I have worked with user-centred innovation at IS IT A BIRD for almost half a decade, and have seen three recurring myths about the user centred approach that come up time and again in the organisations I engage with. I would like to debunk these three myths here and now.
Myth no. 1 “We are the experts in our field – users cannot teach us anything”
User involvement and participation means putting aside the responsibility for, and ownership of, the solution, by allowing it to depend on people with lesser expertise. The knowledge and expertise of our product or service is gathered across our organisation. Besides, we have bad experience asking customers what they think and which wishes they have. The answers we get are unqualified and we cannot fulfil those concrete user wishes anyway.
Debunking the myth: Take the users seriously, not literally
User involvement is not about letting go of responsibility and allowing users to be in charge of the solution. This misconception could be thanks to terminology such as “user driven innovation”, so we prefer the term “user centred innovation”. At IS IT A BIRD we believe in taking people seriously, but not literally. Central to this approach is taking responsibility for fulfilling the real needs of users, who will ultimately be the ones to benefit from the solution. Clearly, users are not experts in your specific product or service, but they are the only ones able to shed light on how such a product or service is experienced in context and how it creates (or does not create) value in their everyday lives. Context is key when it comes to staying relevant as an organisation. But it takes courage to acknowledge that the internal expertise is only one of many.
Myth no. 2 “We need to have our internal processes in order before we involve users.”
Even though, in theory, we would like to for our development of solutions to be more outside-in, we prioritise starting inside-out, to ensure we grasp the challenges and needs existing internally in our organisation. The development then starts from there.
Debunking the myth: Start with a deep understanding of who you want to create value for
There will always be plenty to work on in terms of optimising internal processes, collaboration and workflow. However, if an internal and external focus do not go hand-in-hand, organisations risk closing off, and losing track of who they are ultimately creating value for.
Myth no. 3 “If we involve someone we have to involve everyone.”
When it comes to user involvement quantity equals quality. Choosing to involve users is an all-or-nothing game. Either we make decisions based on our own foundation of knowledge, or we involve a large number of representative users – it must be representative for it to give us valid insights to develop solutions from!
Debunking the myth: There’s no need to include everybody, but include the right ones.
When it comes to user involvement, what’s critical is to include the right perspectives, contrary to including every perspective at all times. If an organisation is to grasp their solution development from outside-in, that means a deep understanding of the relevant surrounding world. User-centred innovation is about strategic involvement, as opposed to representative involvement. Every organisation should ask themselves two questions: first, who do we want to create value for? Second, who are the owners of the problems we are trying to solve? With the right framing and questions, 6-10 users can bring deeper and more valuable insights than focus groups and surveys with far more respondents.
The user-centred approach ensures that you solve the right problems
Users, citizens, companies – those constituting the world surrounding the organisations all share the fact that they exist outside the internal logic of the organisation, and that they are all constantly changing. This calls for a continuous understanding of current challenges and solutions. Famed internet guru Clay Shirky noted that “Institutions will always try to preserve the problem to which they are the solution.” This is why it is vital to ensure that you are solving the right problem, for the right people. The user centred approach ensures that you, as an organisation, can continue being relevant for the surrounding world you want create value for – so go forth and involve!
