These slides were presented in a workshop at UX London 2011. The workshop covered the methods, soft skills, and strategies to help UX teams of one build their own careers and do their best work in a resource constrained environments. Includes an overview of different "types" of teams of one, challenges, and some useful methods.

1. Building a Practice
as a UX Team of One
Leah Buley · May 11, 2011 · Lisbon Portugal

2. The UX Team of One
Philosophy
1. UX is good.
2. The world needs more of it.
3. You can make that happen.

3. Our goal today:
This workshop will guide you in making an
18-month plan for your UX practice, and
help you identify specific tactics and
strategies to get you there.

4. Today...
9:00-9:45 Goals.
What motivates you? What are you working towards?
9:45-10:30 Challenges.
What obstacles might you encounter?
10:30-11:00 Break.
Don’t you want coffee? I know I do.
11:00-12:00 Methods.
Tactics and strategies for a variety of situations.
12:00-12:30 Plan.
What are your next steps?

5. Caveat:
We are all figuring this out—together.

6. How about you?
What do you want to learn today?

7. * Goals *

8. My horoscope on
August 27, 2009

9. ✘
✔
✔

10. This is about...
Strategies & Roadmaps
World Domination

11. [Experiment] Goals
Write down 3 developments you want to
see in your UX practice within 5 years.
Think about...
• Your role
• Your team
• Products you put into the world
• Your success stories
• Who your allies are
• Education (yours and others)
• Where you work
• How you work
• The culture you create & contribute to

12. * Challenges *

13. Hol
di
Ke
a basic
ng M
e
g
Buildin nding of
pin
No
y Gr
gU
ta
Pr
unders
oun
pW
oc
d
es
ith
UX 17%
Territory
s
Challenges
the
Disputes
Ind
5%
us
Status
try
Quo Getting
5%
permission t
o do
We Face Creative Is the work 13%
olation
6%
Communic
ating/
selling idea
No s 12%
Strategy
7% Just
Trying to
Politics
Do Good
7% Time
Work
8%
12%

14. Challenges We Face The usual human stuff
Fear of
A change
Fight-
rapidly Territory
changing i-ness
disputes
industry Little
strategy
Plus the politics
Lack of
understanding/
support for UX
But there’s too
much to do. Not
Foundation enough time.
No permission to
do user research /
UX So you just try to
do what you can
Tactics
Process
Leah Buley |

15. How change happens...
“I’ve been working on earning the
confidence of others to trust my judgment
and apply my design / 'suggestions'. Prior
to myself, the company had a UX team of
zero. The confidence was gained over
time as my input continually improved
product development. It is/was a difficult
path that has proved to be rewarding.”

16. B
Be up there, not down here.

17. [Experiment] Challenges
Write down all the challenges that are
currently standing in the way of your
ability to do good UX work.
Think about...
• Your role & responsibilities
• Your team
• Your company
• Your strengths & weakneses
• Prejudices and biases

18. [Experiment] Challenges
Now, working as a group, put all
your stickies together, and create
logical groupings. Think about...
• What challenges naturally go
together?
• What challenges stem from the
same problem?

19. * Methods *

20. Types of The Crossover
Teams of
One: The Doer
The Builder
The Independent

21. The
Crossover

22. The Crossover
Crossovers bring passion and fresh
perspective. They’re helping to spread
UX.
Challenges
- Permission to Focus
- Getting in Touch with the User
- Finding Ways to Do Good Design
Strategies
- Find Good Partners
- Do DIY Research
- Steal Inspiration Wherever You Can

23. Method: Heuristic Markup
How it works
1. Start at the beginning of the site or service
2. At each step, take screenshots or pictures
3. Write directly on the image what’s
confusing
How it gets others involved
Creates a very visual document that you can
send around to raise awareness of design
issues
Slide from presentation by MAYA Design
http://www.maya.com/portfolio/carnegie-library What questions it can answer
Basic awareness questions. What kinds of
issues does UX address? What opportunities
do we have for improvement?

24. Method: 5-Second Test
How it works
1. Show users a design for 5 seconds
2. Take it away
3. Ask them some questions about the design
4. See what they can remember
How it gets others involved
Invite team members to watch. Invite team
members to participant. Best if you can get
users involved too, of course.
What questions it can answer
Do we all agree on the goals of what we’re trying
to accomplish?
Where to learn more
uie.com/articles/five_second_test
fivesecondtest.com

25. Method: Collect Examples
How it works
1. Go to a site that collects good examples. (I like
The Webbys).
2. Create screenshots of everything you think
demonstrates the qualities your product
should have.
3. Do a quick analysis on what design choices
make it seem that way.
4. Send around the screenshots to others in your
company, sharing your thoughts.
How it gets others involved
Turns critique into an open dialogue. Invites a
culture of sharing ideas for how to improve the
product.
What questions it can answer
What design principles and aesthetics can be a
foundation for product changes.

26. The Doer

27. The Doer
Doers make things happen. But they
can be under-appreciated, and adrift in
their organizations.
Challenges
- Building Consistent Support for UX
- Communicating the Value of Design
- Coming in Too Late in the Process
Strategies
- Connect Professionally
- Focus on Relationships
- Offer Your Services
- Start Measuring ROI

28. Method: UX Health Checkup
How it works
1. Schedule a recurring meeting
2. Make a spreadsheet
3. Break the site into sections (e.g., search,
registration, etc.)
4. For each section, choose relevant comparators
5. For each section, grade how good it needs to be
vs. its comparators
6. For each section, grade how good IT IS vs. its
comparators
7. As a group, discuss the gaps
How it gets others involved
Invites others to regularly assess how the site/service
is doing
What questions it can answer
Where do we need to focus next?
For more information
http://www.slideshare.net/livlab/ux-health-check-
phillychi

