OT: [Sigia-l] Usability Prank

[Russ Unger]

Interesting.  As I read it, I thought, "Wow, that's kind of harsh--it's
one of those things you consider doing, but never really do, and this
person had the stones to do it."

Then, I thought:

"Wow.  This person behaved in such an unprofessional fashion, then
posted about it to a searchable, public list, complete with quoting his
personal blog.  Unfortunately, if I were doing research on this person,
I'd probably find out about this event and never hire him."

Even further, I thought, "Wow, this has nothing to do with usability or
this list, instead, it's really about how this person behaves in the
work place, and how he apparently advocates the behavior and doesn't
mind it appearing on a public, searchable list."

Just saying.  It's kind of one to grow on for all of us, when we
consider those points.

> Usability Prank
> I was conducting a Usability test as an outsourced 
> consultant. The lab setup
> consisted of a single computer, to be used by the participant, and two
> additional monitors connected to it, one for me, the 
> moderator, and another
> one for my note-taking assistant, who was my client's regular 
> employee. The
> point was that we all had to see the same image on the screens.
> 
> Between sessions, I'd ask him to turn off his monitor, so I 
> could check my
> e-mail - otherwise, he'd read everything, of course. Needless 
> to say, he
> didn't.
> 
> So I decided to write his boss an e-mail.
> 
> Yes, the tests were going fine, but I needed him to send me a 
> new assistant
> asap. The current one was well below minimum quality 
> standards for the job,
> his observation skills were poor, his writing skills, even 
> worse. How could
> he have hired such an incompetent fool?, I asked - well out 
> of line, of
> course. Was he a shareholder's relative or something? 
> Nevertheless, whoever
> he was, it was my job to ensure the quality of the test and 
> its results: a
> Usability test is as good as its note-taker. I had been 
> really nice to him
> and hadn't voiced my concerns yet, after all, he was not my 
> employee, but I
> needed him replaced asap, or I would be forced to abandon the project
> altogether.
> 
> After sending the message, I went to the adjoining room to 
> say hello as if
> nothing had happened. The poor boy had teary eyes and barely 
> replied when I
> told him I was off to lunch. I let him brood over this for an 
> hour, then
> told him all about it.
> 
> There's a guy who's never going to peep at someone else's 
> e-mail again.
> 
> 
> 
> Read more: http://blogdeusabilidade.blogspot.com/