Hunting Unicorns - What makes an effective UX Professional
Patrick Neeman, Director of Product Design, Apptio
@usabilitycounts | www.usabilitycounts.com
Hunting
Unicorns
What makes
an effective
UX Professional{
@usabilitycounts
Some Articles I Found…
!
Nine Essential Characteristics of Good UX Designers
http://userexperience.evantageconsulting.com/2009/07/
characteristics-good-ux-designers/
!
And about nine other articles linking to Fred Beecher’s article…
!
Essential and Desirable Skills for a UX Designer
http://uxmatters.com/mt/archives/2010/12/essential-and-
desirable-skills-for-a-ux-designer.php
!
Which a laundry list of skills that is unachievable…
!
And a bunch of short articles.
Fred Beecher
@usabilitycounts
For example…
Dave Hogue
Ph.D.
Psychology Background
Good looking
Great public speaker
Drinks gin (Boo)
Patrick Neeman
Three Time Dropout
Print Design Background
Has a great goatee
Presentation has funny photos
Sophisticated Whiskey Drinker
@usabilitycounts
“When I grow up, I want to be a UX Designer.”
Lion Tamer,
Print Designer, Web Designer, Creative Director,
Program Manager, Product Manager, and
Director of Development
@usabilitycounts
T-Shaped Skill Set
They have a principal skill
that describes the vertical
leg of the T — they’re
mechanical engineers or
industrial designers. But
they are so empathetic that
they can branch out into
other skills, such as
anthropology, and do them as
well.”
Tim Brown, IDEO CEO
“
@usabilitycounts
The Competencies of User Experience
User Research
and Analytics
Understanding the
users through
observations and
data
Content
Strategy
Planning for the
creation, delivery
and governance of
usable content
Information
Architecture
Organizing
information in a
product or website
in a usable way
Interaction
Design
Designing interactive
behaviors with a
specific focus on
their use
Visual
Design
Designing the visual
qualities in an
aesthetically
pleasing way
Front End
Development
Building the
interactive behaviors
to be used by the
end user
http://www.nickfinck.com/blog/entry/ux_career_progression_finding_a_niche_building_a_personal_brand/
@usabilitycounts
The Core Apptio Team of Five
User Research
and Analytics
Content
Strategy
Information
Architecture
Interaction
Design
Visual
Design
Front End
Development
@usabilitycounts
I have to convince my developer to
build a feature…
Empathy Curiosity Methodical
Fearless Self Aware Articulate
Pragmatic
Passionate
@usabilitycounts
I want to understand user needs…
Empathy Curiosity Methodical
Fearless Self Aware Articulate
Pragmatic
Passionate
@usabilitycounts
I want to analyze user data…
Empathy Curiosity Methodical
Fearless Self Aware Articulate
Pragmatic
Passionate
@usabilitycounts
I want to sell design thinking
within an organization…
Empathy Curiosity Methodical
Fearless Self Aware Articulate
Pragmatic
Passionate
@usabilitycounts
Further Reading
!
The Unicorn Designer Dilemma, and How to Avoid It
http://www.usabilitycounts.com/2013/07/24/the-unicorn-designer-dilemma-and-how-
to-avoid-it/
!
Eight Organizational Challenges for UX Professionals
http://www.usabilitycounts.com/2012/05/02/eight-organizational-challenges-for-ux-
professionals/
!
Six Things Misunderstood About User Experience Designers
http://www.usabilitycounts.com/2011/03/14/six-things-misunderstood-about-user-
experience-designers/
!
How to Get Started in User Experience for People I Want to Hire
http://www.usabilitycounts.com/2011/10/18/how-to-get-started-in-user-experience-
seven-tips/
Patrick Neeman, Director of Product Design, Apptio
@usabilitycounts | www.usabilitycounts.com
Thank you!