FRAMEWORKS
July 19, 2024
Unlocking the secrets of UX by Javier Andrés Bargas-Avila
Javier Andrés Bargas-Avila, the UX Director at Google, introduces a user journey framework aimed at making product development more user-centered.
In his talk at the Pendomonium mtpcon roadshow in Berlin, Javier explains how to make product development more user-focused by understanding user problems better. He starts by asking a thought-provoking question: “Did you ever ship your org chart?” He elaborates by recounting a story from Google, where Larry Page, one of the founders, struggled to set up an Android phone to send a text message. This was due to the complex involvement of multiple teams, leading Google to inadvertently “ship its org chart.” Javier warns that when organizations communicate in a certain way, there is a risk of this happening.
User-Centered Design
The key to mitigating this risk is through user-centered design. However, how can teams transition to becoming more user-centered? This was the challenge Google faced, according to Javier. He highlights that critical user journeys, or CUJs as he calls them, play a pivotal role in making product teams more user-centered and aiding product development.
Critical User Journeys
A critical user journey at Google includes three components: a user with a goal and the tasks required to achieve that goal.
1. User: Frame the user from their perspective. For example, “As a small business owner, I want to connect with my customers.”
2. Goal: Each journey starts with a deeper need in the user’s mind. The goal is this deeper need and it should prompt the team to think about various solutions. For instance, Google’s examples include: sharing memories with family and friends (Photos), helping customers understand a business (Maps), and ensuring kids watch appropriate content (YouTube).
3. Tasks: These steps describe the specific actions a user must take to achieve their goal. They should be as feature-agnostic as possible. For example, sending photos to family and friends, uploading business and product pictures, or reviewing what kids have watched on YouTube.
Google has determined that having between five and seven CUJs for a product is optimal. Javier uses a fictional music streaming app to illustrate the process:
– Define your product’s most important five to seven goals.
– Map each goal to the required tasks.
Useful and Usable
Once this mapping is done, it becomes easier to understand users. The aim is to shift product development to consider users more frequently. The question to ask is, “What does excellence look like?” Excellence means users find value in your product, finding it usable with minimal effort required. Google measures satisfaction with specific user journeys, referring to it as CUJ happiness. They also track CUJ task success to evaluate CUJ health using logs and benchmarks.
Javier points out that traditional metrics often only measure product completion rates, but user actions are more intricate. Understanding all steps between the start and end of a task, and measuring task health, offers a comprehensive view of the most vital journeys and their issues.
Using CUJ Data
By measuring CUJs, Google begins to quantify user behavior and satisfaction, integrating it into product development processes. Javier outlines how CUJ data can inform actions such as prioritization, PRDs (Product Requirement Documents), structuring user feedback, gauging launch readiness, and bug fixing.
He emphasizes that CUJs are a collective responsibility, not solely a UX concern. For CUJs to be effective, all disciplines must utilize them to refine their processes, ensuring a holistic approach to user-centric product development.