UX/UI Quarterly Workshop – Professional and Personal Enrichment

Like most of our colleagues at BREDEX, we as the UX/UI team work in a hybrid format. This means that most of our daily work and collaboration takes place from home and digitally. One occasion for us to meet in person is our quarterly workshop, which was introduced in 2022: Here, we come together as a team and exchange ideas on current trends and developments in the UX/UI field.
This is of great value both for colleagues with many years of experience in the UX/UI field and for newcomers to this area: on the one hand, the workshops serve to transfer know-how, but on the other hand, they also serve to introduce, test, and evaluate new ideas, methods, and technologies for the department.

UX/UI Vision and Design Trends (Workshop 1)

During the first workshop, we developed the mission and vision for our UX/UI department. The goal was to define a common understanding of content and clear structures for the department. Each team member contributed their ideas and expertise to achieve a satisfactory and forward-looking result for everyone. Using various methods, we defined core values for the department and identified initiatives that were considered important. Finally, these measures were prioritized in terms of their relevance and urgency using strategic filters. In the second part of the workshop, current design trends in the field of user experience and user interface were presented, partially tested, and evaluated in terms of their potential applications in projects.

Design Thinking (Workshop 2)

At the beginning of the summer, the next workshop on the topic of “design thinking” took place. It offered the team as a whole the opportunity to go through all phases of this method together and exchange ideas. On that day, we jointly developed a design solution for the specified objective: “Redesign the out-of-home dining experience in a world where quick meals on the go rarely offer the opportunity for healthy eating.”

In detail, we went through all phases of design thinking: “understanding users,” “observing users,” “defining perspectives,” “generating ideas,” “developing prototypes,” and “testing prototypes.” To better understand potential users, we conducted interviews at the beginning and created personas based on them. Based on the information we obtained, we then developed ideas for concrete implementation as a team and translated them into a low-fidelity prototype. Our result, “BX-Lunch Breaker,” consisted of a food truck with a weekly changing menu, which would be made available to employees during their lunch break. We combined this with a pre-order system that ensures the necessary variety while allowing for planning and involving employees through polls and surveys on preferences and allergies. Finally, a presentation was given to test subjects and their feedback was collected.

User Research (Workshop 3)

In the fall, we took a closer look at the topic of “user research.” One of our goals was to gain an overview of current methods and their application. In addition, we also took stock of what is already being used in our projects and identified the potential for using additional methods. In practical exercises, some of these methods, such as the desirability study, were tested and specific applications in project business were defined. The workshop concluded with a look into the future, which included various perspectives on the topic.

Sustainability in the UX Field (Workshop 4)

The fourth workshop in this series took place toward the end of the year. Under the motto “Sustainability in the UX field,” we dealt with Agenda 2030 and the associated 17 goals for sustainable development. In the UX field, there are a large number of corresponding approaches, terms, and methods that describe and pursue similar goals. Therefore, the first step was to get an overview and agree on terminology and priorities.
We came to the conclusion that development processes should not only be user-centered, but should also take into account the implications for the environment and society. In an open discussion, we discussed the advantages and disadvantages of the identified trends, such as “society-centered design.” Finally, we needed to outline an approach for internal and external projects that would enable a sustainable approach. To do this, we had to filter suitable methods from the diverse pool of methods, consisting of, for example, a “non-human persona” and the “future wheel,” and test them collaboratively in practice as a further measure in the future.
The workshops not only broadened the personal and professional horizons of each participant, but also provided concrete approaches and inspiration for everyday project work. We were able to deepen our knowledge of familiar methods, but also learn about many new approaches that will be beneficial for our work and ultimately for our customers. The resulting templates, for example, already enable the efficient and effective use of UX/UI methods within projects. Furthermore, the full-day workshop was a great opportunity to meet the team members in person – in a working day that otherwise takes place largely remotely. It is therefore no surprise that this format will continue to take place due to the positive response from participants.