UI Design Workshop

Quickly sketch rough ideas for the user interface.
What is it?

  • A UI workshop is an activity in which participants quickly sketch rough ideas for the user interface.

  • These ideas can be written on a whiteboard, sticky notes, or sheets of paper. (A tall sticky note makes a great template for a mobile screen.)

  • The workshop can be run with just a facilitator and a UX designer, but including the entire team is even better.

  • At the end of the workshop, the participants can vote by adding dots to their favorites.

  • Later, the best "low-fidelity" designs can serve as the basis for interactive prototypes or more complete designs.

Why do this?

  • UI design workshops help take a high-level business process (such as an event storm) and turn it into something concrete that developers can begin working on.

  • This activity generates new ideas and builds a shared understanding, particularly if the entire team participates.

  • Jump-start development by creating just enough design for the team to begin working.

  • A quick, rewarding activity like this one builds confidence and experience in team members who might be new to user experience design.

  • Participants can produce the design assets they need to move forward, even if the team does not have a dedicated UX designer.

How to
  1. Describe what we're sketching:
  • User goal
  • What size sticky
  • Mobile-first?
  • How long they have
  • Use multiple stickies to depict the user flow

  1. Everyone sketches - 10 min

  2. Playback from each person (and put stickies on board) - 2 min per person

  3. Gather feedback - 2-3 min per each person's flow (green/red stickies with comments on what exactly they like/dislike)

  4. Another round of sketching - 5-7 min

  5. Mark each screen with a letter and number

  6. More playback - 2 min per person (tell everyone to write down the letter/number combo of what they like)

  7. Merge based on the votes/bingo

Alternate facilitation style

Instead of merging the designs in steps 6-8, ask the team to dot vote on elements of each deisgn. A UX designer can then use those sketches as inspiration for more detailed wireframes.

Time
30 min - 1 hour