Wikipedia says a wicked problem is a problem that is “difficult or impossible to solve because of incomplete, contradictory, and changing requirements that are often difficult to recognise”. The use of term “wicked” here has come to denote resistance to resolution, rather than evil. "You can’t know what you don’t know about what you need to know. So it’s still your fault." – Modern UX Designer’s conundrum As the Lean movement treads its certain path through the digital world, killing two-dimensional artefacts, trouncing on requirements specifications and making us all empowered and Agile, we might be sleepwalking into a bunch of very wicked problems. You may not recognise wicked problems when they come up, but like a bad smell, they haunt you for a long time. Within the trifecta of money, time and capability, live any number of decisions needed to conceptualise, design and build large scale digital products and services. The need to balance these with getting something ‘shipped’ means we inherently make choices that have a significant impact on the challenges we face later down the line. Whether start-up or established business, you’re not protected from wicked problems. In my talk, I want to explore: - What makes a problem wicked - The kinds of wicked problems we’re creating - The future problems we will need to address - Tips for tackling wicked problems

1. #NUX5 @LolaOye
Short descriptive heading
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For the love of wicked problems
#NUX5 @LolaOye

2. #NUX5 @LolaOye
Today, I’ll be talking about…
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What makes a problem wicked
The kinds of wicked problems we’re responsible for
The future problems we will need to address
Tips for tackling wicked problems

3. #NUX5 @LolaOye 3
POVERTY
UNEMPLOYMENT
EDUCATION
CRIME HOUSING

4. #NUX5 @LolaOye 4
TAKE A PIC!
Jon Kolko tackles:
• Problems that need designers
• Applying our tools to social problems
• Social entrepreneurship
https://www.wickedproblems.com/

5. #NUX5 @LolaOye
10 Characteristics of complex social issues
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1. Wicked problems have no definitive formulation. E.g.
Poverty in one place won’t have the same challenges as
poverty in another
2. It's hard, maybe impossible, to measure or claim success
with wicked problems because they bleed into one another.
3. Solutions to wicked problems can be only good or bad, not
true or false.
4. There is no template to follow when tackling a wicked
problem, although history may provide a guide.
5. There is always more than one explanation for a wicked
problem, with the appropriateness of the explanation
depending greatly on the individual perspective of the
designer.
6. Every wicked problem is a symptom of another problem.
7. No mitigation strategy for a wicked problem has a
definitive scientific test because humans invented wicked
problems and science exists to understand natural
phenomena.
8. Offering a "solution" to a wicked problem frequently is a
"one shot" design effort because a significant intervention
changes the design space enough to minimise the ability for
trial and error.
9. Every wicked problem is unique.
10. Designers attempting to address a wicked problem must be
fully responsible for their actions.
Source: Rittel, Horst. "Dilemmas in a General Theory of Planning." Policy
Sciences, 1973: 155-169.

6. #NUX5 @LolaOye
10 Characteristics of complex social issues
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1. Wicked problems have no definitive formulation. E.g.
Poverty in one place won’t have the same challenges as
poverty in another
2. It's hard, maybe impossible, to measure or claim success
with wicked problems because they bleed into one another.
3. Solutions to wicked problems can be only good or bad, not
true or false.
4. There is no template to follow when tackling a wicked
problem, although history may provide a guide.
5. There is always more than one explanation for a wicked
problem, with the appropriateness of the explanation
depending greatly on the individual perspective of the
designer.
6. Every wicked problem is a symptom of another problem.
7. No mitigation strategy for a wicked problem has a
definitive scientific test because humans invented wicked
problems and science exists to understand natural
phenomena.
8. Offering a "solution" to a wicked problem frequently is a
"one shot" design effort because a significant intervention
changes the design space enough to minimise the ability for
trial and error.
9. Every wicked problem is unique.
10. Designers attempting to address a wicked problem must be
fully responsible for their actions.
Source: Rittel, Horst. "Dilemmas in a General Theory of Planning." Policy
Sciences, 1973: 155-169.

7. #NUX5 @LolaOye
Today, I’ll be talking about…
7
What makes a problem wicked…in our modern digital context?
The kinds of wicked problems we’re responsible for
The future problems we will need to address
Tips for tackling wicked problems

8. #NUX5 @LolaOye 8
Legacy
technology
• Fixing one issue creates
another
• Lack of retained knowledge
• ‘Black-box’ software
• Poor maintenance practice
The Wicked Digital Quartet
Digital/ Technical
literacy
• Decisions made by the least
knowledgeable forums
• Inappropriate use of rhetoric
e.g. transformation, lean,
disruption
• Middle-management
resistance
+ Finance
• Zero-budgetting practices
• Incumbent vs venture
capitalists
• Misunderstanding full cost of
ownership
• Outdated IT Procurement
practice
+
Agile/ Lean
methodology
• Moving faster than ever
• Start now, fix later
• Empowerment of Product
Owners
• Lack of empathy within and
between teams
• Rushing towards new & next
+
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9. 9
A 100-year old public institution embarks on a digital transformation programme.
They set an aggressive agenda to overhaul end-of-life technology and create
new web services. They hire a strategic team, a systems integrator, select a CMS
and want everything to go in the cloud.
Day 1, the digital transformation team consists of 60 people, a mix of internal and
external resources. Many of the internal resources have attended internal talks on
Agile. The first product MVP is expected to demo to the board in 6-weeks.
#NUX5 @LolaOye
REAL WORLD SCENARIO

