What steps should you take to create an IT service user experience design research agenda?

3 Plan your research activities

The third step is to plan your research activities. This involves defining the scope, duration, frequency, and location of your research sessions. You should also decide who will participate in your research, how you will recruit them, and what incentives you will offer them. You should aim to include a representative sample of your target users, with different characteristics, backgrounds, and scenarios. You should also prepare your research materials, such as scripts, questions, tasks, scenarios, prototypes, etc. For example, if you want to conduct usability testing of your IT service, you should prepare a realistic scenario that simulates the user's context and goal, a prototype of your IT service that allows the user to interact with it, and a set of tasks that test the key features and functions of your IT service.

4 Conduct your research

The fourth step is to conduct your research. This is where you collect data from your users using your chosen methods and materials. You should follow ethical and professional standards when conducting UX research, such as obtaining informed consent, respecting privacy and confidentiality, and being respectful and empathetic. You should also document your research process and results, using notes, recordings, transcripts, screenshots, etc. You should also be flexible and adaptable, as you may encounter unexpected issues or insights during your research. For example, if you conduct usability testing of your IT service, you should observe and record how the users interact with your prototype, what difficulties or errors they encounter, what feedback or suggestions they provide, and how satisfied they are with your IT service.

6 Communicate your findings

The sixth and final step is to communicate your findings. This is where you share your research results and insights with your stakeholders, such as your clients, managers, developers, designers, etc. You should use clear and concise language, visuals, and stories to communicate your findings, and highlight the key takeaways, recommendations, and implications for your IT service design. You should also provide evidence and examples to support your findings, and acknowledge the limitations and assumptions of your research. You should also invite feedback and discussion from your stakeholders, and use their input to refine your findings or plan your next steps. For example, if you communicate your findings from your usability testing and surveys, you should present a summary of the usability issues, user preferences, user satisfaction, and user expectations of your IT service, and suggest how to improve your IT service design based on your research insights.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?