User Experience Revolution

by Paul Boag

Do you feel like the only person at your company who understands what a huge competitive advantage a good user experience provides? Are you frustrated that your management team doesn’t see the value of creating great user experiences? Do you struggle to convince colleagues to approach projects from a users perspective? Many companies try to create a great experience for customers. But few are willing to make the changes required to deliver on that promise. In fact most don’t even realize just how bad their experience can be. This eBook is for anybody passionate about user experience, but who is in a company that needs an extra push. You might be a designer, marketer, content specialist or any one of many jobs concerned about user experience. You don’t need to be a manager, although you might be. You don’t need to be an expert in user experience. You just need a willingness to challenge the way your company does things and be relentless at putting the user first. Table Of Contents Chapter 1: Getting real about user experience design Chapter 2: How to sell the benefits of user experience design Chapter 3: Create customer experience evangelists Chapter 4: Raise the profile of the customer Chapter 5: Get managerial support Chapter 6: Develop a proof of concept Chapter 7: Establish better working practices Chapter 8: Transform the organisational culture Chapter 9: A vision of a UX-focused company

Genres: Design, Web, Nonfiction, Technical

248 pages, Hardcover

First published April 18, 2017

Reviews

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'll read just about anything from Smashing Magazine, so I was especially happy to see a new book from them on UX. High marks first off for the quality of the book's binding and physical design, including having a bookmark built in - great UX considerations from a UX book. This is not a book about UX principles, it's about how to instill user-centric design practices into your organization. It's a topic that deserves a lot more attention, because the greatest UX designer working for a company that doesn't listen to them is accomplishing nothing. I would primarily recommend this one to seasoned UX professionals who've been out practicing their trade for a while. For someone coming at it from with that perspective, it provides a lot of food for thought.

[Milana Stanic · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am not sure whether non UX designer population will have too much use for this book (maybe PMs, and developers as well) but for me as one it was a complete gem. Going through it the second time now just because it has a lot of concrete information and examples I want to check out. The techniques mentioned will let you dive deeper into best practices but also explain some things if you are not too familiar with the topic at hand. Expect a lot of interesting examples touching on a wide variety of companies that have nothing in common. The placement of empathy in this is also commendable, accessibility should maybe get some more coverage, but those are all my personal preferences.

I was hyped when it went out (buying mostly everything smashing magazine publishes) and had high expectations but they were met 100%.

[Li Cai · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good read for UX designers, PM, managers in building a UX- centred culture and organisations

Summary:
1) Is your team aware of the user problems?
Are they empowered to change things or are too busy fighting fire?

2) How do you find and get support within teams to advocate for UX design?
How do get them to agree on design principles?

3) Tools on highlighting customers problems - such as Customer journey maps, customer personas

4) Developing proof of concept- and garner support fast through Low fidelity and experience building (Eg, how Disney gotten management buy-in through building a mini theme park using cardboards in a warehouse and get management to experience the RFID driven journey)

The book itself is well designed and filled with nuggets of wisdom and actionable points in every chapters. Not a life changing book, but one that is definitely useful.

[Jessica Roberts · Rating 5 out of 5]

10/10 🙌 Boag explains how changing company culture by adopting a user-centric way of thinking will revolutionize a company/product. He gives sooo many good ideas and tips for how to get stakeholders and higher ups more invested in the user experience. Published in 2017, I would say this book is already outdated but still valuable. I say outdated because involving the user isn’t a forward way of thinking that put a company ahead of competition anymore, it’s very quickly becoming the expected standard of treatment from client-bases and companies that don’t adapt will be left in the dust.

[Li Jia Li · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great book about UX. Even though it's targeted for digital services, you can also apply that in any organization. The book will tell you step by step process for UX Revolution in an organization. It would be pretty useful to read it when you are ready to start the UX Revolution of your own.

[Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

This teal book should be part of every employee's dividend from every company in the world. Read it for yourself.

[Catherine · Rating 2 out of 5]

Boag admits that this book is not about how to create a great user experience, but about how you can build an office culture that will allow you to create a great user experience. He describes tools that can be used toward this end: maps that can help your colleagues understand the tasks a user may face and emotions a user may feel as she interacts with your product; policies that can help you place user experience above the off-track requests you may receive from management; and a “user attention” exercise that can help stakeholders limit their lists of what “must” be included on a particular webpage. But for Boag, it is up to the reader of this book to ignite and tend to company-wide change, and his suggested tools and proffered guidance may not be enough to support a “marathon” effort that expends non-compensated-for time and resources. This book assumes a level of autonomy over your work, support from your supervisor and commitment to your company that I’m not sure can be considered the norm.

[Jose · Rating 2 out of 5]

I enjoyed the aesthetic design of this book. It really had some unique characteristics that made the UX of the physical book itself, better.

I think as someone with a design background in a design oriented organization, the book’s content was not what I was expecting. The books subtitle is “a tactical battle plan for putting the user at the heart of your business.”

I was hoping to take a company which is already user centric, and really take it up a notch.
However, this book is really about taking companies that have zero user focus, and taking it from zero to one (or perhaps from a two to a four). Not from nine to ten.

I had perhaps 15 highlights throughout the book. And looking back at them, I kind of shrug my shoulders and think them ok.

This book would benefit from more tangible examples (not just one sentence anecdotes, but going deeper).

Overall my rating reflects missed expectations perhaps, and I’m sure someone else could benefit from it.

[Pete · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great book by Paul Boag! Very practical guide with lots of real-life stories on how to push user experience in your company.

[David Harestad · Rating 4 out of 5]

Keep it simple, stupid.

[Marcus Österberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

A practical guide, even with sample email and other suggestions on appropriate tone when contacting non-UX people.

[Hang Tran · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mình bị ấn tượng và thu hút ngay từ những dòng đầu của cuốn sách. Phải nói tác giả đặt vấn đề rất hay. Tuy nhiên càng về sau, càng nhiều lỗ hổng trong lập luận và xây dựng nội dung. Mọi thứ khá mơ hồ và chưa đủ bao quát. Thực sự thì cuốn sách chưa giải quyết được những vấn đề do chính nó đặt ra ban đầu.

[Nadya Tsech · Rating 3 out of 5]

Revolutionary UX or how to build a usability sect.
How to build a community of UX enthusiasts within your company and step by step establish better UX practices and build a UX company culture.

[Jean-Francois Potvin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing content. Feels inspiring. Wish everyone in the digital industry would read. Think I'll personally read again a couple times a year to remember best practices and user experience principles.

[سارة shaalan) · Rating 4 out of 5]

amazing book ,l love it