the design process by encouraging team members
to understand and agree on the elements of a system and how those elements interact with each
other and their environment. Second, by making the elements and their interactions visible, it
reduces the likelihood of overlooking differences
in point of view, which might otherwise eventually derail a project.
Explicit modeling also helps scale the design
process. It enables designers to develop larger and
more complex systems and makes the process of
working with larger and more complex organizations easier. Discussing the role of modeling in
design also invites comparison and interaction
with other disciplines that use models. Ideally,
practitioners that use models may, over time, be
able to see patterns across their models that will
advance the practice of design.
Abstract and thematic
Storytelling
and analysis
Brainstorming
and concept generation
Learning and understanding
Making and trying
Design Research
and data gathering
Prototyping
and concept development
Real and concrete
Kaiser/IDEO model
ABOUT THE AUTHORS Hugh Dubberly manages a consultancy focused on making services
and software easier to use through interaction
design and information design. As vice president
he was responsible for design and production of
Netscape’s Web services. He was at Apple for 10
years, where he managed graphic design and corporate identity
and co-created the Knowledge Navigator series of videos. Dubberly
also founded an interactive media department at Art Center and
has taught at San Jose State, IIT/ID, and Stanford.
Rick Robinson is vice president for practice innovation at Design Continuum in Boston. As chief experience officer (or CXO) at Sapient, Rick oversaw the
development of innovative research approaches for
understanding human interaction with products,
environments, communications, services, and technologies. Before joining Sapient, he founded E-Lab, a user
research laboratory. An interdisciplinary social scientist, Robinson
received his Ph.D. from the Committee of Human Development at
the University of Chicago.
Shelley Evenson is an associate professor in the
School of Design at Carnegie Mellon University,
where teaches graduate and undergraduate courses in interaction design. She is a voting faculty
member in the Human-Computer Interaction
Institute (HCII). She is the director of graduate studies in design and for the joint master’s program in HCI between
Carnegie Mellon and the University of Madeira. Shelley brings more
than 20 years of experience in multidisciplinary consulting practices
to the school. She is a frequent speaker at design conferences and
conducts design strategy workshops with large and small corporations. Shelley also works with graduate students from the school of
design to host the international Emergence Conference in service
design. Her current interests include design languages and strategy, organizational interfaces, what lies beyond human-centered
design, and design for service.
Abstract
frameworks
& models
Synthesis
Strategy
insights,
patterns &
themes
principals &
opportunities
observations
Concrete
Now
new offerings, products,
services, spaces &
communications
Future
Suri/IDEO second model
March + April 2008