Abstract: As usability professionals, we work in a business and social environment. It’s not enough to just “do good work” -- we must also understand the politics of usability to be effective at improving the usability of our products. Team politics, the politics of change, the politics of the bottom line, and the politics of communication all affect our work. Whitney will share insights from her experience in corporate projects and public advocacy and how those lessons help us put the politics of usability to work encouraging a user-centered approach to product design. 

Abstract: There’s a great deal of confusion today over what “brand” now means — or whether it is even relevant online. In this presentation, learn what the people who design, document, and build a software application or website need to know about brand. Discover how brand can complement our work and help us to be more successful — at both delivering great products and at getting our voices heard in the organization. We’ll begin by exploring a shift that has occurred in the world of marketing, from thinking of brand as a simple logo to realizing that it’s a promise we make to customers. This shift makes brand highly relevant to our work as designers and usability specialists, as we’re responsible for some of the most powerful points of contact where the promise of a brand will be kept — or broken.
This presentation teaches several techniques that you can employ in your own work to help find out if you’re building your organization’s brand. You will also become comfortable enough with brand to discuss your contributions with your organization’s business and marketing specialists.

Abstract:  It is all about experience for today's consumers. But do we know who they really are? Traditional demographic segmentation criteria such as age, gender and income no longer accurately explain user attitudes. In today's service economy, products personify emotions and consumers spend according to their MOOD and the situation at hand. The world of the user has changed, so must our methods of user analysis. The Mood Theory is a human-focused analysis tool based on a holistic vision; combining personal drivers such as psychological profiling and sensorial preferences.

Abstract: Web users from a variety of educational and economic backgrounds may struggle to find information on the Web or to read and understand it when they do find it.  SUMMERS Consulting has performed three years of research, including qualitative usability research using eyetracking, into the reading and navigational strategies of a diverse range of users and has developed guidelines for websites designed to maximize user success.  These guidelines are currently being implemented across the entire family of sites owned by a major pharmaceutical company and have been presented in a wide range of international conferences.

Abstract: TBC

Abstract: With over 100 million internet users and 300 million mobile phone users, China has the world's largest networked technology customer base. How can global companies understand and leverage the cultural factors for business success in China? What trends will begin in China and impact global markets? The speaker will discuss his Mobile China research project, and offer practical guidelines for conducting ethnography in China and incorporating cultural factors into business strategy and product development.

Abstract:  
Korean UI Case of Home Appliance and the trends of the design for mobile phone UI, PUI, GUI in Korea