Designing Environmental Solutions
Assignment, Part 1: User Research Pack
Interview the people affected by your challenge to see the problem through their eyes, and then capture key insights to define the problem in a clear and actionable way.
Conducting empathy interviews will help you understand your challenge from the perspective of those most affected by it. From all of the data that comes out of your interview process, you’ll capture key insights that help you define the problem in a clear and actionable way.
- Identify who you might interview. Jot down a list of potential interviewees, aiming for a mix of: potential end users; people who are currently dealing with the challenge; and stakeholders that are engaged with the problem in other ways (e.g. experts in the field). These categories might overlap! Then, select 2-4 people that you will reach out to and interview in the next step.If you struggle to find interviewees, start with one person and use the snowball method: at the end of the interview, ask them to introduce you to 1-2 other people you can talk to about the challenge.
- Set a learning goal (or goals) for the interview and craft an interview guide. Consider: what are you trying to learn, and what are some open-ended questions that will help you get there?
- Interview 2-4 people who are involved in your problem. If possible, conduct at least 1 observation of your users (e.g. watching them perform a task).Tip: Try to interview in pairs so one team member can take notes while the other interviews. After each interview, download with your team by pulling out 10-15 key quotes, notes, or take-aways and writing them down on post-its.
- Develop a user persona using the template here to capture crucial characteristics of your target user. You might fill out multiple personas to reflect a few different stakeholders in your challenge.
- Craft a POV statement using the template here.
If you’re struggling to begin, start with the notes you gathered during your interviews, and fill your space (whether physical or virtual) up with them so that everyone can see them. Then, try crafting your POV statement in a couple of different ways, with each team member taking a stab at it individually and then seeing where overlaps are.
Further resources for guidance:
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- For more tips on how to conduct interviews, refer to the resources in the Explore More section of this lesson, as well as this guide which recaps many of the tips shared in class.
- Design Research From Interview to Insight: Part 1 and Part 2 offer guidance on how to download your research learnings with your team.
- What is a Problem Statement?