Methods to Gather Stakeholder Needs

One of the challenges of product design is to identify the correct stakeholders, understand their needs, and develop a design strategy that balances those needs. Ethnographic methods are a set of techniques for gathering stakeholder needs, especially from users and customers. Ethnographic methods involve observing, interviewing, and interacting with stakeholders in their natural contexts, to gain insights into their behaviors, preferences, motivations, and pain points. Some common ethnographic methods for gathering needs are:

– Contextual inquiry: A method of observing and interviewing stakeholders while they perform their tasks in their natural environment. This allows the designer to understand the context of use, the goals and challenges of the stakeholders, and the current workflows and processes.

– Focus group: A method of gathering feedback from a group of stakeholders who share similar characteristics or experiences. This allows the designer to explore different perspectives, opinions, and attitudes on a topic or a product concept.

– Persona: A method of creating fictional characters that represent different types of stakeholders. This allows the designer to empathize with the stakeholders, and to design for their needs, goals, and pain points.

– Journey map: A method of visualizing the steps and emotions that a stakeholder goes through when interacting with a product or a service. This allows the designer to identify the opportunities and challenges for improving the stakeholder experience.

– Card sorting: A method of asking stakeholders to sort a set of cards with words or images into categories that make sense to them. This allows the designer to understand how the stakeholders organize and label information, and to design an intuitive information architecture.