Opening Keynote: UX, Rails & Awesomeness

by Chanelle Henry

The keynote address delivered by Chanelle Henry at RailsConf 2016 explores the intersection of User Experience (UX), development with Rails, and the importance of creativity in problem-solving. With her diverse background in psychology, computer science, and design, Chanelle emphasizes how various experiences shape the UX process.

Key points discussed in the presentation include:

- Background of the Speaker: Chanelle shares her journey from a curious child disassembling computers to her role as Director of User Experience at Bluewolf, a company that aids Fortune 50 firms in improving user experiences.

- Understanding UX: She articulates that UX goes beyond mere visual aesthetics; rather, it involves a comprehensive user-centered approach, including field research, usability testing, and continuous updates based on user feedback.

- Bridging Gaps: Chanelle addresses the frequent disconnect between UX design and development, highlighting the need for collaboration in corporate settings to ensure product effectiveness and relevance to user needs.

- Case Studies: Through a project with Western Digital, Chanelle illustrates the importance of user analysis and process collaboration in achieving significant results, showcasing how an understanding of users can streamline operations.

- Impact of Design: She shares her experience working with the United Nations World Food Program, stating how UX can drive societal change by supporting NGOs in combating hunger.

- Personal Reflections: Chanelle encourages embracing one's authentic self, maintaining focus, and taking actionable steps toward goals regardless of challenges faced.

- Call to Action: She concludes by motivating participants to pursue their passions and utilize their skills to create meaningful solutions within their communities and industries.

In summary, the talk underscores that designers and UX professionals play a pivotal role in shaping positive user experiences that can lead to significant change, both within organizations and in broader societal contexts.

00:00:00 I am very pleased to introduce our next keynote speaker. She has a background in computer science, psychology, and design, which I think is a fascinating overlap. She is currently the Director of User Experience at Bluewolf. Chanelle has also written a book, and I think if you ask nicely, she might give you a copy.

00:00:11 Thank you! That was a great introduction. It's funny because for the past couple of weeks, I've been staying with my mother, and I’m 33, which usually is not something to brag about. She said something really hilarious the other day: she said I was too kind, and I said thank you too much! So, I'm ignoring that, and I want to take this moment to say thank you to all the people who made this possible. I want to thank everyone here, as well as all the board members and everyone who made this conference possible for future engineers, builders, and connectors of the world. Please give yourselves a round of applause!

00:00:52 Alright, so let's get into the meat of this talk. It’s primarily about UX, with a little bit about Rails and a lot about awesomeness. As you know, my background is quite colorful. There are so many ways I could have started this introduction; I thought about referencing Seinfeld or Oprah, but in the end, I think the best way is just to say, ‘Hi!’ So, hello!

00:01:11 At the bottom of each slide, you'll see my Twitter handle; that's also my Medium handle where I write a lot about what I’ll discuss here. When you want to tag or say anything about the talk, feel free to use RailsConf 2016 UX. You can also download the presentation at bit.ly/railsux2016.

00:01:29 So, who am I? I’m a User Experience architect and consultant. It took a long time to get here. My first computer was a Macintosh Plus when I was about five or six. Yes, I’m definitely dating myself, but I already told you how old I am, so now you have to do the math!

00:01:42 I loved doing IT, always taking things apart and often getting grounded for it. I adored being a developer back in the day when QBasic was a thing. That led me on a long journey, as I also loved art, and everyone always told me that there was no money in art.

00:02:00 I had to think about that for a while before deciding to take some computer courses and continue down that path. I realized that I was a storyteller who loved to tell stories about my life and write about them. I used to be a very shy kid, so shy that one time, after someone next to me introduced themselves, I accidentally introduced myself with their name.

00:02:22 Later on, most importantly, I realized I'm an 'Alchemist.' If you haven’t read the book *The Alchemist*, you should. It really helps when considering the journey we are all on. For different purposes and reasons, and throughout this talk, you will learn what those reasons are for me.

00:02:45 One of the most random aspects of my life is that I love making beef jerky. I’ve been making it for about 25 years. Instead of asking for Barbies as a child, I requested a dehydrator because I loved beef jerky and fruit roll-ups. What better way to obtain those than to have the source?

00:03:01 Now, I make what a lot of people, including a prominent news correspondent from Philly, have told me is the best beef jerky they’ve ever had. It's random, but it's important to me because we need hobbies outside of work.

