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Actions speak louder than words
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"...observers documented how people actually used the intranet..."
So much for asking.
"Survey results showed
people's opinions on things – but didn't tell us exactly what was the
issue, or why it might be so," said Jodi Freedman, communication
specialist at Bose Corp., with headquarters in Framingham, Mass.
To find out how people navigated off the intranet home page or reacted
to search engine successes or failures in pointing to useful
information, Freedman chose to watch instead of ask.
The
Bose intranet was already in existence when she joined the sound
reproduction technology and manufacturing company in 1996. But like
many early intranets, this one was grass-roots driven with minimal
oversight by a team drawn from several disciplines.
"Our home
page had grown up haphazardly and was originally organized by each
department. As more and more departments became involved, two things
happened: It became challenging to find information, and the home page
design – term used loosely; we had no designer on our team – was
outgrown. We knew we needed to make changes," Freedman said. "We needed
a way to find out what our users thought."
The decision to
use observers who documented how people actually used the intranet also
served another purpose. "Part of our goal in doing the test was to
nurture a culture of webmasters who paid attention to their users." So
her team sought volunteers among intranet publishers around the company
to be the observers. They received training and materials and were
linked up with people who volunteered as testers who would be observed.
"Observers made the contact with the volunteer tester, set up a time,
went to the tester's desk, and observed and took notes."
Act on information
Testers embarked on a 30-minute scavenger hunt on the Bose intranet,
with three minutes to search for answers to eight questions. "We had
two versions of the test to ensure we weren't biasing results through
the selection of our questions," Freedman said. As the testers hunted,
observers took notes. They recorded demographic information, marked the
browsing path from the home page to find each answer, and recorded just
how long it took.
"Observers noted browsing paths and terms
used in the search engine, and also recorded relevant comments made by
the testers, as well as noting their own observations of what they
saw," Freedman said. In addition, the testers completed a survey about
their experiences as soon as they finished the test.
The
intranet committee organized comments into categories, identified
patterns, prioritized issues, and suggested solutions. "We learned
quite a bit! Our home page was too crowded and not an effective
information gateway. Our search engine was not very effective – and
most people didn't even know it was there. Many people were relying on
browsing to uncover information."
The result: a revamped home
page that is less crowded. A series of index pages link to the home
page. Even these modifications were tested and refined. "Then we
published an article in the employee newsletter and put a Q&A on
the intranet to explain what was changing, why it was changing, and
when it would happen," she said.
"While some people were
unhappy at first that their favorite site hadn't made the home page,
most people were pleased to see improvements, and finally to physically
see more of the resources available to them online – resources that had
been previously buried under departments."
Test again
It helped, and Freedman has the research to back it up. "We ran our
second usability test and found significant improvement in users'
ability to find information," she said. "Our intranet has grown
significantly and we are now getting close to outgrowing our current
structure. So challenges remain."
The observation option is
one she'll use again. "Through observation, we have been able to
discover patterns in expectations and behavior that we can act upon.
So, observed results are usable in a way that survey results are not."
Though not expense, it does take effort. But Freedman is convinced it's
worth it. "Communicators should care about the navigation and
architecture aspects of usability, because they are just as critical as
clear writing and focused graphic design in ensuring that users can get
your message and have a good experience," she said. "Most intranets are
collaborations between technology people, designers, writers and
others. All these people have a stake in creating a usable Web."
But there's a trap: it's easy to make assumptions about what users
want. "Lots of factors influence how users interact with an intranet –
and users are the only ones who can explain what works for them, and
what doesn't."
Another trap: measuring what's beyond your
control. "Observers focused on the home page, top level navigation,
indexes and the search engine – the corporate-administered structure
and tools. We made no attempt to measure the value of the content of
the whole site," Freedman explained, because the management group isn't
responsible for departmental content. "Measure only what you own and
can make improvements on; then make improvements and test again. Make
sure that people understand that you are making improvements based on
their suggestions; then you will get more suggestions on future tests."
Those actions speak louder than words.
© 1999, Sheri Rosen. This article first appeared in Communication World, June-July 1999, published by the International Association of Business Communicators.
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Comments:
 Good one, thanks
Posted by John Hauser, Whose homepage is http://www.dailysoftware.net on September 22, 2005 at 1:06
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