MPU3233 Assignment 3: Design Thinking Implementation: Prototyping, Testing

CASE STUDY

Project X

After deciding to implement the design thinking method (from stage 1 empathize to stage 3 Ideation) to provide real value to their users, we have decided to continue the process to its final stage.

Stage 4 – Prototype

Prototyping Phase: During this phase, something tangible is created, that will allow you to verify your idea in real life. Don’t overcomplicate and create this MVP as quickly as possible.

Sample wireframe.
During the prototype phase, it was finally time to make our definitions and ideas come to life. A prototype is the first, original model of a proposed product, and this is exactly what we set out to build. By design thinking standards, the prototype stage is where you create an inexpensive, scaled down versions of the real product to investigate solutions from the
previous stages.

After almost 10 days from the beginning of our journey, we arrived at the crucial moment, a meeting with a developer team where we had a chance to check our assumptions and estimations. After a session of consultation and definition with the team of developers, we weighed the stories and understood that the major effort of the development work will be in the development of the back-end system and interfacing with the legacy systems currently in place. Alongside this, we also realized that creating the front-end systems will be a much shorter exercise yet could increase the cost of the prototype.

We had a time limit of 3 days to have a first version of the prototype ready. This prototype had to reflect the product as much as possible and maintain the necessary functionality.

After 3 days we had our first version of the prototype ready. It had “fake” data which reflected the behavior of the software we were aiming to create. Some accessory elements were missing, but the software in that state visually represented a good percentage of total content planned.

At the end of two weeks of work, we had software that we could try and test with actual users. We used user experience monitoring software to analyse heat maps and user attention, while they were navigating our prototype.

Stage 5 – Test

Testing Phase – Verify your idea in real life with actual users. Get feedback. Ask questions on how to improve it.

After a definition, ideation and a prototype phase it was finally time to see if our product actually worked in real life. In design thinking terms, testing means putting the complete product to trial using the best solutions created in the prototyping phase.

In our case, the testing phase did not only take place at the end, but it was a constant loop of feedback and iteration whenever it was possible. At the end of each accomplished step, we tried to get feedback from users or customers, before convincing ourselves to move on to the next phase. Once the prototype was completed, it was time to test it with the widest possible audience
and check with them how effectively it met their needs, understand their perception, and understand if it accomplished their goals.

The testing phase specifically included a walkthrough prototype where users were able to see the new workflow and perform actions, along with a few sessions where the team directly observed users, while tracking their responses. A simple questionnaire was used to collect conversion rates across specific features in the platform, where users were asked to score the process from 1-10.

The testing phase was later extended to the whole team and even to some individuals outside the organization (customers and users) who during the earlier sessions, had willingly consented to give their feedback on the implementation of the system.

The results of this testing were encouraging. The stakeholders of the Company X were able not only to see the mockups but to try out and “touch” the product for the very first time. The extended team had the opportunity to test and verify their assumptions and correct them over time within the period of two weeks.

Now the final test was waiting: opening it to users and understanding what would happen next.

Stage 6 – Launching

This is the phase where all the collected knowledge gets translated into a final product.

We had data, ideas, personas, and our first tangible prototype. It was time to roll up our sleeves and start developing. We had a month and a half to implement our new system.

We defined a set of rules to get our MVP implemented in a short period of time:

We will build only what we had defined, without adding new features.

We will keep ourselves focus on the main business goal.

We will use agile methodologies within teams to manage the workload.

We added front-end developers, back-end developers, and designers. The new members of the team were working remotely and it was not possible to bring them all in the same room for the period of the project, so we made sure that we have the right tools for keeping the communication going.

The process put in place to manage the work was an Agile one. We divided the remaining time into several short sprints, with remote meetings every day and updates via Slack during the day to exchange the ideas and to help each other to solve problems.

We didn’t have a full documentation stored somewhere, but mentally we all had a comprehensive set of actions, a common shared vision, and goals amongst the team. We all started to perceive the User Personas to be a real user, with his own needs and problems. Once our team started to have an aligned vision, we moved onto defining what needed to be done and when in order to finish the project on time.

The activities were outlined within a User Story Map, to maintain the original evidence of the personas and the flow we want to give to the product.
The User Story maps were created via three clear steps: identifying the activities, identifying the steps required to complete the activity, and the list of stories/tasks associated with each.

We sorted the stories according to priority (Must, Should, Could), which dictated what components made it into the product.
The team was able to proceed in a fast pace since the very beginning of the implementation, thanks to a clear vision shared by the team, and by the method we employed which enabled the team to stay on track without direct steering from the management above.

Everyone working in the project had questions from the Design Thinking stages in mind:

What action each user inside our platform should perform and what were they trying to achieve?

Which steps those users should take to reach the final goal?

Which pain points they had before and how should we avoid them?

This allowed our team to make their own micro-decisions, and steer the product towards its final goal.

We made two reviews of the work in progress at the end of each sprint and one final release review at the end of the path, before the product was finally put into production. We used the last sprint to prepare the infrastructure needed to run and launch the product.

Finally, the users who have used our old product were invited again to try out the new version. Our product was released into production two months after the meeting in which the idea to make it was expressed. The product worked, users started using it by first entering a few personal information and we progressively sent more new users to this tool instead of the old one. A/B testing showed us that they preferred the new product, and the project was accepted in the company as a great success.

Part A

Question 1.A

Type your answer here (Indicative word count: approximately 800 words)
Work Required: You are expected to identify one constraint the Company X faced during the prototyping phase and propose one solution to counter that constraint. Your answer should be structured and explained in detail. You must also provide a clear justification to highlight the suitableness of the solution using the prototyping mindsets.

When providing your response, please ensure to address the following aspects: quality of sentencing and grammar, usage of clear structure, relevance of your explanation and justifications.

Question 2.A

Type your answer here (Indicative word count: approximately 800 words)
Work Required: You are expected to recommend one testing method to suit best the case of Company X.

Your answer should be structured and explained in detail. You must also justify how the new selected method will be more efficient than the current one based on the factors to consider when deciding which user testing method to use. When providing your response, please ensure to address the following aspects: quality of sentencing and grammar, usage of clear structure, relevance of your justifications.

Question 3.A

-ENDType your answer here (Indicative word count: approximately 500 words)
Work Required: You are expected to prepare a short marketing speech to present to the media the end goal of the final product focusing on the privacy of the user and ethics relating to the product development.

Your speech draft should be structured and explained in detail. You must also relate to the end goal factors: desirable, feasible, and viable, in addressing the privacy and ethics matters. You are allowed to use argument discussed in the stage 1 empathize to stage 3 ideation to strengthen your speech. When providing your response, please ensure to address the following aspects: quality of sentencing and grammar, usage of clear structure, professionalism, and target of the speech.

Answer

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