There were a few triggers that prompted the organisers at UX Australia to create this conference. They noted, that over the past few years the prevalence and relevance of Agile methodologies amongst the UX community was on the increase – and it is high time we all start thinking about how to weave the two together.
The Line Up
After a ridiculously delayed flight, followed by slow going Sydney traffic, I made it to the conference – only 30 minutes late – just in the nick of time to catch my colleague and UX mentor Ben Melbourne (ThoughtWorks) on the stage delivering the keynote presentation. Though I missed a portion of his talk, the key take aways were –
- Engaging stakeholders and the development team early using collaborative design
- Rapid production
- Conducting lightweight research
- Rapid iterations
- Asking for more time
- Communicating progress through regular showcases
Next up, Andrew Green (Cogent) followed the footsteps of Leonardo Da Vinci as a modern day UX’er; a humorous way to approach discussing how things can – and do – go wrong when attempting to work UX / Agile. The overarching theme of his presentation was around doing ‘just enough research’, making the point that every hour spent on research is lost in design; he then went on to speak about getting people interacting and talking, rather than spending hours with headphones on wire framing or prototyping – collaboration is key. Just as important is removing boredom from work – make the environment fun and engaging; around 66% of Cogent’s wall space is whiteboards. Same goes for eating, sleeping and going home on time – to give your best, you must first take care of yourself.
He recommended Steven Pressfield’s book – Do the Work http://www.stevenpressfield.com/do-the-work/
The next highlight of the day for me was Jay Rogers (Atlassian), who quoted (though didn’t claim to have coined!) that “Agile is a culture, not a process”, this really resonated with me: I feel the developers of ThoughtWorks really embrace and live this already – and as designers, this is probably a paradigm that needs to shift.
The final and most enlightening speaker of the day for me was Vanessa Kirby (SEEK). Last spot of the day is always a tough one – audience attention spans are usually severely waning at this point; however Vanessa’s charisma and energy was infectious. Her standout quote was “there’s more than one way to sketch a cat”, which relayed her message that UX and Agile can – and will – be done in ways that best suit the team, the company and most of the all – the users. Other stand out quotes were: “Guidelines are not straight jackets“, “You’re not alone – you don’t have to be good at everything“, and “enable foolishness – inhibition is a huge blocker“. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed her presentation – definitely ended my day on a high note!
Vanessa Kirby, SEEK
ThoughtWorks received brilliant exposure – being the key sponsor of the event. Our brand was displayed prominently at the front of the stage, and the book and quiz competition throughout the day was a hit (as were the frisbees!). The tone of voice was spot on – not over bearing, but gave the subtle message that we are doing this Agile UX thing, and we’re growing this arm of the business. I love a good soft sell, and we executed this well in my (very biased!) opinion.
My musings: It seems it is possible for Agile and UX to cohabitate; however communication and collaboration are king when it comes to working with the teams – and both parties must ultimately have the users requirements at the centre of the project. Likely not much of a surprise to most, however for me, it was nice to have this discussed in a more formalised way.
SWAG!
ulteriorwoman 