Challenge


I was asked by VMware to demonstrate how to identify a new and emerging technology for Colleague Experience using UX Research. I only had 1 week, no immediate access to users, and no access to enterprise tools. I also had the opportunity to interview 2 VMware employees.

UXR: jszrejter@hotmail.com Key Stakeholders: Karthik, Irish, Kostadin April 2020 Executive Summary 1 Background 2 Annotated Bibliography 2-6 Thematic Analysis 7-9 ...

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REFLECTION

 

WHAT DID I LEARN?

  • It’s impossible to do UX Research without access to Users. There is no substitute. However, compiling public facing research can be really effective in laying the foundation for a future proposal. Within colleague experience, they are only designing technology for their own employees. As a result it’s important to make sure you take into consideration that the VMware employee base, culture, and norms might be completely different to other populations. It’s important to focus on specifically for VMware employees for research, then all else will follow.

  • It’s really important to collaborate with cross functional teams. I discovered unique cultural norms associated with collaboration, communication, and expectations for deliverables. They love open discussion and vocal collaboration throughout the discover and design process. I mistakenly built them a slide deck about collaboration instead of simply discussing collaboration with them. This cost me the research opportunity despite the wonderful compilation of research.

     

 WHAT COULD I HAVE DONE DIFFERENTLY?

  • I would have spent more time developing rapport with the team through active listening. Instead of developing an agenda in advance as an incoming UX Researcher, I should have collaborated with the team. Had I spent more time listening to their experiences before proposing a collaborative model, it’s likely we would have successfully come into alignment.