building buy-in: internally positioning ux for executive impact

Building Buy-In: Internally Positioning UX

for Executive Impact

Psychology + User Experience + InnovationBrilliant Experience

John Whalen, PhD

Brilliant Experience Psychology + User Experience + Innovation

bit.ly/ux-impact #uxpa2016@johnwhalen

Brilliant Experience Psychology + Innovation + Design

Preamble

UXers are a wonderful bunch!‣ We are people pleasers

‣ We want the world to be a better place

‣ We foresee how the world could be

‣ We empathize with all sorts of folks


So why are our ideas not always welcomed with open arms???


Let’s start our journey by studying our empathy patterns for our colleagues

C-Suite Executive

When we interact with…

(Pompous Assholius)C-Suite Executive

Some might think…

Product Owner


(Randomnous Decisionasaurus)Product Owner

Some might think…

VP Marketing


(Delusionus of Grandeuronomus)VP Marketing

Some might think…

Developer


(No-can-do-opod and/or condescending-smurkasaurus)

Developer

Some might think…

We need to use those same UX superpowers to empathize with our colleagues!!!


If we want to move from…‣ Usability tester to insight generator

‣ Informing product to informing product roadmaps

‣ Utility player to strategic advisor


We need to use a roadmap for building buy in:

1. Demonstrate Value

2. Empathize and Evangelize

3. Get Embedded in the System

4. Become Strategic Partner


Why should you listen to me?‣ Years of experience

‣ Time with executives

‣ Distilling recent successes


Step 1. Demonstrate Value (with Usability Testing)

1a. Create Usability Seal team‣ Access the situation

‣ Adapt quickly

‣ Get the data

‣ Get out


1b. Have light footprint, big impact‣ Move fast (4 day turnaround)

‣ Provide “aspirations”, not “recommendations”

‣ Pick your battles (2/10)

‣ Measure impact


1c. Overshare‣ Share everything (Notes, Videos, etc.)

‣ Email 4 takeaways

‣ Share up


“We already knew it, but you Humanized it”

bit.ly/ux-impact #[email protected]/ux-impact #uxpa2016@johnwhalen

1d. Grow need for UX‣ Say YES to project requests

‣ Invite new teams to join in

‣ Sneak in some synthesis: Go deeper than asked


Step 1. Demonstrate Value (with Usability)

a. Create Usability Seal team

b. Have light footprint, big impact

c. Overshare

d. Grow need for UX


Step 2. Empathize and Evangelize

2a. Understand your Organization’s Psychology‣ Who rules the kingdom?

‣ What is measured?

‣ How are bonuses paid out?

‣ What has failed recently?


2b. Teach‣ “Reality” Show

‣ How UX fits into Agile

‣ Why data from 5 people matters

‣ How UX can make product better


2b. Teach (cont.)‣ How to UX research is done

- Building rapport

- Forming questions

- Letting participants answer

‣ How to engage UX team


How UX & Agile development might be integrated…


We are aware of your concerns…

SITE SAFETYDeaths resulting from lack of spec document0


2c. Translate findings‣ Why it matters

‣ Immersion rooms

‣ Video clips

‣ Not enough….Take people into the field…


Why it matters


Sample Translation

ROI Issue Quantity Impact Value

Increased Sales 3% Increase Total Sales: $75,000,000 $2,250,000

Decreased Support Costs 10% Decrese $90/incident * 14,000 $126,000

Late Design Changes 10 4x multiple x $175/hr

x 40 hrs $280,000

Total $2.656M



a. Understand your Org’s Psychology

b. Teach

c. Translate findings


Step 3. Get Embedded in the System

3a. Build leader-leader relationships

‣ What decision are you going to make?

‣ When do you need to make it?

‣ What is the risk if you don’t have the data?

‣ What we CAN do in the budget and time.


3b. Embed UXers into product teams‣ Collaborate on scope

‣ Provide regular stakeholder progress check-ins

‣ Co-own findings and decisions

‣ Did you notice the deceptively clever part of the above???


3b. Embed UXers into product teams (cont.)‣ Outcome:

- Understand pain points

- Provide speed

- Learn development plans

‣ Pro tip: Embed, but still own in UX


“I want my UX team to be independent and able to tell anyone the cold hard facts.”


3c. Provide Design Principles‣ Distill knowledge from multiple studies into pragmatic guide

‣ Encourage decisions based on: (a) principles, or (b) evidence


3d. Build Dataset‣ Satisfy the quants

‣ Show change over time

‣ Pro-tip: Always ask questions other teams love:

- Indifferent / Must Have / Delighter?

- Why our product? What is best part?

- How important is this feature to you?



a. Build leader-leader relationships

b. Embed UXers into product teams

c. Provide Design Principles

d. Build Dataset


Step 4. Become Strategic Partner

When UXers say:

Delight

Empathy

Disrupt

Synthesis

Prototype

Opportunity Mapping

Usability Testing

Heuristic review

Strategy

Iterative Design

Information Architecture

Feedback

Design-Thinking

Experience Journey


Executives hear:

Delight

Empathy

Disrupt

Synthesis

Experience Journey

PrototypeDesign-Thinking

Opportunity Mapping

Usability Testing

Heuristic review

Strategy

Iterative Design

Information Architecture

Feedback

$$$

COST OVERUN

BONUS RECINDED

MISSED METRICS

3 MORE MONTHSbit.ly/ux-impact #uxpa2016@johnwhalen

4a. Immerse Executives‣ Design as competitive advantage

‣ Numbers moved, efficiencies gained

‣ Opportunity: Research leads to

Insights, Product Innovation


“Anyone who has read the HBR gets the importance of UX, but that may not translate

into what it takes to do that.”


4b. Make the Shift to Strategic Partner

‣ Bring together multiple data sources

‣ Inform product, but also strategy

‣ Management training: Design Thinking


4c. Offer Insights for Sales and Marketing‣ Quotes

‣ Emotions

‣ Buyers/users’ mental model


4d. Reduce Operational Efficiencies‣ Calculate opportunity

‣ Iteratively test and improve



a. Immerse Executives

b. Make the Shift to Strategic Partner

c. Offer Insights to Sales and Marketing

d. Reduce Operational Efficiencies


In Summary

Steps to Building Executive Buy-In:

bit.ly/ux-impact http://linkedin.com/in/[email protected]

Step 1. Demonstrate Value

a. Create Usability Seal team

b. Light footprint, big impact

c. Overshare

d. Grow need for UX


a. Understand your Org’s Psychology

b. Teach

c. Translate findings


a. Build leader-leader relationships

b. Embed UXers into product teams

c. Provide Design Principles

d. Build Dataset


a. Immerse Executives

b. Make the Shift to Strategic Partner

c. Offer Insights to Sales and Marketing

d. Reduce Operational Inefficiencies

John Whalen [email protected] linkedin.com/in/johnwhalen

Psychology + Innovation + DesignBrilliant Experience

Thank you!