10. #NUX5 @LolaOye 10
Agile/ Lean
methodology
• Moving faster than ever
• Start now, fix later
• Empowerment of Product
Owners
• Lack of empathy within and
between teams
• Rushing towards new & next
Legacy
technology
• Fixing one issue creates
another
• Lack of retained knowledge
• ‘Black-box’ software
• Poor maintenance practice
Digital/ Technical
literacy
• Decisions made by the least
knowledgeable forums
• Inappropriate use of rhetoric
e.g. transformation, lean,
disruption
• Middle-management
resistance
Finance
• Zero-budgetting practices
• Incumbent vs venture
capitalists
• Misunderstanding full cost
of ownership
• Outdated IT Procurement
practice
The Wicked Digital Quartet
+ + +

11. #NUX5 @LolaOye
Today, I’ll be talking about…
11
What makes a problem wicked…in our modern digital context?
The kinds of wicked problems we’re responsible for
The future problems we will need to address
Tips for tackling wicked problems

12. #NUX5 @LolaOye
What the user experiences…
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• Slow look-ups & searches - we often consider
these ‘performance’ issues
• Badly loading pages - on slow connections, we
blame it on ‘the network’
• Page disharmony & flat interactions -
because the dev had to do the last bit of design
• Dead-end journeys - because content isn’t
where it is supposed to be

13. #NUX5 @LolaOye
…is down to our failure points
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• Slow look-ups & searches - we often consider
these ‘performance’ issues
• Badly loading pages - on slow connections, we
blame it on ‘the network’
• Page disharmony & flat interactions -
because the dev had to do the last bit of design
• Dead-end journeys - because content isn’t
where it is supposed to be
Systemic failures
• Discovery places too much focus on end-user pain
points and an idealised future state
• Sprint 0 focuses on getting development going
• Where do we uncover the current systemic
characteristics?
Individual failures
• If I design it, they have to build it - but can they
build it?
• If they don’t build it they messed up, not me
• Could ‘they’ be a part of my design process?

14. #NUX5 @LolaOye
Today, I’ll be talking about…
14
What makes a problem wicked…in our modern digital context?
The kinds of wicked problems we’re responsible for
The future problems we will need to address
Tips for tackling wicked problems

15. Desktop, mobile
and web don’t
mean much
Smart TV
Wearables
Tablets
Apps

16. Quant now
equals Qual
Big Data
Smart TV
Wearables
Analytics
Tablets
Apps

17. Digital inequality
is on the rise
!
Legacy Technology
Big Data
Smart TV
Wearables
Analytics
Tablets
Apps
Real-time web technology

18. #NUX5 @LolaOye
Today, I’ll be talking about…
18
What makes a problem wicked…in our modern digital context?
The kinds of wicked problems we’re responsible for
The future problems we will need to address
Tips for tackling wicked problems

19. #NUX5 @LolaOye
“
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In human affairs, continuous learning
is essential and [soft systems
methodology] is a way of doing that
continuous learning.
Prof. Peter Checkland, Lancaster University

20. #NUX5 @LolaOye
Idealising for the end user isn’t valuable if you
don’t take as much care to understand the
contextual constraints you have to design
within - even if those issues are not
immediately apparent to the end user.
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TAKE A PIC!
Wicked Tip #1
How it works? Use a prototype (e.g. sketches or interactive) to run
workshops with as many internal stakeholders as possible.
Build your backlog based on blending user needs with the
constraints and opportunities uncovered during these workshops.
Eradicate as many “spikes” as possible!
Product Runway
How it works? Just as you would model a user’s journey, model the
system. Map out the needs one store/component has of another,
where things are stored and identity tactical pain points e.g. old
software, compliance.
This should be ‘human’ readable, it is not a data flow diagram or a
technical diagram. Make it big, use a wall and add to it over time.
System Journey Maps

21. #NUX5 @LolaOye
As a UX professional, it is no longer an
option to have low technical literacy - start
speaking dev, take time to learn about the big
legacy challenges most organisations face
and be pragmatic.
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Wicked Tip #2
How it works? Spend the early part of any project sitting with,
talking to and learning from the development/IT teams.
This is not just about uncovering requirements, but also about
building empathy and mutual respect to tackle future problems
together!
Co-Location
How it works? Take a user story, and run your first idea session as a
joint sketch session with development. Make these short 30-45mins
and punchy.
Create a template so you get notes with each sketch, this is usually
the most informative bit, why did they see the solution this way?
This also builds a sense of shared ownership.
Developer + Design Workshops

22. #NUX5 @LolaOye
There is no blame game available to you.
“They” is replaced by “We”. There is no right
or wrong only good or bad, based on the best
understanding WE can achieve.
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TAKE A PIC!
Wicked Tip #3
How it works? Track the failure points and compromises that are
likely to have the biggest impact. Monitor these through usability
testing, the analytics and user feedback.
For each failure point score:
1 - Low impact on customer
2 - Moderate impact on customer
3 - High impact on customer
Keep track of your debt scores and use it to prioritise!
Customer Experience Debt

23. #NUX5 @LolaOye
Short descriptive heading
23
“We cannot solve the problems we
have created with the same thinking
we used in creating them.
Albert Einstein

24. Thank you, keep in touch
lola.oyelayo@headlondon.com
headlondon.com
@LolaOye
www.ownyourexperience.com