[Sigia-l] Usability Testing

[Bill Killam]

Dan writes...
"...I am looking for comments and information on how usability is weaved
into the development process (includes IA)..."

Wow.  That's a lot to cover in one note.  Let me address only one issue here
(and maybe more later) - the external vendor issue (since I'm one now but
have been on the other side of the fence as well).

The biggest issue with testing using an internal team is the conflict of
interest inherent in being in that position.  Project rarely (if ever) have
time built into the schedule for iterations (though all of the user-centered
design process, agile programming, and other models promote it).  Even if
iterations are planned for, there is the issue of acceptance of the
recommendations by others on the team.  (You see that in discussion here all
the time - Re: "how dare a 'usability specialist' or Human Factors Engineer
or whomever dare critique the design *I*, the all wise and all knowing IA or
interaction designer, came up with" or discussion of programmer versus
designer responsibility and authority).  As a result, as with QA, QC, or any
other type of checking of the work of others, there is always pressure if
issues and recommendations are provided by an internal team.  Unless the
team has full authority and backing by management to make the pass/fail
decision, the pressure is always there to accept a design as is.  Otherwise,
this team is accused of impacting the cost and schedule unnecessarily.  That
can only occur so often before they back down or quit.  (In one case as part
of an internal team, I was told by my manager to lower the classification of
a safely issue to allow a system to be delivered based on the cost of
repair.  That was my last project with that company before moving on.)
External team are free (or at least freer) from these issues, though they
risk alienating a client by being the bearer of bad news.  (IOW, as a
"usability" consultant, the risk of alienating a company by being the bearer
of bad news comes with the territory but should never be part of a person's
job description within a company.)

Three other main benefits of using an outside consultant include: (1)
internal people are often more willing to listen to an outside (paid)
consultant than an internal person who says the same thing (its human
nature), (2) since (proper) testing is an activity that is not needed all
the time, it can be more cost effective to hire a professional team when
needed than to keep a staff on board full time for the occasions when they
would be needed, and (3) seasoned outside consultants have more expose to
alternate designs and design domains and can bring new perspectives into a
project.

BTW, the concept of outside testing at specific points in the process does
not preclude internal testing and other ways of obtaining user feedback as
part of the design process (but that's part of a larger answer to the
survey).

Bill
-------------------------------------------------------
Bill Killam, MA CHFP
President, User-Centered Design, Inc.
20548 Deerwatch Place
Ashburn, VA 20147
email: bkillam at user-centereddesign.com
Work/Fax: (703) 729-0998
Mobile: (703) 626-6318
Web: www.user-centereddesign.com

-----Original Message-----
From: sigia-l-bounces at asis.org [mailto:sigia-l-bounces at asis.org] On Behalf
Of Dan_Chamberlain at dom.com
Sent: Thursday, January 18, 2007 9:19 AM
To: Sigia-l at asis.org
Subject: [Sigia-l] Usability Testing


I am conducting a study on usability testing within companies that regard
their web presence as critical. I am looking for comments and information
on how usability is weaved into the development process (includes IA), what
kind of resources and applications are necessary and is there an advantage
to using an external vendor. If you have experience with any of these
subjects your thoughts and comments would be appreciated.

Thanks

Dan Chamberlain
Dominion Resources
EWG.UXE
701 East Cary Street
Richmond, Virginia 23219
804.771.4629
8.736.4629


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