[Sigia-l] Internal usability/UE teams

[Listera]

Donna Timara:

> Probably you may look at rephrasing your questions.

Bingo.

One of the cardinal rules of design strategy in solving problems is that if
you find yourself having to deal with too many indeterminate variables, it's
time to  reformulate the problem. (Start barking up another tree, as Ted
would suggest, or start questioning if barking is the way to go at all, as I
would.:-)

I happen to think chasing headcount ratios in the abstract is the wrong
formulation (of perhaps another problem that ought to be addressed in some
other manner). Because chasing headcount ratios in the abstract is not
merely/passively harmless, it can actively lead people astray. An example of
this lies buried in another thread impossibly titled "The Answer
(finally)..."

I'm not sure what *the* answer is, but out of the half dozen or so factors
offered (concerning a problem centered on UCD, no less), not one deals with
the most important factor of all: people.

This may be difficult to grok for a corporate bean counter who likes to deal
with entities in the abstract on a spreadsheet, but why *we* should fall
into the same old trap is beyond me.

The *specific* skill set, experience, personality and work habits of both
the designers and developers involved, plus the context of the problem they
are solving in a given organization can't and shouldn't be reduced to an
abstract ratio. Ratios don't design apps, people do. And how easy it is to
forget that when barking up the wrong tall object, as demonstrated.

----
Ziya

Any problem that requires walking on water
as a solution is a problem ill-stated.