User experience design is a profession that requires constant learning. Continual education is critical not only for improving your design chops but also for just keeping up with the field! The idea of continually educating yourself might seem exhausting, but the reality doesn’t have to be. If you’re on a design team, there’s design happening all around you. If your project stalls or your workload drops, other people’s projects become your learning opportunity! Design teams can learn to transform their downtime into an investment in three simple steps: Share, Surface, Seize. Learn the details behind these three steps and how to implement them to create a perpetual learning environment on your team! Your team will increase not only in skill, but also in engagement and productivity.

1. WEAPONIZING DOWNTIME:
Creating a Perpetual Learning Environment
Presented by: Fred Beecher

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learning is critical
for ux designers

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learning
industries
technologies
strategy methods
research methods
design methods
evaluation methods
tool skills

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engagement!

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every project is a
learning opportunity
for someone

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opportunity
industries
technologies
strategy methods
research methods
design methods
evaluation methods
tool skills

7. ©2015 :: @fred_beecher :: #perpetuallearning
your downtime
weaponize

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perpetual learning
environment
learning & growth
are explicitly
codified values
teaching & learning
are an everyday
part of work
infrastructure to
support learning
from daily work

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planning planning
(designer)(organization)
share surface seize

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share…
share project
plans with the
team
classify activities share ad hoc
opportunities too

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shared project plan

12. DESIGN METHODS
- Stakeholder Interviews
- Business Discovery
Workshops
- Feature Analysis
- Communicating Business
Discovery Findings
- Planning & Recruiting
- In-Person Interviews
- Remote Interviews
- Contextual Inquiry
- Survey Design & Analysis
- Web Traffic Analysis
- Research Analysis &
Synthesis
- Communicating User
Research Findings- Card Sorting & Analysis
- Search Log Analysis
- Content Strategy
- Content Auditing
- Site Mapping
- Ideation & Design
Workshops
- Scenarios, Storyboarding,
& Process Flows
- Screen Layout & Design
- Interactive Prototyping
- Prototype testing
- Heuristic Review
- In-Person Usability Testing
- Remote Usability Testing
©2015 :: @fred_beecher :: #perpetuallearning
BUSINESS STRATEGY USER RESEARCH INTERACTION DESIGN
INFORMATION ARCHITECTURE USABILITY EVALUATION

13. ©2015 :: @fred_beecher :: #perpetuallearning
surface…
more obvious,
more better
“ride-along”
board
show the
present &
immediate
future
manage it
consistently

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draft ride-along board

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seize…
work toward
specific learning
goals
- observation
- assistance
- experimentation
reflect on and
process the
experience

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character sheets
image source: tothetablereviews.wordpress.com

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potential
complications
proving your
improvement
evolving your
culture
who does what?

18. Fred Beecher
UX Apprenticeship Lead
fbeecher@nerdery.com
nerdery.com/fb
@fred_beecher
slideshare.net/fred_beecher/
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