Guidelines For Obtaining Useful Observations When Conducting A Review With Your Team
When working as a team, amazing results can be achieved. Two heads think better than one and in an area like design, we often need other perspective and way of seeing the world. It can be difficult to reach different perspectives on our own. In these cases, it is quite useful to have a team that helps you detect errors in the design.
Although this step is important, it requires some planning. You are dealing with a group of people from different careers. They will evaluate your design to identify possible errors or improve some specific sections. As a designer, you should not only listen carefully but also play the role of moderator. In this article, we give you some guidelines so you can achieve it.
Evaluate the characteristics of the meeting place and the necessary materials.
If you are going to meet your team personally, then you must have ample space where they can chat without distractions. Preferably, a quiet place. If they have an office and a meeting room, then there is no problem. But if this is not the case, then they must find an appropriate place that has all the necessary resources. For example, they may need a stable internet connection.
Make a list of all the material that will be needed in this meeting so you can prepare properly. As a designer, you must carry the design on a USB device or your laptop. Additionally, you must have a notebook to write down the comments made in the meeting.
Although in the first case, the participants are more likely to remember the meeting time, it never hurts to remind them about the meeting a couple of days before. You must specify not only the time but also the purpose of the meeting, the topics to be discussed and if it is necessary to bring some additional material. In most cases, if the meeting is face-to-face, you may have to carry most of the materials. However, if you do not have the necessary instrument, you can ask any of those present to use his/her device. For example, you may need a tablet to be able to interact with the design if they are in the mockup or prototype phase. In that case, you can ask any of the participants to bring their tablet to see the interface design on their device.
You can start with a summary
It is probably a good idea to start the meeting with a design summary. This brief presentation allows the team members to direct their attention to the current topic, get informed about some details they did not know about the project and can be an ideal way to open the discussion about the design. Some of the points you should keep in mind when synthesizing the design are the following:
Define the design objectives
Indicate how the current design solves the problems presented by the client.
Mention the schedule and milestones reached.
Describe the next phase of the process.
Once you have summarized the project, you can start with a question session to know the view of every team member. All members must participate, so it may be a good idea not to ask a general question, but to ask each other’s opinion.
Anticipate possible issues that may arise
As a moderator, you should listen to everyone present and focus on the topic discussed in case some colleagues change the subject. You should also guide the conversation and in some cases start it and give confidence to the group commenting on the design. If this is the first time you find yourself in this position, it is common for you to feel some fear and even feel intimidated. The best thing you can do in these situations is to prepare yourself by writing questions that help start the conversation and are focused on obtaining concrete answers. Here are some common questions you can include in these meetings:
Does the design work as expected?
Is there any element that is needed?
Do color and typography reflect the communication tone of the content?
Are there specific parts or elements of the design that you don’t like?
Anticipate the questions that might arise and that can keep the conversation flowing. Some people in the team may anticipate the current phase of the process and start sharing their opinions about it. Although it is positive that they have something to contribute. As a moderator, you must keep the focus of the conversation.
Don’t take criticism personally
It is normal that as a designer, you are excited about your design. In some cases, you can even feel fond of your designs. And for this same reason, you cannot be objective about it. And even if you don’t feel this way, by spending too much time immersed in a project, you are likely to lose some perspective. For this reason, design reviews are carried out: if you have a great team, you can get other points of view and even detect errors that you would not have been able to identify on your own.
You must listen to your teammates without taking it as a direct criticism of you. As a designer, you must learn to deal with criticism because you will constantly receive them from your clients, end-users, your work team and the design community in general if you have an online portfolio.
Not all comments will indeed be helpful. But if several people agree on a certain point or you note that there is a relationship in the issues mentioned, then you should pay close attention and review your designs.
Show interest in the opinions of your colleagues
Show respect and interest in the opinions, suggestions, and comments of your colleagues. If you do, you can generate a pleasant environment that encourages the participation of the entire team. Although some comments may not even take them into account when updating the design, it always shows interest in the opinions of others. If you don’t understand someone’s perspective, ask more specific questions to find out more about their reasoning and how they came to that conclusion.
Pay special attention to those elements or repetitive themes in which several people put emphasis. There is likely to be a problem that you had not considered. Let the discussion flow, direct attention to the relevant issues when necessary and 10 minutes before concluding ask if there is any additional comment. Summarize the main findings found at the meeting, thank your colleagues for their opinion and participation and indicate what are the next steps to follow.
Author Bio:
Elena Randall is a Content Creator who works for Top Software Companies, provides a top 10 list of top software development companies within the world. She is passionate about reading and writing.
