Three Takeaways from my UX Internship at Garmin
I have spent this summer working as a user experience design intern at Garmin. Working on their fitness watches and bands has presented an exciting and challenging experience. Prior to my internship, most of my design work had been focused on mobile and web interfaces. The built-in technical constraints of such a small device create unique design challenges that I have had to overcome.
I’ll talk more about the obstacles that are specific to UX for wearables in a later post. In this article, I wanted to reflect on some general insights I have gained through my internship about UX design and how it functions in practice.
I realize some of what is written in this article has likely been shared before. But, if you take anything away from it, it should be this: much of what I discovered this summer I had already heard. But, without actual experience of what I had been taught, the knowledge didn’t resonate. Even if you read a reflection written by everyone who had ever worked in UX, a genuine understanding of their lessons would never come without first-hand experience.
Getting User Feedback Early is Essential
Presenting concepts to users early — in the form of a prototype — is an invaluable tactic for user-centered design. I remember sitting at my desk at the beginning of the summer, manipulating graphics on a prototype and trying to design the perfect interface for a feature.
After a while, I realized just how much time I was wasting with unfounded speculation. What I needed was actual usability data from outside informants. I used the resources at my disposal to collect as much information as possible, testing my prototype on several my non-UX co-workers. I made changes based on their feedback and then repeated the process.
While data gathered from other Garmin employees was not as ideal as information I gathered from outside testers, it was certainly a step up from my own, inherently biased perception of how usable the interface would be.
Ask for Input from Other Designers
At Garmin, UX designers in fitness each own a few different products. While this arrangement is logical given the similarities among many of the products’ interfaces, it necessitates careful documentation. It also makes collaboration a bit difficult, presenting a challenge when a product has a new or different feature.
One way I’ve overcome this is by simply asking for input. Especially as an intern, I am not always aware of what other designers have tried in response to a UX problem. Perhaps my proposed solution has been unsuccessful in the past. Maybe there is another potential interaction that I’m overlooking.
Speaking to other designers allows me to put aside my biases and see holes in my thinking.
Talk to Software Early, and Choose your Battles Wisely
In school, design can be pure. In the “real world,” externalities exist. Your perfect design will be corroded by constraints. Software cannot always accomplish what you asked, whether it’s due to technical restrictions or time limitations.
Therefore, it’s important to present your ideas to software early in the development process — ideally, before software writes a single line of code. This way, they have time to determine the feasibility of a particular requirement. And, if it’s a resource-consuming request, providing ample notice makes it more likely the requirement is well-received and ultimately implemented.
Despite my and my co-workers efforts to communicate effectively, there have been things software has said no to. In cases like this, my mentor gave me an excellent piece of advice: it’s important to know what pieces of the design are most essential to providing users with the greatest experience possible and arguing for those. It’s easy to get caught up in the minor details. Instead, look at the larger design and consider what specifics matter most the whole.
Also notice that this ties back to my first takeaway. Getting user feedback early ensures that what you propose to software will be close to the final design.
This is by no means an exhaustive list of what I have learned. Nor am I by any means an expert in navigating the UX industry. But, I echo what I wrote early in this article: everyone’s experience in the industry is unique. What’s most important is that you reflect on and learn from your own experiences. It’s essential to becoming a better designer and, for that matter, a better anything.
