Steps to Successfully Changing Your Business Software Part II: Interaction Design

As I said in the previous article on business process analysis, there are four steps to follow for successfully changing your business software:

1. Business Process Analysis
2. Interaction Design
3. Software Selection
4. Implementation

In this article I discuss interaction design.  Interaction design focuses on the user requirements for software.  There are three sets of requirements that have to be addressed in choosing a new software solution:

Business Requirements
Technology Requirements
User Requirements

Business requirements include analyzing the needs of the business and how to fulfill them.  These requirements should be identified during the business process analysis phase.  Technology requirements identify what is technologically feasible and affordable, given the current computer systems in the business and its budget.  User requirements identify what is needed in software to help staff accomplish tasks and goals in order to fulfill the needs of the business.

Identifying user requirements and using good interaction design is vital for successfully changing your software.  It's critically important for the people who will be using the new software to be involved in the process as soon as possible.

When it comes to purchasing software for businesses it's normally the case that the people who make the purchasing decisions are not the same as the people who will actually use the software.  Usually it's the business owners, executives, and managers who make the purchasing decisions.  These decision makers would normally not be using the software the way regular employees would.  Executives and managers don't always do data entry and produce reports.  For smaller businesses, they might have to, but in larger businesses they focus on management.  This situation contrasts with consumer purchases, such as personal software, or automobiles for personal use.  For these purchases, the buyer is the same as the user.  In a business of any appreciable size, the buyer and the user are not the same.  This means that the buyer has to have intimate knowledge about the users of the product.  In other words, the buyer needs to know all about how employees perform their daily tasks and how software can best meet their daily goals.

When decision makers select a new software solution they make assumptions about how the interface should work for the employees who will be using it.  These assumptions are almost always wrong.  Or they might not put any thought into how the interface should look, and assume that the right training will make employees efficient in the use of the new system.

In order to avoid this mistake you'll want to use at least some techniques of interaction design.  If someone in your company has the skills for doing this, that's good.  However, you'll probably want to seek out a consultant who has these skills.

Interaction design involves these basic steps:

1. Document how employees currently perform tasks to accomplish goals - both with and without software.

2. Sketch out new ideas for improving efficiency.  Sketch out new software interface ideas.

3. Present your ideas and get feedback for improving your design.

Iterate through these steps until you and your employees agree you have a good design.  Note that interaction design is done before software selection.  That is, you develop ideas for your ideal software interface before you shop for new software.  Also note that this stage involves conversation with the employees who will be affected by the new software purchase.  This stage uses their feedback to help select the best software for your business.  If you get the users for the new system involved in the decision making process early you're more likely to get their buy-in.  When employees are kept out of the decision making process until after the new software is selected they are more likely to be resistant to the change.  If employees feel they have a voice in the process they will feel empowered, and can bring invaluable insights to the table.  If they have a good idea of what's coming and feel they have a voice in the selection they will willingly work with you to make the implementation a success.  One of the big reasons for software project failures is lack of buy-in from the very people who will be using the software, and who are a vital component to its success.