[Sigia-l] morality in IA

[Whitney Quesenbery]

At 11:29 AM 11/15/2002 -0500, Laura Scheirer Quinn wrote:
>All the time you see stuff in the media that proclaims the benefit of gut 
>feel and downplays data as stogy and tiresome, and all the time people 
>refute the research I have done telling me I must have misheard or 
>misinterpreted, because it conflicts with their gut.

Perhaps true, but it's been my experience that presenting a design 
direction that I believe in, BACKED UP by user analysis data (personas, 
interviews, contextual inquiry, usability testing...whatever) PLUS an 
ability to connect my position to current practice - either confirming or 
contradicting has been a winning combination.

Not that this wins every argument, but it does make it harder to ignore.

But, let me ask a different question:
Would you be ignored no matter how much great reseach you have, because you 
are in a relatively low-power or low-status position?

All of the discussions here and elsewhere about the need to have the person 
in charge of designing the user interface (call it UID, UCD, IA, UX......) 
in a position of authority are right. You cannot lead from the back. You 
can't lead if you are seen as "against" the rest of the team. You can't 
lead if you are seen as an obstacle.

So, like so many other things, there is no one right answer. We need to 
have a clean place at the table, the courage of our convictions...and the 
research (or track record)  to back up what we do.

Whitney Quesenbery
Whitney Interactive Design, LLC
w. www.WQusability.com
e. whitneyq at WQusability.com
p. 908-638-5467

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