INTRODUCTION Spoiler Free My work in the design research field involved many confidential data. On one hand, I conserved users’ information strictly for internal project usage. On the other hand, materials I created involved not only product design, but also its planning and corporate strategy. Therefore, I decided not to share context of the projects I led or participated in this portfolio.
Research Management Hence, the main concept here is to share what I know about design research, how I manage the projects, and which approach I took. I also believe as a researcher, rigorous methodology comes before experience and sporadic eurekas. Right methods with endless practice will help us produce meaningful insights and contribute to the design team in a fundamental way.
Related projects: Shanghai Service Jam 2014
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About me Researcher, Designer, and Ukulelist I recognize that design research is useful in many aspects of the business and has two major convergence. One is to understand more about user behaviors and its contextual factors. The other is to influence more people from different discplines and help them to incorporate human-centered design principles. Systematic approaches, analytic thinking, and the curiousity of novel methods are my keys to success.
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Contents Process thinking “Knowledge is a process of piling up facts; wisdom lies in their simplicication.“ -Martin Henry Fischer Design research is about understanding project needs, determining the course of action, and diving in data through empathic lens. It is about process thinking and finding the best propects for the future business.
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Inquire internal needs and define success factors of a research project.
Articulate research findings and co-create business strategy.
co-design workshop project management
co-sensing
co-understanding with stakeholders
co-creation
opinions of subject matter experts
p.06 Des���p R��e��c� Validate third-party data and create meaningful interpretation.
social behaviour snips macro trends competitor benchmarks
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Translate user data and create understandable behavioral models.
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Encourage users’ story-telling with sympathic thinking and detail-oriented attention.
in-depth interview focus group
pains & gains
lego serious play
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online search literature review
trend tools
insight workshop
data visualization
mindmapping
persona
photo story
usage scenarios
concept test cultural probe
customer journeys
user profiles hanchung.huang | 2016 | 03
My Tools More and more I found myself amazed by the digital tools for syncing simultaneously on smartphones and computers, collaborating with colleagues seamlessly, and sharing instantly.  Although from time to time, it’s good to regain the feeling of paper and pen.
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Context Diving Before Research First, it is very important to know if all stakeholders are on the same page. What are the consensual requirement for a successful research? Secondly, what is the context of this research. Of course the easiest way to learn is by doing.
SME Interview
Stakeholder Workshop
To quickly understand how rescue gears work in order to create a improved design, we interviewed the experts in Marine Simulation Center and did a few rounds of training.
Brainstorming and ranking ideas with stakeholders including engineers, marketing people, and sales to identify the most urgent issues to be studies.
Related projects: ABB Azigear (2009), Ruukki Service Workshop (2011)
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Desktop Research Trend Study One of my routine work in Asus is to share the ongoing news and trends to Taipei and Singapore. In the end of year, we will collect these pieces and create China trend for future design reference.
300 politic, economy, culture, and technology news are collected each year by research team in Shanghai.
We facilitate inter-disciplinary workshops and use affinity diagrams to synthesize the information into categories.
The outcome is first presented as the future themes, then sequential ideation workshops will be held with stakeholders.
Related projects: China Trend 2015, China Trend 2016, China Trend 2017
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Desktop Research Competitor Benchmarks
Market Data Translation
This is the most common secondary research I did. It gives a good picture of knowing what advantages and weakness our products have.
By visualizing acquired research data, it is easier to depict for instance who are the core users, and the current market landscape.
Related projects: ROG G751 (2013), ZenFone Family (2013)
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Qual. Research In-depth Interview The majority of my works is to conduct in-depth interview. Although each study has its specific objectives and requires different interviwees, there are principles I incorporate during the process: 1. Encourage the conversation. 2. Find out what interviewees are passionate about. 3. Ask for advices. 4. Be where the actions happened. 5. Take lots of photos.
