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January 2005
Contextual Design: Defining Customer-Centered Systems
Hugh Beyer and Karen Holtzblatt

Contextual Design: Defining Customer-Centered Systems is one of the classic texts of user-centered design. Hugh Beyer and Karen Holtzblatt published the book in 1998, and it remains as pertinent today as when it was first released. The reader is stepped through the phases of customer centered design, from gathering customer data to iterative proto-typing. The methods can be used in their entirety or in pieces and can be applied to large and small projects alike.

The book is divided into six sections. The first two deal with understanding the customer and "seeing work." The main focus is observing the customer in their work environment. This is a shift from more traditional interview techniques. You now spend time with the customer watching them work, asking questions as needed, and mapping out their work environment. The next task is to visually represent the work environment. There are five elements:

1. Flow model - how communications flow between people to get a job done.
2. Sequence model - what triggers an event, what steps does it go though, and what breakdowns occur.
3. Artifact model - the information and structure of information as it is used in a task. This might be a form or a report. Further, annotations that represent informal use of the artifact are also captured.
4. Cultural model - who has influence in the organization and how is that influence used. Further, are there any breakdowns between groups or people? This might be policy, power, emotion, etc.
5. Physical model - the physical environment and layout in which the work gets done. How are the room or rooms set-up Is the work done on a workstation or with paper copy? How is information (ie. Artifacts) moved? Does information move in spreadsheets, in folders, through interoffice mail, faxes, or email? What breakdowns occur because the physical environment impedes the work.

The next section deals with "Seeing across Customers" and how to interpret the data collected for common themes. The analysis leads to a unified representation of the customer and market. An entire chapter is devoted to consolidating the five models developed during the customer research sessions. The book even recommends the creation of a design room that is wallpapered with all the models and notes. Lastly, this part describes how to step other groups in the organization, including marketing, engineering, and management, through the findings.

Part four addresses turning the research into innovative design. This section covers storyboarding and how each of the five models contributes to the design. The fifth section drills into the system design. It covers how to break up the problems while keeping the user's work coherent. The section on User Environment Design shows the reader how to create a schematic version of the key elements of the user interface and how those elements connect. Each screen is mapped out, showing what functions can be performed, what objects the user can manipulate, and to where the screen links.

The final part of the book demonstrates how to take the User Environment Design and map it to a UI and prototype. The authors provide instruction on setting-up and running a prototype interview and iterating on the design through the process. The last chapter covers how to put Contextual design into practice.

At over 450 pages, Contextual Design is a serious work. And at $57.95 on Amazon it is dear as well. Nevertheless, if you spend the time to learn and apply the techniques, you will be rewarded and find yourself returning to this book again and again.