While the field of usability has existed for decades, the number and quality of careers in the field have greatly improved in the last 10-15 years. The long-term prognosis for the industry is good: there are constant opportunities in almost every industry since new products and technology come out all the time, in usability as well as user-centered design, interaction design and user experience design.
#26660
Where in the Organization Should a Usability Group Belong?
Companies often struggle to find the best place for the usability/UCD group within the organizational structure. While common placements for this skill set are in the IT/development department, in the marketing/communications department, in the Quality Assurance department or in Product Development, whether these locations are the best for any specific organization is a function of the capability of the usability group and the maturity of the organization to leverage that capability.
#19742
Why Technical Communicators Make Good Usability Advocates
Usability is rapidly becoming an important skill for technical communicators and a growing interest for those seeking to expand their role as technical communicators into other areas of product development. The STC usability SIG now has over 2000 members, and the conference sessions at STC regional and annual conferences increasingly focus on usability. This year, a new 'stem' was created at the annual conference, which combined Information Design and Usability, because they just naturally belong together. It worked so well that it will be continued in future conferences.
Barnum, Carol M. Indus (2002). Careers>Usability>TC
#32677
This article examines what works and what does not work well when selling UX within an organization, identifies barriers you might encounter to the adoption of UX methods in your organization, and discusses how to package and present UX to stakeholders. In this article, we’ll try to avoid just being prescriptive. Rather, we’ll pose questions along the way, regarding what has worked well for you.
Szuc, Daniel, Paul J. Sherman and John S. Rhodes. UXmatters (2008). Careers>Usability>User Experience>Organizational Communication
#32758
How To Be Successful in User Experience
Success in UX design is driven by a particular personality. UX requires straddling so many elements, and includes a wide range of experience and expertise, rather than allowing one to become comfortable doing the same ol’ same ol’. Not only are user needs met first and foremost, there is an ongoing feeling of growth and development required to keep all these needs managed. In these days where it seems crucial to balance Ajax, JavaScript, CSS, Flex, and more, we are reminded that all these technologies must most importantly be leveraged by a particular personality.
Designing User Experience (2008). Careers>Usability>User Experience
#33250
Member Profile and Salary Survey
The goal of the 2000 Usability Professionals' Association (UPA) Member Profile and Salary Survey was to gather information that would enable the association to understand the make-up of the membership in order to ensure their needs are being met.
Usability Professionals Association (2000). Careers>Salaries>Usability
#33251
This year, for the fi rst time, we've included results by employer as well as information on the types of technique in use today and a breakdown of salary by experience. Members of the Usability Professionals Association are, of course, entitled to the raw data so that they can conduct their own analysis.
Usability Professionals Association (2004). Careers>Salaries>Usability>United Kingdom
#33254
Salary Survey Reveals Truth About UK Usability Market
Most people looking for the first time at the results of the UK Chapter's recent salary survey will rush to find out where they come on the overall pay scale. But the survey asked far more than just 'how much do you make' and because it was widely publicised and open to all, the results have some interesting things to say about the state of our industry.
Colborne, Giles. Usability Professionals Association (2003). Careers>Salaries>Usability>United Kingdom
#33255
Salary Survey: User Experience Professionals 2001
We asked respondents to state their total annual compensation from salary and bonuses; we did not include stock options and other benefits. Given that most stock options have been under water recently, cash compensation may be the most important number anyway.
Nielsen Norman Group (2001). Careers>Salaries>Usability>User Experience
#33256
UPA UK Salary Survey shows £38,000 Mean
The first UPA UK salary survey results show a range of £18,500 to £90,000 paid to British usability specialists, with a mean of £37,801 and a median of £35,000.
Light, Ann. Usability News (2003). Careers>Salaries>Usability>United Kingdom
#33257
Report outlining the results of a usability salary survey for usability, HCI and user experience design professionals jointly conducted by Tania Lang from Peak Usability and Pabini Gabriel-Petit from Spirit Softworks in March/April 2004.
Lang, Tania and Pabini Gabriel-Petit. Peak Usability (2004). Careers>Salaries>Usability
#34046
User Experience Designer or ...? What You Call Yourself Matters
Using a self-designation with a certain amount of specificity sacrifices practicality to accuracy. Individuals who have been hired as a single-function specialist may have the luxury of presenting as a “usability engineer” or “information architect”. For the independent consultant, this strategy can have definite negative consequences.
Bailie, Rahel Anne. Intentional Design Inc. (2009). Careers>Usability>User Experience>Information Design
