Professional factions have made it impossible for the business community to make educated decisions – or even understand what UX is. Content strategists scream “Content is King”. The information architects yell “Structure the kingdom”. The SEO folks say “There is no data without metadata”. And the business community is frustrated. Who should they hire? The answer is simple: the agency that tells them: “No worries. We’ll get it done for you and you will love it.” I’d like to see these professional barriers broken down. We ALL bring something valuable to the table – if we’re ever allowed to sit at that table. And I’d like to share a model for UX that respects our differences, but provides an easy-to-understand framework on which businesses can build their UX strategies.

2. Once a jolly swagman camped by a billabong
Under the shade of a coolibah tree,
And he sang as he watched and waited till his billy boiled:
"Who'll come a-waltzing Matilda, with me?"
Waltzing Matilda, waltzing Matilda
You'll come a-waltzing Matilda, with me
And he sang as he watched and waited till his billy boiled:
"You'll come a-waltzing Matilda, with me."

3. Describing the elephant
Moving beyond professional silos
Eric Reiss
@elreiss
UX Australia
August 29, 2014
Sydney, Australia

4. My goals, your take-aways
I hope to dispell some myths:
UX is only something that happens on a screen
UX was invented in the ‘80s
UX can be accomplished by a team of one
I also want to:
Give you an actionable definition of UX
Provide tips that can help promote our
talents to the business community

6. What is “Australia”?

8. From a Danish perspective…

12. Let’s look at movies…

20. Australian football rules…

22. And all those damned clichés…

27. And all them beasties…

33. Putting Australia on the map…

42. So, what IS “Australia”?

43. Clients know what they want
But we know what they need

44. Clients know what they want
But we know what they need
This is the fatal disconnect

45. Accessibility
Mental models
Personas
SSSSeeeeaaaarrrrcccchhhhaaaabbbbiiiilllliiiittttyyyy
Usability
Knowledge management
Sensemaking
Experience design
Scenaria
Findability
Storytelling
Information architecture
Content management
Content strategy
User-centered design

46. “Creativity varies inversely with
the number of cooks involved
in the broth.”
Bernice Fitz-Gibbon
1967

47. 1995 1998 2000 2014
Webmaster Webmaster
Visual designer
Copywriter
Developer
Visual designer
Information architect
Copywriter
Front-end engineer
Full-stack developer
Visual designer
UI designer
Interaction designer
Content strategist
Information architect
Content providers
SEO consultant
Social media guru
Product manager
Project manager
Token baby boomer

49. It’s all Greek to me....

50. “He hears only that
which he understands”
Goethe

51. CMS UX
CM UCD UxD
CSS “He hears only that
which he understands” XMLG
oethe

52. User Experience
IA SD CS IxD GD PM DEV KM SEO SM MKT IT

53. What does this mean for us as
UX professionals?
No single person can truly be a
“UX Designer”
No single discipline can truly
take ownership of UX

54. Can we define UX in simple,
understandable terms?
Can we embrace all
these disciplines without
taking ownership?

55. Eric’s 1st Law of UX:
If a solution does not solve your
user’s problems, it will not
solve your company’s either.

56. So, let’s start by looking at a “user”

57. us·er
noun
1: a person who makes use of a thing;
someone who uses or employs something
2: a person who uses something or
someone selfishly or unethically
3: a person who takes drugs

58. When would you use (simultaneously):
An ergonomic seat designed for one person
Optical lenses invented by Benjamin Franklin
Alcoholic mixture invented by Dr. Iain Marshall
Incandescent device invented by Thomas Edison
Fabric made on a loom invented by JM Jacquard
Rouge Royale (marble)
Baskerville Light (typography)
Domesticated mammal
(This is often how our clients look at their content)

59. When would you use (in simpler terms):
Armchair
Bifocal eyeglasses
Manhattan Cocktail
Lightbulb
Wool jumper
Tabletop
Book
Cat
(This is an easier way to look at content)

61. Eyeglasses
Wool pullover
Lightbulb
Marble tabletop
Armchair
Book
Gus the Cat
Manhattan Cocktail

62. Sensory assistance
Warmth/comfort
Sensory assistance
Convenience/aethetics
Convenience/comfort
Education/information
Companionship
Chemical stimuli

63. The experience of a touchpoint
is always situational

65. The touchpoints are
cumulative

67. What do your users need?
What are the scenarios?
How many touchpoints are touched?

68. How can anyone truly be a “UX Designer”
without controlling all the touchpoints?
UX design certainly exists...
...but are there truly UX designers?

69. Perhaps we need
a more useful definition of UX!

70. ex·per·i·ence
noun
1: having been affected by or learned
through observation or participation
2: the length of such participation

71. Eric’s 2nd Law of UX:
User experience is the sum of
a series of interactions between
people, devices, and events.

72. Eric’s 3rd Law of UX:
UX design represents the conscious
act of :
• coordinating interactions
we can control
• acknowledging interactions
we cannot control
• reducing negative interactions

73. Three types of interaction:
Active (things we control)
Passive (things we don’t control)
Secondary (things that have indirect influence)

74. Active interaction

75. Active interaction

76. Passive interaction (partly)

77. Passive interaction

78. Secondary interaction

79. Secondary interaction

80. UX involves all three interaction types
Coordinating interactions that we can control
Acknowledging interactions beyond our control
Reducing negative interactions

81. Coordinating interactions

82. Coordinating interactions

83. Coordinating interactions

84. Reducing negative interactions

85. Reducing negative interactions

86. Reducing negative interactions

87. Reducing negative interactions

88. Can influence
Cannot influence
Business
critical
Screw
it

89. So, where does that leave us?
How do we get business to
understand the value we can provide?
Five things to consider if you
want to succeed in UX

90. Don’t speak geek
Don’t speak geek!

91. Don’t attack other disciplines
Don’t attack other disciplines!

92. Solve problems, don’t create them
Solve problems. Don’t create them.

93. Think beyond your own self-interest
Think beyond your own self-interest.

94. And finally, my personal mantra...

95. Sell crackers, not crumbs!

96. Cheers mates!
Have a good one!

97. Eric Reiss can (usually) be found at:
The FatDUX Group ApS
Strandøre 15
2100 Copenhagen
Denmark
Office: (+45) 39 29 67 77
Mobil: (+45) 20 12 88 44
Twitter: @elreiss
info@fatdux.com
www.fatdux.com