29. Method: Product Definition Workshop
How it works
1. Schedule a meeting
2. Everyone draws their vision for the design
3. Everyone talks about their design
4. Everyone throws away their drawings, and draws
again
5. Everyone talks about what they drew
6. Repeat steps 4 and 5
7. Final designs should be closely aligned toward
shared group goals
How it gets others involved
Everyone gets to share their vision for design, and has
to listen to others
What questions it can answer
What are outlying ideas for the design vs. core shared
expectations

30. Method: Lunchtime UX
How it works
1. Brainstorm a list of the people who you need to or
would like to partner with.
2. Invite each one to a one-on-one lunch.
3. Ask your lunch date to talk about what their
working on. Probe to understand their goals,
challenges, etc. Ask about their frustrations or
concerns. Listen more than you talk.
4. Save time to ask your lunchdate about their vision
for the project or product.
How it gets others involved
It sets a precedent for positive working relationships,
and gives your partners a chance to share their
perspective outside of the context of formal meetings.
What questions it can answer
Where are there opportunities for UX to help. What are
the reasons why it sometimes faces opposition.

31. The Builder

32. The Builder
Builders have been doing UX work in
their organizations for a while, and are
starting to see real progress from it.
Often, they’re on the verge of starting
full-fledged UX teams.
Challenges
- Process
- Politics
- Relationship Management
Strategies
- Align With Business Goals
- Strategic Planning
- Pyramid Evangelism
- Build a Case to Grow Your Team

33. Method: Internal Survey
How it works
1. Send around a survey to internal
stakeholders
2. Ask them about their goals for the product,
what parts need improvement, and their
understanding of users
How it gets others involved
Invites others to share their expertise and
vision for the site/service. Creates a starting
point for further conversations (people will
want to hear what you found)
What questions it can answer
How much support for change is there? What
business goals do people expect the site/
service to serve?

34. Method: Case Studies
How it works
1. Create a one-sheet overview of a major
project you did.
2. Include images of the outputs, and a brief
write up of the goals, and what you’
accomplished.
3. Share with others, or simply keep the
stories well memorized in your back
pocket.
How it gets others involved
It makes it easier for you to explain the value
that UX provides, so others can see it too. Can
also be an opportunity to highlight the
involvement of colleagues.
What questions it can answer
What are the results of UX work? Why might
we want more of it?

35. Method: Pre-Meetings
How it works
1. Prior to an important meeting, list key
participants.
2. Think about senior decision makers, people
with informal influence, and the people
most likely to have reservations
3. Set up a pre-meeting with each of them to
preview the design work and invite their
one-on-one feedback.
4. If the reviews go well, you're golden. If not,
consider delaying the meeting.
How it gets others involved
It gives them time to think and ask questions.
It also makes them feel special.
What questions it can answer
What concerns are there? Where does the
support lie?

36. The Independent

37. The Independent
Independents are lone guns – people
who work for themselves, but contract
with other organizations or groups to
provide UX services. Independents are
the literal teams of one.
Challenges
- Building Business
- Contracting
- Being Positioned to Do Good Work
Strategies
- Promote Yourself
- Get a Lawyer
- Set Your Terms

38. Method: Project Brief
How it works
1. Create a one-page overview of the
project
2. Include vision, functional
requirements, and design principles
or user goals
3. Setup a meeting to review and
“redline” with others
How it gets others involved
Puts the goals of a UX project in an
appealing summary and invites people
to think about what you’re trying to
accomplish
What questions it can answer
Do we all agree on the goals of what
we’re trying to accomplish?

39. Method: Have a Contract
How it works
1. Talk to a lawyer.
2. Have them write a good contract.
How it gets others involved
Well, this one’s not so much about
involving others as protecting yourself.
But that sets you up to do more work
with more people in the future.
What questions it can answer
How do I protect myself in my business.
For more information
F*ck You. Pay Me.
http://vimeo.com/22053820

40. Method: Share What You Know
How it works
1. Think about your work experience.
What are the topics that you have hte
most expertise and passion for?
2. Establish a practice of regularly writing
about them.
3. When you do, tweet it.
4. If you’re feeling bold, submit ideas to
conferences to share what you know
with others.
How it gets others involved
You share your knowledge with others an
invite them to see you as an expert in your
area.
What questions it can answer
Is there demand for this topic? What else
should I be learning about and sharing?

41. Caveat:
We are all figuring this out—together.

42. [Experiment] Methods
Working as a group, pick one team of
How it works one profile. Brainstorm 3 new methods
What it to help them deal with their common
looks
challenges. Think about...
Tactics &
like
How gets gies
Stritateothers involved • Methods that address a common
✔ problem
✔
✔
✔
• Ways to adapt existing methods, but
take less time
What questions it answers • Methods that involve others and build
✔
✔ buy-in
• Methods that are self documenting

43. * The Plan *

44. Let’s put it all together.
Goals + Challenges + Methods
Tactics &
Strategies
✔
✔
✔
✔
✔
✔

45. [Experiment] Your Plan
Your Personalized Plan
Take 10 minutes
Within the next 18 months, what do I want to achieve? to fill out your
personal plan.
Think about...
My basic strategy/approach is: Three methods that will help me are:
• Ways to adapt
If I get everything I want from my plan, the impact will be: If I get the bare minimum that I want, the impact will be:
your goals
without
Some reasonable objections that people might have are: Two possible alternatives that I would be happy with if
compromising
things don't go quite as a I planned:
your values.

46. * Q&A *

47. Thanks!
Slides: http://www.slideshare.com/ugleah
Info: http://rosenfeldmedia.com/books/ux-team-of-one/
Me: leahbuley@gmail.com · @ugleah · www.ugleah.com