One of the most devastating mistake an IT project manager can make is to assume he or she understands the user. First, users are humans and humans are unpredictable. Second, users are business professionals and business professionals are predictably unpredictable. So, how do we deal with this important issue?
The answer is continual research. Internal research includes user interviews, usability testing and other efforts that result in a better understanding of the cUStomER (users are customers in disguise). User interviews and usability testing help you understand how users really use systems and solutions. Sometimes, the best information is gathered while simply watching the users do their daily work.
I recently worked on a project that included the development of a web-based front end to a database. The internal IT professional told us exactly what he wanted and we designed it for him; however, when the users started using the application, they had all kinds of complaints. Was it the fault of the users? Certainly not. As the IT professionals, we must do the research that results in a clear understanding of the customer’s needs. This particular IT professional based all of his decisions on his technical expertise and did not consider the business processes.
In the end, we spent a day with the users observing how they performed their work in the old system. Then we redesigned the web interface from the ground up. The end result: a solution based on research (and no assumptions) that the users loved and used.
Assume nothing. You’ll be glad you didn’t.
