A Day in the Life of a Product Experience Designer: The Creative Journey
On the Fusion team, there are many different types of Product Experience Designers. Our skill sets can range from deep user research and behavioral analysis to interaction and visual design. However, one thing that we all have in common is our desire to help improve the healthcare industry through technology. As designers, we do this by engaging in our creative rituals to design the best outcome for doctors, clinical staff, and patients.
The Creative Process
The creative process is an iterative and collaborative journey — every great designer has some variation of this adventure. This process requires you to be persistent, patient and dig deep into your own experiences and research to find the right solution for a customer. Throughout the process, I go down a lot of rabbit holes. Sometimes this leaves me with more questions than answers. At times, this can be a somewhat exhausting journey, but in the end, it always produces the best outcomes.
Phase 1: Understand the problem
Design starts with a problem. As designers, we don’t just use design to make things look pretty — we use design to solve problems. Understanding the problem in greater depth is the most critical part of the entire creative process because it lays the foundation for everything we do going forward.
In the healthcare industry, we are solving problems that affect every day people, like you and me. During this phase of the creative process, I focus on the “who” and the “what”. I spend time diving deep into the user by walking in their shoes — this empathetic approach allows me to gain a better understanding of their goals and frustrations. I synthesize information by writing down ideas, notes and questions. While I am doing this, some initial solutions may come to mind, but I do not judge these as “good” or “bad” — I simply just write them down.
Phase 2: Find Inspiration
Once I have gained a better understanding of the problem I am solving for, I start looking around for inspiration. What have other people done to solve this problem? Has this been done before? I draw on my own personal experiences interacting with the healthcare system. What websites, product or mobile apps have been frustrating for me to use? Which ones have been easy? Why? If I need to find an in-network doctor, does my insurance carrier provide me with an easy-to-use portal to find this information?
In order to synthesize all of my findings, I will create an inspiration board. I may use a tool like Sketch or Miro to add screen shots and write down notes. An inspiration board not only keeps me organized, but it also serves as a collaborative space for other designers to add additional insights and artifacts.
Phase 3: Designing the solution
Once I have a better understanding of the problem and some inspiration about how to solve it, I can work to create a solution to validate or invalidate my ideas. This solution could be in the form of a journey map, wireframe, or prototype.
In the beginning of the wireframing process, I don’t care about pixels, margin or padding. I don’t even care about what colors I am using besides grayscale. What I do care about is information hierarchy and what type of content lives where. I’ll usually start by sketching with pen and paper. What general “shapes” should go where on a page and what content lives in those shapes. I often use the logic, “If this, then that”…if the user clicks here, then what will they see? This is where my inspiration board comes into play. I am able to recall many of the ideas I researched so I have an idea of what the user should experience and steps they should complete along their journey.
Next, I will explore the design system. I will consider what components and patterns are available. I will use these design system components when I move into mid to high fidelity wireframes where I will pay attention to color, pixels, and micro-interactions. After refining my wireframes, I am then able to create a clickable prototype that I will present to customers and stakeholders for feedback.
Phase 4: Gather Feedback
Once I have designed my solution via a wireframe or prototype, I will gather feedback from internal stakeholders and external customers. On the Fusion team, we believe that feedback is a gift. We practice radical candor and seek opportunities to ask for and receive feedback on a daily basis. This feedback informs my decision as to which stage of the creative process I need to revisit or move forward with.
Conclusion
Overall, every great designer has some variation of the creative process I outlined above. Solving problems within the healthcare industry is an extremely rewarding job and I grateful to be able to experience this creative journey everyday on the Fusion team.
A Fusion publication. We are employees of UHG and these views are our own and not those of the company nor its affiliates.
