How to manage a UX team (without losing your mind!)

June 16-20, 2008UPA international conference

Baltimore, MD

Katrina AlcornPrincipal, User Experience and Content, Hot Studio, Inc.

Agenda

Hiring

Inspiring

Firing

Keeping yourself motivated

About me

Making the leap

Michael PolivkaExecutive Producer

What do UX managers do?

Internal companies “Evangelize” Manage/coach team Network in company Hire/sta! projects Project work Teach/write Admin/operations/

new processes

External agencies Sales Manage/coach team Client relations Hire/sta! projects Project work Teach/write Admin/operations/

new processes

UX teams may look like this...

information architects

researchers visual designers

or like this...

interaction designersinformation architectsdesign strategists

ethnographic researchersusability analysts

writers/content experts

graphic designers

or like this...

user experience architects

content strategist/writer

We do research, strategy, IA, interaction

design, and more. I write, among other things.

UX managers I interviewed

Peter MerholzPresident, Adaptive Path

Jennifer BohmbachChief IA, Sun Microsystems

Richard DaltonUX Manager, Vanguard

Livia LabateSr. Manager IA & Usability,Comcast

Catherine Courage, Andrew SandlerUX Managers, Salesforce.com

Lillian SvecUC Santa Cruz Extension

How is managing UX teams di!erent?

Challenges of managing creative professionals

Generalized skill set, varies greatly

Sta"ng model

External pressures (“what do you guys do?”)

“Professionals, like athletes, when left to their own devices, don’t accomplish as much as they do when they are supported by a good coach.” — David H. Maister, “Managing the Professional Services Firm”

Hiring

Personal networks only go so far

We’ve found some great people using these resources:Craigslist (believe it or not)Industry groups like ASIS-T, IA InstituteLinkedIn

Others swear byRecruiting fairs at IDLots and lots of networkingInternshipsLook for people transitioning from other #elds

Think of hiring as an ongoing process

Where do you "nd people?

ability to make pretty deliverables, clear communicator, clear thinker, consulting experience, creativity, education, enthusiasm, #t with the team, general job skills (IA, interaction design, strategy, personas, research), good listener, interest in learning new things, presentation skills,

personal work style, personality, quick learner, software pro#ciency, talent, variety of work, years of experience

What to look for in a hire

Katrina’s cardinal rule

Don’t hire closed people

What to look for in a hire

“Passion is tops. They need to have a love for the work.”— Peter

“Good critical thinkers. People who get the big picture.” — Jennifer

“Good communication. If you can’t communicate e!ectively, you can’t do your job.”— Catherine

“At Salesforce, everybody codes. You have to have technical competence.”— Andrew

“A serious commitment to the IA community.”— Livia

“Soft skills! We work in teams a lot. You have to collaborate well.” — Richard

“With researchers, you want them to be $exible and creative about how they conduct their research. Rigorous academics aren’t enough.” — Lillian

Skill sets I look for

Information architecture Interaction design Technical prowess Group facilitation skills User research

Ethnographic studiesInterviewsPersonasSurveysUsability testing

Other research/analysisCompetitive auditsHeuristic audits

Writing/content strategy

Juniors vs. Seniors?*

*Adapted from “Managing the Professional Services Firm”

Too much procedural work Too much brain work

= current sta!= required sta!

Need more juniors

Need more seniors

Juniors vs. Seniors

UX sta"ng at boutique agencies

Principals, practice leads

Senior practitioners

Justin, the intern

Some mistakes in sta#ng

“We had a brilliant interaction designer who was a freelancer. We pushed him to be an employee, and it was a mistake. He was unemployable.”

“I hired someone who I knew was a bad personality #t. I should have listened to my gut. We eventually parted ways.”

“The worst hiring decision I made was when I didn’t follow my own instincts. I was swayed by my boss’ opinion.”

“I made the mistake of putting someone in a leadership role when he was more of a detail person. It took a lot of coaching.”

Moral: If you have a round hole, "nd a round peg.

Inspiring

Bad boss behavior

Bad boss behavior*

39% said their supervisor failed to keep promises.

37% said their supervisor failed to give credit when due.

31% said their supervisor gave them the "silent treatment" in the past year.

27% said their supervisor made negative comments about them to other employees or managers.

24% said their supervisor invaded their privacy.

23% said their supervisor blames others to cover up mistakes or minimize embarrassment.

*Source: Florida State University

Findings from a survey of more than 700 workers by researchers at the Florida State University College of Business:

Give clear direction

…but don’t micromanage

Keep me in the loop

…but act as a bu!er from company angst Facilitate and encourage my learning

Show you care about my well being and my work

Show you have con#dence in me

Give me honest, regular, informal feedback

Be a good “coach” Listen well, appreciate multiple points of view

Show maturity, breadth of experience

Hot UX: Most important qualities in a manager?

