Surviving The Software Development Process

© 2008 frog design. Confidential & Proprietary.

Collin ColeSenior Vice President, frog design

Austin TX

[email protected]

2/17/2008Collin Cole, SVP 1


frog is a strategic-creative consulting firm.

We bring a unique combination of strategic and creative talent to help companies evolve, expand, and envision their business.

Our rigorous yet unorthodox approach yields breakthrough innovation and a sustainable competitive edge.

Palo Alto San Jose San Francisco Seattle Austin New York Stuttgart Milan Shanghai



Surviving the Software Development Process

How to deliver a great brand experience through better software design



1. Why good software design is difficult

2. Five ways to survive the process and deliver a great design


Two parts:


A couple of quick definitions

“Software” = web, embedded, mobile, desktop applications

“Designers” = agencies, contractors, internal corporate groups



Software is a vital element of your brand identity.

Software is your customer’s daily interaction

with your brand.



Think of the care that goes into the consistent delivery of your brand.



Why isn’t it the same with your company’s software?



The software landscape is overwhelming.



Software is complex.

Networksfixed, wireless, satellite

Services, Servers & Data

content, contacts, media, commerce

Deviceshome, mobile, business, entertainment

Device Connectivitypolicies, permissions, protocols

Applicationsentertainment, information, productivity



Tools are difficult (they’re getting better)

Traditional roles inhibit collaboration

The traditional, sequential process has gaps.Crossing each gap requires translation and interpretation

DESIGNMARCOM/STRATEGY DEVELOPMENT

010010100110100

1101010001

0010111011

? ?

The process is hard.



But mostly, it’s because your design is left in the hands of others with very different priorities.



How we’ve adapted at frog design.

Focused our tech efforts on UI/UX

Increased the designer:developer ratio to about 4:1

Created a “design technologist” position : a design-minded, UI-focused developer, and added other complementary roles

Invested in new design & development tools

Updated our process to be more collaborative and iterative



How we’ve adapted at frog

BEST IN SHOW AWARD

Best Business/Productivity Application,

People’s Choice Award

Case Study:


http://www.m-e-f.org/index.php?id=615

http://www.brandsoftheworld.com/brands/0012/5944/Alltel.eps


How we’ve adapted at frog

January

Discovery

PROJ 1

Proof of concept prototype (on handset)

PROJECT 2

Full product design and development, testing, launch

PROJECT 3

First idea to final product (tested, on the market) in less than 12 months

Strategy & Design Development

December

Collaborative and concurrent design and development


http://www.brandsoftheworld.com/brands/0012/5944/Alltel.eps


SURVIVING THE SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT PROCESS

five ways to keep your brand in one piece



1. Own the user experience.

Ensuring a quality implementation is YOUR responsibility.

Expand your skills; stretch and grow. If you don’t have developers, hire them.

Deliver what you can; simulations, key templates, reference implementations.

Old-style design specifications just don’t work.



Major League BaseballMicrosoft Silverlight



Lawson M3 Smart Client4 month Design-UI Development cycleMicrosoft .NET3/WPF



ProjectBrief

D E S I G N P H A S E D E V E L O P M E N T

Design Specification

TIME…

design research, information architecture, wireframes, workflows, interaction design, visual design, flash demos, usability testing, internal presentations, design documentation…

* Rate of increase is proportional to the number of executives involved

DevelopmentReality

Designers are designing while developers have already started.

functional requirements and feature lists, team assignments and scheduling, systems architecture, platform development, proof‐of‐concept prototyping… (they’ve already started!)



2. Start building something.

Drastically shorten the first design step. Rough out a wireframe and start prototyping. Get out of Photoshop/Illustrator/Visio.

Prototype as a process. What you build serves to communicate between all groups and continually resets expectations.

Prototype as a specification.If a picture is worth a thousand words, a prototype is worth a thousand pages of pretty documentation.



Yahoo! MessengerMicrosoft .NET3/WPF

2 designers, 2 developers

6 months



3. Everyone is a designer.

Build a team of technically-minded designers and design-aware developers.

Encourage a collaborative and concurrent design-develop process. Get the design and development teams talking and working together, from the beginning.

Take advantage of the uniquely different perspectives on the team. Good ideas can come from anywhere. Developers are often in the best position to recognize improvements in interaction design.



Fox SportsMicrosoft Media Center application

Silverlight/MCML



4. You’re not finished until it ships.

Stay involved during implementation to provide design oversight for the inevitable surprises, compromises, and on-the-spot fixes. Remember, the quality of the final product is YOUR responsibility. No finger pointing allowed when it’s done.

Schedule time for Design QA or “fit & finish” polishing.



Disney Software Suite“old school” C programming



5. Build a system, not just screens.

Create a software DNA for your brand (personality, voice, visual components, interactions)

Think modularly. Design for reuse and built-in consistency, even across different media, platforms, and devices.

Make doing the right thing the easiest choice. Deliver your design documentation in a format that is easily accessed and used by engineers.


© 2008 frog design. Confidential & Proprietary. 2/17/2008Collin Cole, SVP 28

Online design specifications with design rules, copy & paste code snippets, and interactive, functional examples

© 2008 frog design. Confidential & Proprietary. 2/17/2008Collin Cole, SVP 29

HP’s elegant Photosmart identity spans platforms and devices.
