Commercial Ethnography

Innovating Information Experiences

James Kalbach

User Experience Design LexisNexis

LIS Degree Rutgers University

Direct Observations

Natural Setting

Participant Observers

‘Thick Descriptions’

Life is Complex

Image from: www.pbase.com/drasko/mindoro_tribes

Holistic

Observational

Ethnography is…

Qualitative

Context

Engagement

Naturalistic

Subject centredNaivety

Flexible

Evolving

Thick Descriptions

a.k.a. Field Studies, Workplace Studies, Cultural ProbesImmersive Research, Design Ethnography

Commercial Ethnography

Meet business needs1. Accelerated time scales2. Focused themes3. Directed observation

Strategic impactInnovation

• Beyond what people say

• Unexpressed needs

• Real world visible

• Longevity of data

• Fuels creativity

• Innovation opportunities

Informs your intuition

Benefits

1 Evangelise

2 Prepare

3 Conduct

4 Analyse

5 Ideate

6 Validate

Our Approach

Demonstrate value

Cost = Usability test

Make business arguments

– Business literature

– Competitors

– Success stories

Find a champion

1. Evangelise

P&G spends for more time living

with people in there homes,

shopping with them in stores,

and being part of their lives. This

total immersion leads to richer

consumer insights, which helps

identify innovation opportunities

that are often missed by

traditional research.

“

„

Start small - 6 participants

Outside of project lifecycle

Recruiting

Interviews at workplace

Define business objectives

2. Prepare

Observational interviews

Open questioning, but semi-structured

Exemplary tasks & typical day

Critical incident

Record audio and take photos

Bring sponsors

3. Conduct

EnvironmentIndustryOrganisationPhysical EnvironmentTechnical Setup

OpportunitiesPains/Pleasures Known Needs & Ideas

Effectiveness/Ineffectiveness Efficiencies/Inefficiencies

Workarounds Novel Technologies

ArtefactsToolsResourcesWork Products

People & WorkActorsRolesWork Activities

Observations

4. Analysis

I prefer directed observation:

search out the workarounds,

hacks, and clever

improvisations of everyday

life. That’s where the answers

lie: someone else has already

encountered the need,

someone else has already

hinted at a solution.

“

„“Workarounds and Hacks – The Leading Edge of Innovation,” interactions (Aug 2008)

Long Way1. Transcribe session2. Code text with

themes3. Find patterns

Effort for a 2-hour interview

• Transcription: very long

• Coding: 8 hours

Analysis

Short Way1. Spreadsheet with

themes2. (Re-listen to

interviews)3. Fill in columns4. Find patterns

Effort for a 2-hour interview

• Transcription: none• Coding: 2-4 hours

Data = Text + Observations

WorkshopMake findings visibleBrainstorm

OutcomesIdeas for new products and

servicesEnhancements to existing product

Assign ownership

Delivering a report is not the goal

5. Ideate

Re-visit users Discuss findingsShow them deliverables

PersonasScenariosDiagramsProduct ideas

In groups or individually

6. Validate

Why do lawyers prefer paper?– Habit– Reading online– Security – Backup– Dependency on third party – Portability– Annotations

Information Experience

Why do lawyers prefer paper?– Overview of information– Comparison of multiple sources – Visual aspects for organisation

• Colour coding– Physical aspects for workflow

• Piles to prioritize and sort• Location indicates task• Size shows how much work

Information Experience

One thing I find

helpful is sometimes

when matters cross

boundaries, you can

have three books

open on your desk at

the same time and

refer to all of them

at once.

I don’t know whether

that would be

possible if you were

looking online.

“

„

“Redefining the Reading Experience”

“With LexisNexis, everything is the same”

We had to out-book the

book “„

Tangible UI

Easy to Recognize

Shareable

Online > Offline

“Whenever we are organizing information, the book is too

powerful an idea to do without in some form or other.“ - David

Gelernter

• Observe the information experience

• Spend time on location

• Do user research

• Seek workarounds and hacks

• Create ‘thick descriptions’

• Focus research for business impact

• Involve stakeholders

Empathy for Users = Design Intuition

Conclusions

Thank You

www.experiencinginformation.com