7 steps to stay focused on the user when designing with ML

By Josh Lovejoy and Jess Holbrook

Machine learning (ML) is the science of helping computers discover patterns and relationships in data instead of being manually programmed. It’s a powerful tool for creating personalized and dynamic experiences, and it’s already driving everything from Netflix recommendations to autonomous cars. But as more and more experiences are built with ML, it’s clear that UXers still have a lot to learn about how to make users feel in control of the technology, and not the other way round.

As was the case…

There have been many articles over the past two years or so articulating UX teams’ design processes, usually coinciding with a big new product launch. I personally really enjoy these views into how different teams approach their work and when people share these stories they help our community learn and grow.

Something I’ve noticed in just about all of these articles is the mention of design principles (aka UX principles) as part of their processes. I’m a big fan of design principles. …

You need to know your user. You need design principles. You need to follow a user-centered design process. You need a business plan. You need to enter expanding markets. You need to validate with real users. You need a Blue Ocean Strategy. You need to make something people want. You need to build something people don’t even know they want yet. You need great timing. You need an exponential idea. You need a disruptive idea. …

A friend of mine is taking over a new Product Manager role where he will have responsibility for a lot of user-centered design work like basic usability testing, persona creation, experience mapping, and anything else that would qualify as “lean UX.”

He asked me what books, blogs, podcasts, etc. he should check out to start building some UX chops. That got me thinking…

…of all the UX books, blogs, websites, talks, seminars, quotes, etc. I’ve seen and heard over the years, which do I still use?

Not necessarily the absolute best or the “classics.” No format requirements, they can be books, blogs, or Pinterest boards. They just have to be the resources with the most longevity and consistent usefulness for me so far…

My 4 year old daughter was trying to procrastinate before nap time by asking me what I was doing on the computer. When I asked her, “What do you think I’m doing?”, she used the app icons as a guide. Here’s her take:

If you didn’t catch that (from right to left):