Intranet | User Centered Design

Usability Engineering reduces the product development cycle by 33% - 50% (Bosert 1991)

Introduction

There is a considerable productivity decrease if employees are spending excessive amounts of time trying to find information on an Intranet. Having an Intranet User Centered Design that corresponds closely to user needs means that training costs are reduced, employee morale is given a boost and productivity increases. Organisations deploy Intranets to manage large quantities of information. However, it is often a challenge to organise this information coherently so as to aid navigation and orientation.

User Centered Design involves scientifically structuring this information logically for its' end users. An User Centered Design designed and tested by our Usability Specialists with input from real users is much more likely to be usable upon launch. Getting a thorough understanding of usability implications before Intranet building commences can considerably reduce development costs and timelines.

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The Process

The Usability Specialist creates wireframes (page mock-ups of individual screens) of the interface after a careful consideration of the Intranet's intended content, intended audience, scenarios of use and technical constraints. These prototypes are created using tools such as Visio and Freehand. Each element in the wireframe is verified by employing specialised techniques such as card sorting to elicit user feedback on the developing information architecture. The wireframe is constantly revised based on this feedback and any necessary design modifications are made. Throughout this process the technical feasibility of the proposed solution is constantly monitored.

User Centered Design has 3 key deliverables:

1. Interaction Schema - wireframes providing a page by page storyboard and descriptions of page elements and features. It details what each screen should contain, and how the user can interact with it. It illustrates screen layouts, navigation rules and Intranet information flow. It is essentially a blueprint for design.
    
2. Intranet map - a graphical overview of the proposed Intranet structure in the form of a hierarchical diagram. It depicts all of the pages within the Intranet and the relationships between them.
    
3. Style guides - used to guide designers/site builders in developing the entire Intranet. The style guide will offer rules for the use of navigation, design elements, controls, labelling, and error messages.

If you are planning an Intranet or redeveloping the existing offering and would like to understand more about how our User Centered Design service can help you achieve a usable and scalable design then please call or email us and a consultant will be happy to talk to you.

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© The Usability Company 2007