Business: Role of UX

In this edition of Ask UXmatters, our expert panel addresses scoping UX projects and what functions are within and outside the scope of User Experience. It seems that the definition of User Experience is constantly expanding. First, our experts discuss how the business community currently perceives the practice of User Experience in relation to their business. Then, we’ll explore some specifics such as:

• defining the scope of the project work an organization need to do
• how to manage change
• matching the skills of team members to the work
• how to accomplish the work within the allocated time and budget

One panelist asks us to consider whether it really matters if something is within the defined scope of User Experience. Read More

Because the screen has become the primary touchpoint between companies and their customers, more organizations are ratcheting up their spending on design and bolstering their design teams. Recent years have seen a flurry of design M&A (Mergers and Acquisitions) activity, with companies such as Salesforce, Verizon, Capital One, and many major consulting firms making a land grab for design talent. IBM has hired thousands of designers in its quest to become the world’s largest design company and reduce its designer to developer ratio from 1:72 to 1:8. Perhaps most telling of all, UX design is now the fifth most in-demand hard skill, according to recent LinkedIn data.

As someone who has worked in the design industry for nearly 20 years, I welcome these incredibly positive developments. However, it’s critical for both companies and design leaders to keep in mind that increasing headcount is not the only way to advance one’s design prowess. Read More

This month, the Ask UXmatters expert panel discusses how UX professionals can best collaborate with automated UX tools, considering the different, but complementary strengths of AI systems and human beings. Our experts also consider the deeper question of whether artificial-intelligence (AI) tools will replace UX researchers and designers and what the future holds for UX professionals working in an artificially intelligent environment.

Our experts also describe the respective roles of automated UX tools and UX researchers. Plus, they discuss the merits of automated versus moderated usability testing. Read More