UX Maturity
Evolve as a company
An organization’s desire and ability to successfully deliver user-centered design determines their UX maturity level. UX-mature companies are successful because they know being user-centered is a means to the end of achieving lasting success by making data-driven decisions.
Change doesn’t happen overnight, but we will guide you to greater maturity using our UX process to form strategies, working on the company culture, improving processes, and providing impactful deliverables.
The following is based on Nielsen Norman’s UX Maturity Model.
Increase my company's maturity level
Stage 1: Absent
There is complete ignorance about UX or is deemed so unnecessary that there are no resources to do any of the work. User-centered thinking is not at all part of how the company works, meaning users are NOT the driver behind its strategy, tactics, and decisions.
UX work is not incorporated into the organization’s vision. The few who think about users are likely ignored or dismissed.
Most at this stage fall outside the technology and software fields and exist in industries where UX is unknown or rarely practiced. It can also include anything from startups to established organizations with inherited work processes that were not focused on users.
Stage 2: Limited
UX is approached erratically. Small UX efforts are made but usually due to legal necessity (such as last-minute accessibility plugin use) or a UX-aware individual who takes initiative to attempt UX methods.
The company shows some UX awareness and engages in occasional UX activities, but UX work is not done routinely or consistently. The result means work is not incorporated into strategy and planning, so UX falls low among priorities. UX may occur in silos but there is no official recognition of user experience as a discipline nor any UX-dedicated roles, processes, or budget.
Stage 3: Emergent
Organizations have UX work in more teams, engage in some UX-related planning, and may have UX budgets. UX efforts are small, unstable, and based on individual manager initiatives rather than organizational policies. Some teams that use several research and design methods and do multiple research studies may begin to see the benefits and results of their efforts.
There are people in UX roles, but not nearly enough and not necessarily with the right skills. The Organization is still working on proving the value and impact of UX. There are no widespread, systematic UX processes in place even though some leaders have bought in and may advocate for it. UX is not yet prioritized as an essential strategy and is the first thing to get cut when things get tough.
Stage 4: Structured
The organization recognizes the value of UX and has established one or multiple full UX teams. Leadership usually supports UX and sometimes incorporates it into high-level strategies. There is a centralized definition of design and a shared human-centered design process.
User research is conducted throughout the product lifecycle. Politics and miscommunication may cause a misallocation of resources and overspending on UX-related work, product areas, or products that do not need it. This level is as far as many companies will ever go in their UX maturity due to factors like unsupportive leaders and not adhering to a proactive UX strategy.
Stage 5: Integrated
UX work has become comprehensive, pervasive, and universal. Most teams perform UX-related activities in an efficient and effective manner. There is often innovation in UX methods and processes and even contributions to the field of UX. The organization’s important success metrics have a focus on UX or are even driven by UX-related work.
This stage is the one most organizations should aim to reach. UX work has become highly effective at serving business goals but may get too focused on process instead of outcome and effects or the leaders may be focused on metrics that are not user-centered.
Stage 6: User-Driven
UX is the norm: habitual, reproducible, and beloved across the organization. Few companies are able to operate at this stage.
Understanding user needs through research is the primary driver of the organization’s strategy and project prioritization. Development encompasses user-focused, iterative design. Leaders, teams, and individuals are user-centered and look to UX in day-to-day work from strategy to details in design elements or research studies. They plan for change and innovation.
Organizations at this maturity level have invested in contributing back to industry standards and rely on user research to drive new investments and markets. The stage is hard to sustain as external factors tend to shift the focus away from users.
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