User interface design (UI) or user interface engineering is the design of user interfaces for machines and software, such as computers, home appliances, mobile devices, and other electronic devices, with the focus on maximizing the user experience.
The team at Bentley University recently sent out a survey to UX professionals to learn more about their experience with UX consultants, and the type of services they need from a UX partner.
They received more than 200 responses from the survey and shared a few interesting findings from their initial data analysis:
Usability and user experience teams have traditionally been way understaffed and often under-utilized.
Usability teams that I have led in the past have had to beg, borrow, or steal resources in order to achieve the significant gains in user productivity, user satisfaction (and reduction of user errors) for the software systems of the many companies and organizations that I’ve worked with.
One of the easiest ways to improve the usability (and perceived usability) of a web application is to improve the text that appears on the screen specifically around labels, embedded assistance and error messages.
It was a pleasure to work with you, as you and your team made this process a more pleasant experience for our team and the participants.
Karen Perry
I just want to tell you that I value people relations more than money. I remember how you were friendly and helpful not going against policies and contractual obligations at the same time, not using your power to make us feel stupid and small. It was a very rare and big experience for me. Really. I will always remember this.
Alex
The Usability People are all individuals that you can become friends with very easily. They have a lot of different interests and are a pleasure to work with. I was writing a PRD/MRD for a billing solution and worked with The Usability People in defining the user interface. They are receptive to ideas and are able to mold the user interface from an end-user's perspective. I really liked the idea of putting end-user photograph & short biography around the office to help understand the users