00:03:14 Many of my hobbies have turned into jobs, but at the core of it, I’m a phony. And that’s the part that matters most about this statement. It’s true and false at the same time, and I'll get into that.

00:03:28 What is user experience? When I first arrived here, I was overwhelmed by the brilliant minds I met. I couldn’t hold a conversation with some people; it felt like we were speaking a language I didn’t know. I kept asking myself what I could possibly say that would be useful.

00:03:46 But being the Director at Bluewolf, which was recently acquired by IBM, made me feel important. However, when I first came in, no one knew what design or UX was. A developer once asked me what the quickest way was to create an icon. I suggested going to an icon finder, and he was surprised he hadn’t thought of that.

00:04:04 Realizing this was going to be a challenge, I felt it was essential for everyone in the organization to understand what UX is. This realization happened about four months in, and I had been with the company for three years. I often felt like a rebel.

00:04:20 We’re titanium partners with Salesforce, and essentially, we help implement Salesforce into the top 50 corporations. It was difficult to communicate with business people, salespeople, project managers, and CEOs.

00:04:36 This is typically how UX is perceived: as just visual or interface design. People often email me asking if I can help design a website by tomorrow. My answer is no. Do they know what it takes? I need to know about the company and the audience, but early on, it doesn’t matter; they just want it to look pretty.

00:04:52 Letting someone say, 'Let’s make it look pretty' is one of the worst things you can say to a designer. The cool part about me is that I’m a tribrid.

00:05:05 UX wants to be seen as doing everything from field research, face-to-face interviewing, product design, feature writing, requirement writing, technical specification writing, and usability prototyping.

00:05:20 I never wanted to write copy because I'm such a goofball. When Western Digital wanted me to write their copy and I suggested it be fun, they told me it was too much humor for their brand.

00:05:37 This is part of teamwork: brainstorming and coordination. We get involved with strategy sessions, thinking about possibilities. I employ a UX methodology that I developed for the company.

00:05:51 This is version two, as designers are never really happy with anything. The company underwent rebranding, so making our processes simple was essential. Now, I know a lot of you in the back can't see it, but I'm going to run through it and show a couple of examples.

00:06:06 The first part is discovery, which contains an XP workshop called Experience Process Review. Some companies run business process reviews to go over requirements, study competitors, and conduct analytics audits.

00:06:30 Most companies don't measure success, which is crucial because we can't measure it if we don't have success metrics in place. The next step is user analysis. I love observing users. If you saw me yesterday, I looked like a spy observing everything.

00:06:41 I enjoy watching people and analyzing their behaviors through focus groups, storyboards, interviews, and contextual research. After that comes information architecture - bringing everything together into a sitemap, which helps establish a good content strategy.

00:06:55 Now we arrive at visual design. This is what everyone thinks I start with - just jumping into Photoshop or Sketch to create something flashy, but that's not how I work. I need to go through the mood boards, pattern libraries, and establish a style guide.

00:07:09 I love style, both in design and fashion. I sometimes avoid mirrors because of my concerns with aesthetics. After usability testing, we ensure that what we learn makes sense and is usable because at the end of the day, UX is about users and content.

00:07:27 If you lack either, there will be a great disconnect with the product. Development is crucial, however, I won’t pretend to be a developer. The company I’m at placed UX within marketing.

00:07:39 Following that, we move to maintenance, reviewing the UX specification document and creating an improvement plan. We focus on success metrics and user feedback because as UX professionals, we need to hear about user experiences.

00:07:51 We must incorporate evaluations to determine how your product can be successful. Moving on to process flows, consider my first project with Western Digital, where redesigning their customer service portal was our goal.

00:08:05 For that project, I learned that they had a complex audience profile. For small businesses, getting to the login screen took about seven pages. After working together with the tech architect, we condensed that to about 20 pages.

00:08:21 Initially, the developers were frightened, worried that we wouldn't include all the necessary features in the process flow. They finally understood the whole process, leading to those 'aha' moments and smoother collaboration.

00:08:35 Branding elements play an essential role in ensuring that the front-end developers realize every page must maintain consistency. Then we can create beautiful products together.

00:08:50 Western Digital was ultimately successful, though initially, the biggest challenge was that while we had fantastic developers, they genuinely lacked a UX budget.

00:09:05 They expected to complete an entire customer service portal project in 150 hours when, realistically, it required more like 700 hours. As a fast worker, I managed to do what I had to, but I continuously asked myself how we could change the perception for future projects.

