Our User-focused Consulting Model
Our consultancy model is based closely on an international usability standard for human-centered design of interactive systems (ISO 9241-210).
The model is flexible and fits most product and software development processes. It provides a framework for our services and we adapt the model to ensure that it optimally fits your needs, depending on where you are in your development cycle.
1. Analyze the opportunity
This stage provides the business context. We work with you to identify the key stakeholders - both internal and external - and their expectations, requirements and success criteria, and we help you develop ways of managing these expectations throughout the design lifecycle. We can review your target market segments to ensure that you treat each segment differently.
2. Build the context of use
In this stage we develop a rich description of your customers and users, the environment in which they use the product or system, and a description of realistic activities and use scenarios. We use these to tease out the inherent psychological aspects of the customer experience so that you can consider these when you make design decisions.
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3. Create the user experience
This stage is at the core of the design cycle. It is an iterative process. We begin by agreeing key performance indicators for the product or system - quantitative measures, based on key customer and business requirements that the management team use to determine if the product is ready to release. Next we help you develop the user interaction, task flow or information architecture, starting with paper prototypes or models and then moving from low fidelity to high fidelity interactive prototypes. Then we test for usability by using both domain experts and representative customers and users.
3. Track usage and improve the product
We know that your customer is a moving target and that technology and competitive pressures change rapidly. We can help you revisit customer needs as they update their skills, and as their goals, tasks and environments change. We can also help you map usability measures to your key business measures to make sure you can relate your usability investment to your company's bottom line.