UIEtips: What Goes into a Well-Done Critque?

Probably more used than any other tool in the toolbox, the critique is the lost orphan of the user experience world. There are books written about usability testing, endless debates on the validity of heuristic evaluations, and hours of lectures on persona development. But, when it comes to developing the essential skills for a good critique, the UX world falls silent.

Yet, how often do we hear, “Could you give me some feedback on this design I’ve been working on?” It’s likely to be the most requested activity, yet we do little to get better at it. Good critique skills are to be revered, but many of us haven’t learned what it takes, putting our projects at risk and driving walls between team members.

That’s why we’ve decided to take on this very important but rarely discussed topic. In today’s UIEtips article, I look at what makes a well-done critique. Turns out, as we’ve been studying the practices of design teams, that there are specific elements always present in a well-performed critique. Today’s article describes what we’ve seen in our travels.

Read the article – What Goes into a Well-Done Critique?

We’re taking what we’ve learned and putting a demonstration together. On Wednesday, September 24, 2008 we’ll hold our first UIE Virtual Seminar dedicated to improving critiquing skills. Seminar attendees will compare their critiques of four selected sites against my own critique, just to see how we all do at this and what we can learn from. Register for this UIE Virtual Seminar before space runs out!

What elements do you think make a great critique? How has your team incorporated them into regular practice? We’d love to hear your stories and thoughts. Leave a comment below.