“Recognize my strengths and weaknesses. Give me opportunities to shine, and low-risk opportunities to grow.”

Projects that o!er value that I can see Clear, direct feedback (positive or negative) Working with visual designers to #nd creative solutions Trying new things Opportunities to be creative or challenged Making people (client, boss, colleagues) happy

Hot UX: What motivates you?

“An avid interest in the project subject/concept is the biggest motivator for me to do great work.”

People should do what they love

“It lets you get o! the consulting hamster wheel.” — Peter

Encourage downtime projects

Encourage group learning

Weekly team meetings Takes classes, go to conferences, report back Host an o!-site “Innovation exercises”

“Vanguard is a pretty progressive place for encouraging people to do the right thing. I can count on one hand the times people brought me a suggestion and I had to say no.” — Richard Dalton, Vanguard

Design

Have a process and be prepared to deviate from it

Discovery Strategy Build Transfer

Our approach to research

Our research reveals many detailed !ndings.

Some of these #ndings lead to insights about what the target audience needs.

These insights inspire new and creative design ideas.

Create an environment where people can do their best work

At Hot: UX > Senior UX > Director > Principal At Adaptive Path: 3 tracks

Practice development People management Industry presence

At Salesforce: 2 tracks Principal Management

De"ne the career path

Firing

How do you know there’s a problem?

How do you know there’s a problem?

Have regular 1-on-1s with each team member Check in with clients and business partners Establish good relationships with other disciplines PMs, especially, are your canaries in the coal mine

Great ideas, but poor presentation Di"culty collaborating with project team Poor time management; leads to sloppy work Unmotivated, thinking is lazy

Common performance issues

Problem Is this apattern?

Address itand move

on

Can it befixed?

Prepareto say

goodbye

De"ne clear steps to resolve

Check onprogress

No

Yes/Maybe

Yes

No

Your decision tree

Giving feedback

Establish a connection. Express criticism as a question. Listen to his side. Really listen. Be clear in your feedback, keep emotion out of it. Use speci#c examples. Basic communication 101

Example: “I can’t give this to the client because _________.” Example: “This creates a problem for me because _______.”

Don’t wimp out. You can’t be everyone’s friend, but you don’t have to be a jerk, either. If something is a chronic problem, you need to document it.

Feedback model* (thanks Livia!)

Step 1. Ask“May I share some feedback with you?”

Step 2. Describe speci#c behavior“Jane, when you stick your tongue out at clients . . .”

Step 3. Describe impact of behavior“. . . here’s what happens. It hurts the team morale. . .”

Step 4. Discuss next steps“What can you do to change this behavior?” or “How can I help you?”

* More at www.manager-tools.com/feedback-model

Motivating yourself

What’s it really like?

“When you’re a manager, you’re very aware of how the sausage gets made. You have to be comfortable with that.” — Peter

“…for the typical manager of professionals, the day is broken up into numerous small chunks of amazing diversity: dealing with a disgruntled client, handling the personal problems of a sta! member, analyzing #nancial reports, interviewing a potential new recruit, approving various administrative arrangements, working on a new business presentation, and a thousand other matters, each of which must, in rapid succession, command the manager’s full attention.”

— David H. Maister, “Managing the Professional Services Firm”

What’s it really like?

Be prepared to make some sacri"ces

Adapted from “Managing the Professional Services Firm”

How practice leads add value

45%

30%

15%

10%

admin. & financial matters (10%)billable work (10-20%)client relations (20-40%)managing team (30-60%)

Learn to bask in others’ success

Find a pet project and hang on to it

What do you like about your job?

“There’s no one standing over my shoulder. I have a lot of autonomy for project work and non-project work.”— Richard

“I like getting recognition within the company of the power of IA as its own service.” — Livia

“There’s always something interesting going on here. I like doing things that expand the work, making signi#cant improvements.”— Jennifer

“Creating an environment where great people can do great work that supports their individual goals.”— Peter

Other resources

“Managing the Professional Services Firm,” by David H. Maister

Design Management Institute, www.dmi.org

www.manager-tools.com

“Getting Things Done: the Art of Stress-free Productivity,” by David Allen

“First Break All the Rules: What the World’s Greatest Managers Do Di!erently,” by Marcus Buckingham and Curt Co!man

Thanks!

June 16-20, 2008UPA international conference

Baltimore, MD

Katrina AlcornPrincipal, User Experience and Content, Hot Studio, Inc.