How does the iPad help the productivity of a hair stylist during his daily work? I conducted this interview in his hair salon to get the best contextual information. Related projects: ZenPad family (2014)
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Qual. Research Interview Toolkit Besides questions and answers, I like to design and deploy toolkits to initiate conversation, encourage personal sharing, and co-create meaningful data with interviewees.
Image Board
Daily Journey
Activity Map
Culture Probe
Card Sorting
Mockup Testing
Related projects: Presence (2007), ZenFone Family (2014, 2015), Baby monitor (2015), ROG G20 (2015),
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Qual. Research Focus Group I found this method efficient and occasionally convenient during the phases of prototyping and post-product launch. The essence is not to understand each individual’s stories but to recognize the rationality behind concensus and arguments.
Related projects: ZenFone Family (2014)
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Qual. Research Observation There are situations that simple observation serves the best than inteferring with users. The benefit of it is to gain insights from knowledgeable interpretation without posing answers.
Homeless in Shanghai We attempted to help homeless people because of the inability of the current policy and the social security system . Our observation identified the frequent hazards occured in their daily life was during the scavenging of food and water.
Related projects: Service Jam (2014)
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Analysis & Synthesis Data downloading
User Stories
Besides interview transcripts, voice recordings, and photos, I prefer organizing information via post-it and printed-out images. It helps to quickly gain understanding of different users and generate insights.
Before creating synthesis data, I’d like to share user stories first. For people from other disciplines, these anecdotes are more relatable and intriguing.
Related projects: ZenFone Family (2013), G752 (2015)
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Analysis & Synthesis Synthesis Models
Customer Journey
There are many ways to present the resarch findings, persona, customer journey, pain and gain points. Models are visualization-oriented and having summarized content.
Persona
Pain/Gain Points
Related projects: ZenFone Family (2013, 2014)
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Analysis & Synthesis Explanatory Models Other models I created are combining literature reviews, and SWOT analysis to help my client specify the core issues in their business.
Related projects: Unconscious (2008), Ruukki Project (2011), Candia Dairy Store (2012)
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Facilitation Ideation Workshop This approach is to apply our research insights and work together with designers to create concept prototypes. The core activity is to guide designers to create analytical themes based on user needs and inspire them to generate solutions.
Related projects: ZenFone Accessory (2013)
hanchung.huang | 2016 | 15
Facilitation Trend Workshop To improve our trend accuracy and to strengthen its implementation, we created trend toolkits to facilitate workshops with designers and other front-line colleagues to generate ideas for future business.
How does iPad help the productivity of a hair stylist during his daily work in the salon. I intended to get the whole picture in his salon.
Related projects: China Trend (2014)
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Facilitation Co-design Workshop The essence of co-design workshop is not just only to bring real-life users into our working process. It is also about opening mind and to think from their perspectives to determine and prioritize user needs.
Related projects: ZenFone Family (2014)
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Appendix Project ShortList Here is the list of projects for all images and charts used in this portfolio.
ASUSTek (2012 - 2016) Products: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
Replublic of Gamer Series (G751, G752, GX500, GX501, GL502) ZenFone Series (ZenFone 4/5/6, ZenFone 2, ZenFone 3 Feima) ZenPad Series (ZenPad 8s, ZenPad 8) Motherboard 170 Series ZenWatch
Culture & Trend 6. Gamer Cultural Study 7. Republic of Gamer Store Experience 8. Commercial Laptop Study 9. Low-tier City Laptop Study 10. China Trend (2013, 2014, 2015) 11. Design Roadshow (2012, 2013, 2014, 2015)
Aava Design (2011 - 2012) Business Analysis 12. Candia Dairy Store
Freelance Researcher (2009 - 2011) 13. Service Jam 2013 14. Ruukki Service Workshop 15. Ruukki Customer Experience
Thanks, and looking forward to hearing from you. Hanchung Huang +86 150 2184 7518 hanchung.huang@gmail.com
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