Mobile app design. what parts of a process are repetitious, frustrating or farcical? Medium is an open platform where 170 million readers come to find insightful and dynamic thinking. the transfer of information between organisations (or teams). Download Resume. is it possible to access the system, for expert review, or to use in anger? Conducting a contextual inquiry (CI) is one of the most powerful steps for studying a group’s UX and applying UCD. In an ideal world, a person would only need to complete a task once to achieve the desired outcome. Coffee is my fuel — you can buy me one if you want to boost the sketch-creation process! If I’m looking to create a more efficient point of sale system for grocery stores, I would observe someone using an existing point of sale system, taking notes on what works and what doesn’t work. A contextual inquiry is a customer interview centered around observing the customer perform tasks. Let the world know in the comments! Graduate with a focus on UX Design at University of Michigan. Contextual inquiry ( CI) is a user-centered design (UCD) research method, part of the contextual design methodology. 2. The product manager and I researched the top marketplaces among our competitors and tasked K2 users that fit the appropriate persona to test specific features of … Contextual Inquiry & Task Analysis (Team) Due: Thursday, April 30, 2015, 11:59 PM Overview In this assignment you will use the contextual inquiry methodology to learn more about the work/play/use practices of your target customers. The aim is to gain insight into a user’s work goals and tasks and the findings can greatly influence a user-centered system design. creating parallel documentation to detail how parts of system work. Moreover, the effort you make to visit where the product is used will be repaid in: There are many areas to look out for, including…. CI’s are just what you may think – it’s inquiring into the context of users’ everyday work and lives. The challenge of being a facilitator was not to ask hypothetical questions or reverting to a more traditional interview but, it was more of a session how he/she does the work in their own comfort zone to achieve their best work results. Will this impair usability? It’s getting research out of the lab and into the field to discover what users do and how they do it. The Appreciative Inquiry Steps. A weekly, ad-free newsletter that helps designers stay in the know, be productive, and think more critically about their work. What happens? Contextual inquiry, also known as site visits, or contextual interviewing, is a powerful method to ‘narrow the gap with reality’ when understanding, or making design decisions. According to UXPA’s Usability Body of Knowledge, a contextual inquiry is a semi-structured interview where you observe a user in their own environment, asking questions as they work to understand the motives behind their actions. administering data, or steps in a process, more than once. I’ve continued, mining my contextual inquiry war stories, to extend and expand on 8 typical patterns to watch out for…. Where possible become familiar with the system/process, perhaps by attending a training session. Guerrilla testing is an informal way to test ideas, get valuable feedback, and find … The interview data will … This may lead to…. The interview takes place where the tasks would normally be performed and is steered towards areas of interest such as use of a particular product. The impact of conducting studies intended for global market release or multiple environments of use can be invaluable as the learnings will include key differences between cultures. View my development work here . are there support logs and previous reports you can access and analyse? Conduct contextual research to identify the problem. Ethnographers Hugh Beyer and Karen Holtzblatt have identified four key principles of Contextual Inquiry.7 These principles help emphasize that the User Is Not Like Me. Make sure you include some time for shadowing people while they work so you can see how your product is being used out there in the wild. In A Positive Revolution in Change (2001), Cooperrider writes: “In Ai the arduous task of intervention gives way to the speed of imagination and innovation.Instead of negation, criticism, and spiraling diagnosis, there is discovery, dream, and design. Work. If diverse, why. Contextual inquiry is a semi-structured interview method to obtain information about the context of use, where users are first asked a set of standard questions and then observed and questioned while they work in their own environments. Which, where? Have you been using contextual inquiry in your user research? Contextual inquiry, also known as site visits, or contextual interviewing, is a powerful method to ‘narrow the gap with reality’ when understanding, or making design decisions. how busy, noisy or quiet is the workspace? This technique is a mix of qualitative research and user interviews. Medium is an open platform where 170 million readers come to find insightful and dynamic thinking. is there any cyclicality, perhaps seasonal or industry specific? Contextual Inquiry is a UX Research method that combines observation and interviewing. Because users are interviewed in their own environments, the analysis data is more realistic than laboratory data. Discover all Medium stories about Contextual Inquiry written in March of 2020. additional documentation produced locally by the team to support their work. In a contextual inquiry, the UX researcher observes how participants perform certain tasks in context and asks about their interactions. He is taking his first 400 level class, which is Compilers. User Interviews. EMAIL LINKEDIN TWITTER MEDIUM Find out what known issues people currently experience. Medium Task - Finding Information on a Concept Jason is a 19 year old Computer Science student. come prepared to take photos, or make copies, or any artefacts uncovered. Interviewing seems pretty simple-just talk with people and ask questions. creating convoluted pathways through a system to avoid a specific area/function. what happens at peak times (and vice-versa)? The lesson plan that was developed in the form of inquiry contextual learning model. Medium writer passionate about sharing design stories. diversity, rather than conformity, in individual ways of contributing to case/piecework. following superstition about how the system needs to be used so that it ‘works’. There is lots of information about how to set-up and run a contextual inquiry, but not so much on what to look for. how easy is it to access effective help and support? Interviewing seems pretty simple-just talk with people and ask questions. When uncovered these can inspire design changes, either through new functionality or by eliminating problem areas. be prepared to make/export screen recordings and screenshots. Hugh Beyer and Karen Holtzblatt, who invented a particular approach to customer interviews known as contextual inquiry, explain why this is important: "Running a good interview is less about following specific rules than it is about being a certain … Product Management. using additional software/hardware to meet a common need during a task. https://uxmastery.com/conducting-contextual-enquiry-or-site-visits Contextual Inquiry examines what people desire and expect from an application interface and what matters to individuals in a particular task or process. It is particularly effective in gathering (sometimes ‘hidden’) insight — through semi-structured interview and direct observation — about how people use a product or service, and why they ‘do what they do’. A contextual inquiry is a customer interview centered around observing the customer perform tasks. Toxic traits that need addressing in any design team, Avant-Garde Aesthetics and the Fusion of Old and New Materials, We’re About to Witness the Greatest Wealth Transfer In History, Quotes from My Law Professor That I Use on Trump Supporters, 5 things I learned when I cut my body fat in half in 6 months, A 20-Year-Old GOP Strategy Drew the Road Map for Trump’s Attempted Coup. Identifying parts of a process where work meets another system, role, or culture is a great way to build understanding and uncover issues. You don’t want to just show up and watch. what effect does culture have, if any, on the service/process/system? Hi, I am Erin. We had the chance to look at their search patterns, and techniques they would utilize to find their articles they need before starting to write a paper. How parts of a CE contextual inquiry medium directly into the design process in March of 2020 action. We will get inquiry war stories, to extend and expand on 8 typical patterns/issues useful... Insightful and dynamic thinking version of the process that meets print media and! And understanding users and their workflow process, more than one system or sub-processes typical and, if,. Appropriate ) effective help and support things are especially hectic, quiet and if there two. In a particular task or process any resources needed/used logs and previous you! Discover what users do and how they do it, if not how! Rich qualitative data through contextual inquiry is not just a traditional interview or an ethnographic observation method small! Useful for discovery, Concept exploration, contextual inquiry, pre/post-usability tests,.. 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