From Economics to Wireframes: A Journey into the Multifaceted World of UX Design
When I tell people about my transition to a career in UX, the typical responses that I receive range from — “Umm..but isn’t that completely different from what you studied?”, “But weren’t you in consulting?”, “Research to design?!”, and the occasional poker face that conveys more than any number of words ever could.
For me this year has been a journey of exploring and entering the field of experience design. And answering these questions have been a major part of it. So here I am attempting to provide that answer through my first blog!
So for someone who has studied economics in their undergrad, worked in management consulting, and worked as a researcher in the development sector, how does design really come into play?
The short answer? Transferable skills. That, and of course the desire to put my creativity into use.
But if you’re curious enough, read along for the long answer!
My Design Epiphany
Before I dive into the details of it, I’d like to share how the thought of UX crossed my mind. When I was working as a researcher in a policy think tank, I came across a mobile app a stakeholder had designed which aimed at increasing the safety of women in the streets of India. While the app had a noble cause, when I tried using the app, as a user I didn’t quite find value in using it. The main feature of the app highly depended on the community use of it which rendered the app’s goal of showing safe streets around you, well.., pretty much of no use because not enough people were using it.
This is when I had, what I like to call, my design epiphany: “If this app were designed with more thought put into it, maybe we could really make Indian streets safe for women”. In this context, it’s worth noting that lack of public space safety is one of the major reasons why Indian women choose not to participate in the workforce. An effectively designed app could really help women become active participants of the economy!
Enter User Experience (UX). An industry where professionals in the field work towards solving real-world problems. The ‘thought’ that I, as a researcher, questioned happened to be precisely what UX designers diligently address.
Thus, after reading 100s of articles and speaking to a couple of UX designers, I started my design journey. There were many instances during my transition where I had my Back to the Future moments and realised for myself how multi-disciplinary the field of design is.
So continue reading to understand how my non-design journey shaped me as a UX designer!
Economics and Design
Intrigued by the dynamics of how individuals engage with their economy, I pursued a degree in economics during my undergraduate studies. One of the definitions of economics is studying how people use resources and respond to incentives. After all it’s a field that studies human-behaviour.
At its core, UX involves a deep understanding of human behavior during interactions with technology. Here are some of the theories in economics that I feel are very relevant to UX:
- Economic Theory: Consumer Utility
In economics, utility refers to the satisfaction or pleasure derived from consuming a product or service.
UX Application: UX designers aim to maximize user satisfaction and utility by creating products that fulfill user needs and provide a positive experience. Understanding the concept of utility helps designers prioritize features and functionalities that contribute most to user satisfaction.
2. Economic Theory: Consumer Behaviour
Economics studies how psychological factors of a rational consumer influence economic decisions.
UX Application: Ever noticed how the ‘Pay Now’ button is almost always green? Or how Amazon always shows you other items that are frequently bought together with your purchase? Designers indirectly leverage insights from behavioral economics to understand user behavior and decision-making. Techniques such as nudging and framing are used to guide users towards desired actions, improving the overall user experience.
3. Economic Theory: Opportunity Cost
Opportunity cost represents the potential benefits foregone when choosing one option over another.
UX Application: When prioritizing features in UX design, there are often trade-offs. Understanding opportunity costs helps us make decisions about which features to include, considering the impact on user experience and development resources.
Consulting and Design
My first job as a management trainee at a consulting firm revolved around solving problems through technological intervention that big players in their specific industries were facing . A major chunk of my role was to assist in managing smaller projects and the umbrella program.
You see, a design role is not solely about frames, pixels, and creating aesthetic visuals. It involves solving business problems that designers aim to address. Consequently, many tasks and workflows align with those found in management consulting projects. Problem-solving, communication, client interaction, agile workflow, and presentation skills are some of the pertinent skills from management consulting that seamlessly align with the design workflow.
- Management: Drafting Process Maps
For those in the consulting world, creating process maps is nearly a daily task. It’s a method of recording each step of an operations process in a flowchart manner. This aids in understanding which process or step of the operation can be enhanced or replaced. Additionally, it provides a holistic view of the entire operations and becomes a crucial document to reference during discussions that could potentially alter the business landscape.
UX Application: Information Architecture (IA) & User Flows
When I was initially introduced to IA and user flows, it instantly reminded me of my consulting role, where I focused on creating these process maps. Information architecture essentially serves as the backbone of any digital product we use, forming the foundation to achieve the ultimate goal of delivering a seamless user experience. It stands out as a crucial deliverable for any product. Its significance is emphasized by the existence of dedicated design roles, known as information architects, who specialize in developing this framework. As for user flows, they document each step involved in accomplishing any user task or goal.
2. Management: Communication
Effective communication with stakeholders is a cornerstone of management consulting, encompassing an understanding of their needs, expectations, and goals. Keeping stakeholders informed with updates and highlighting potential risks to the final deliverable is one of the pivotal activities in project management.
UX Application: Stakeholder Communicaion
UX professionals engage with stakeholders, including clients, product managers, and development teams, to gather insights and align design objectives with business goals. Clear and continuous communication is crucial to ensuring that UX efforts are aligned with the overall strategic vision.