00:09:20 I was one of the only UX people there compared to a company of 600 with a hundred sales personnel. I understood the development language, but I kept pondering how UX and development could entwine.

00:09:32 The conclusion that I reached is that UX is essential in development. Devs need UX, but there’s a catch. I found in my research that while user experience doesn't necessarily require development skills, knowing the capabilities and possible limitations helps guide the process.

00:09:47 The process flows are where these two areas unite, allowing us to collaborate in ways that can drive cost-effectiveness and profitability.

00:10:02 One of my favorite quotes from Jason Fried is about the difference between product capabilities and user possibilities. Many companies create products without considering the actual needs of their users. If our product doesn't resonate with anyone, we've failed.

00:10:14 Even as the smallest, seemingly inconsequential voice in a corporate setting, I ensure that we prioritize a user-centric focus. Regardless of how short or insignificant we feel, we have to remember that we can drive change.

00:10:30 Collaboration becomes key. For instance, in GSK, the pharmaceutical representatives, our IT team, and others all collaborated effectively, leading to outstanding results. It was refreshing to see them so engaged, using Post-its and crayons to visualize ideas.

00:10:45 I often say design creates stories and great experiences have the innate ability to change our perspective. Design can make a massive difference, and in doing so, we can impact lives. However, many often dismiss the importance of what we do.

00:11:02 People often say that designers can't save the world. This annoys me because I entered this field to create solutions and positively influence people's lives.

00:11:16 Using my skills as a UX designer, I worked on a project with the United Nations World Food Program. The goal was to design a platform for NGOs aiming to combat hunger in Africa.

00:11:38 With this platform, we were able to enable NGOs to check on food supplies, and effectively address hunger crises, which I believe was truly changing the world.

00:11:55 I want to leave you with the idea that each of us has the power to change the world. I know that may sound sentimental, but we truly are the gatekeepers of change. As the tech community, we have capabilities that can shift paradigms.

00:12:10 We all play a role in crafting meaningful solutions in areas like education, mental health, and healthcare. Collectively, we can work towards transformation.

00:12:25 There are still considerable gaps in the way we bridge the divide between design and development. I've had conversations that range from designers to developers but haven't had the chance to engage in a unified dialogue.

00:12:41 These gaps are exacerbated by barriers to STEM fields, such as ageism, racism, sexism, and nepotism. These barriers stifle innovation and keep many talented people from exploring their capabilities.

00:12:54 As I navigated these challenges, I sometimes questioned my own path. A few years ago, I wrote a candid post about struggling with feelings of inadequacy.

00:13:10 That post ended up going viral and forced me to acknowledge that I am not alone in facing these hurdles. I realized I needed to change my perspective about success.

00:13:27 Like many people, I struggled to define what it meant for me. I learned that being my authentic self is foundational; being vulnerable can elicit creativity and transformational change.

00:13:43 After many trials and errors, I had to address the internal negativity that comes from constantly comparing oneself to others. Over the years, I've observed that our brains tend to hold onto negative experiences more than positive ones.

00:14:00 I reached a point where I realized that everyone, even those we admire, is simply winging it as we attempt to navigate life. The illusion of expertise can be paralyzing.

00:14:16 Maintaining focus amidst the chaos is vital. Although I have ADHD and can lose focus, it’s essential to take action toward your goals, no matter how small. It’s about building momentum.

00:14:33 Remember: excitement must lead to action; seize opportunities quickly, or you’ll lose momentum. Life is short, and we need to pursue our passion, nonetheless.

00:14:50 In reflecting on my journey, I found pleasure in creating a book during a small product lab exercise at Gumroad, which led me to researching and addressing my own battles with mental health.

00:15:05 The book, titled *Mutant Nation*, focuses on tackling anxiety and depression. Though it wasn’t completed on time, the experience allowed me to empathize even deeper with others facing similar challenges.

00:15:23 In the end, the journey may lead to fascinating discoveries about ourselves and allow us to ultimately accomplish tasks we thought unattainable.

00:15:42 The most significant realization was the importance of accountability and support through sharing goals with others, which has a higher success rate. By sharing, we inspire and empower one another to keep pushing forward.

00:16:07 To conclude, as Howard Thurman said, 'Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive and go do it.' At the end of the day, the world needs more people who have come alive.

00:16:20 Let’s strive to be our authentic selves, embrace our passions, and encourage progress both in ourselves and the communities we belong to. Thank you very much!