Don’t Ask Your Customer

“People know everything—everything—about what they do. They just can’t tell you.” This is the central insight of Contextual Design—and sometimes the hardest for people to understand. Every classic requirements collection technique depends on the idea that you can ask...

Don’t Ask Your Customer—Use Contextual Inquiry

“People know everything—everything—about what they do. They just can’t tell you.” This is the central insight of Contextual Design—and sometimes the hardest for people to understand. The whole assumption behind requirements gathering is that it is possible to ask...

Connectivity Week 2009

Some weeks ago I was at Connectivity Week and had the pleasure of participating on one of their keynote panels. We were talking to a self-defined audience of 50+ hardcore engineers inventing smart meters, appliances, monitors, and infrastructure that can be leveraged...

Journey to the Center of the Human Psyche

OK, I’m letting out a secret. I watch TV shows—and only mindless ones at that. I was hooked on Battlestar Galactica. My husband and I watched religiously—and now it is over. After each episode my husband would go off to Television Without Pity to read what they said...

InContext at PDMA 2009 International Conference

PDMA is the Product Development and Management Association. At this year’s international conference, I’ll be appearing with several industry thought leaders in a workshop called Finding the Collective Brilliance through Product Design and Integration. October...