Tutorial #9

Managing the Design of the User Interface

Deborah J. Mayhew, Deborah J. Mayhew & Associates

Sunday, April 14, full-day

Benefits

You will learn what techniques and methods are available for designing good user interfaces and when and why to apply them. You will learn not only design and evaluation techniques, but also organizational and managerial strategies.

Origins

This tutorial is a "CHI Classic" that consistently receives high ratings from enthusiastic participants. The tutorial has been updated for CHI 96 to include new examples and methods.

Features

analyzing the costs and benefits of applying human factors methods
organizational structures and processes that foster good interface design
planning for and managing the use of usability techniques within the overall project plan
evaluating design alternatives by defining and prioritizing objective goals and criteria
making interface design decisions by applying quick and inexpensive interface evaluation techniques
information gathering methods that support preliminary design and specification
testing and evaluation methods for simulations and prototypes.

Audience

This tutorial is aimed primarily at managers with planning and budget responsibility. In addition, it will also be of interest to individual contributors who work in a software development organization and have responsibility for the quality of user interfaces. Junior level usability specialists will also benefit from this overview of the methods available to them.

Presentation

The tutorial is organized around a sample development life cycle and presents an overview of usability methods that can be applied at different points in the development process.

Instructors

Deborah J. Mayhew is owner and Principal Consultant of Deborah J. Mayhew & Associates, a small consulting firm that offers a wide variety of services related to computer-human interaction. Her clients have included IBM, AT&T, American Airlines, Hewlett-Packard, Ford Motor Co., GTE, American Express and many others. Often her work involves introducing usability techniques and methods into software development organizations. Dr. Mayhew has been offering tutorials at CHI since 1986.