After introducing ThoughtWorks to the method of Contextual Inquiry, I carried out a series of presentations at company events throughout the year.

What did I do?

Following a presentation at the local ThoughtWorks Chicago “Home Office Day,” I was asked to do the talk at the North America Away Day Conference and UK Away Day Conference. The presentation depicted the findings from a Contextual Design project with a Construction and Mining Equipment manufacturer, and discussed how user input and analysis can lead directly to the design and redesign of business processes. I also created a poster that is currently on display at ThoughtWorks corporate headquarters that gives high-level details about how to carry out a Contextual Inquiry.

Contextual Inquiry is a method used as part of a Contextual Design process that aims to gather user data by interacting with the user in their most familiar settings. A Master/Apprentice model is employed such that the user is the master of their domain and researchers learn how the user does their work.

Using the data gathered with this method, the team is able to see the intricacies and details of the user’s role(s), and can implement software and general process-based changes to improve efficiency and enjoyment, and potentially decrease effort on the user’s part.

The presentation was based on work with a major manufacturer and led to the redesign of an already existing system.