3. Management: Agile Workflow
During your initial days in a consulting firm, there’s always an explanation of the distinction between a waterfall and an agile approach to working. As the name implies, the waterfall workflow is a step-by-step process where each stage follows the other with restrictions on revisiting the previous step. Conversely, an agile approach is more flexible, allowing revisitation of any previous step if it contributes to achieving the main business goal and results in a better solution for the final deliverable.
UX Application: Agile Designing Process
While it’s essential to acknowledge the standard design process — Define, Empathize, Ideate, Design, Test — it’s equally important to recognize that it doesn’t have to be strictly adhered to. While providing valuable direction to the process, every design journey is highly subjective to the specific solution we’re aiming for. Working on a digital product’s journey is inherently agile, and the beauty of the process lies in its continuous brainstorming nature. There’s a significant amount of back-and-forth, leading to the generation of more efficient solutions at various stages. For instance, a pivotal phase is usability testing, aimed at understanding how potential users interact with the upcoming product. Frequently, designers revisit aspects such as information architecture, the MOSCOW method, wireframes, and even the problem statement based on insights gathered from these tests.
Research and Design
I had always been inclined towards creating social impact and addressing developmental issues. Hence, I began my career at a policy think tank as a researcher. My daily tasks revolved around researching social issues, such as the economic impact of COVID on women’s workforce, and offering policy recommendations to potentially enhance the associated status quo. So it’s no surprise that I was engaged with a lot of primary and secondary research with about 100 tabs open on my system at any given time.
- Research: Stakeholder Interviews (primary research)
A crucial responsibility as a developmental researcher was to acquire on-the-ground context. This involved engaging in detailed, structured conversations with relevant stakeholders to gather qualitative data on the social problem under investigation. Framing the interview script, which included key points of discussion and a set of questions tailored to the specific stakeholder, was a significant task preceding the actual interviews. Empathy was at the core of these discussions, ensuring that interventions and policies remain responsive to the needs of communities.
UX Application: User Interviews and FGDs
It goes without saying how crucial empathizing with users through user interviews and focused group discussions is in the process of designing a product. It serves as the initial point of contact with potential users, providing insights into their needs and behaviors. The qualitative information gathered through these interviews becomes the foundation of human-centered design. While these interactions may seem like casual conversations at times, it’s essential to note that significant thought and effort are invested in drafting the interview manual. This not only guides the designer during the interview but also aids in avoiding the formulation of biased questions.
2. Research: Secondary Research
Before delving into these contextual interviews, a researcher is almost always immersed in reading existing research papers, news articles, and the latest trends — basically anything that provides more context on the problem they aim to address. For instance, literature review entails documenting how other researchers in the past have tackled a research problem and identifying areas where we, as researchers, can bring a new perspective. This process lays the foundation and defines the flow of the subsequent steps. It is also crucial for gathering context and provides direction for the upcoming primary research.
UX Application: Competitive Analysis and Secondary Research
In today’s world, it’s almost impossible to devise an entirely unprecedented solution or product. In one way or another, someone out there has likely addressed a similar problem statement that your product team is working on. This is where secondary research comes into play. As designers, we must understand how others have approached our problem statement, often through competitor analysis. The goal is to critically analyze their solutions, identify missed opportunities, and explore improved ways of addressing the problem. For instance, if a competitor completes a user task in 3 taps, our aim might be to achieve the same task in 2 taps. Additionally, we, too, extensively read articles and research papers to gather as much context as possible!
3. Research: Stakeholder management & collaboration
Derived from my consulting experience, stakeholder management became an even more integral aspect of my responsibilities as a senior researcher. In this role, I was positioned to collaborate consistently with various stakeholders, both internal and external. On a daily basis, my interactions spanned across managers, fellow researchers, interns, clients, and interview participants. The dynamics of manager and client interactions mirrored each other, involving understanding tasks, providing updates, and addressing research challenges. Engaging with fellow researchers and interns predominantly centered around task management and work delegation. Additionally, there were the crucial interviews I mentioned earlier. In essence, it wasn’t a role operating in isolation; the final deliverable was a product of deliberate interactions and clear, concise communication.
UX Application: Stakeholder management & collaboration
Similarly, a UX designer does not operate in isolation. Continuous communication is essential with the product manager, fellow designers, developers, clients, and, of course, external communication related to user interviews. This communicative environment is pivotal in the process of delivering a digital product. Elaborate discussions on design decisions occur with almost all mentioned stakeholders. All of this is crucial for assessing the functional, business, and financial feasibility of the design.
UX Design — A multi-disciplinary field
As someone who has transitioned into UX design , I see the process of designing digital products as inherently multi-disciplinary. You see a lot of people from different backgrounds be it psychology, graphic design, law, teaching, engineering, and more.
Personally, I place significant value on my prior experiences and learnings, and firmly believe in leveraging the activities I’ve undertaken in the past to effectively contribute to the project at hand.
Check out my website’s resume page to see how I aim to take ahead my skills into UX.
So yes, while my prior experience may appear different from the design realm on the surface, at the end of the day the foundations of UX design stem from solving a business problem. And as welcoming as UX is to professionals from different fields, it is upto an individual to connect the dots from their past experience and take them ahead while maintaining the essence of the design process.
While there are some aspects of UX design that are similar to other fields, the end-to-end UX designing process is a unique journey that combines creativity, psychology, and technology to create solutions that not only meet user needs but also contribute to the overall success of businesses and organisations.