloads/aug04.asp.