Then it's really two issues: a) what is the method so we can all
communicate, and b) do they have the experience to execute the
method and
communicate the results in a competent manner so we can work as a
team?
Agreed.
And to add to that, a key aspect of skilled method use is to
understand the method and its steps well enough to be able to
improvise, modify the method steps, substitute a technique for another
technique, etc. in order to deal with the situation at hand.
Just like in your McDonalds example.
And, as you point out, for that kind of competent tinkering to work in
a setting that requires coordination and communication, it is
necessary to have the method platform in place in order to be able to
talk about the modifications.
I think there should be a focus on: "How is method X used as a means
to
distribute stakeholder involvement and power?"
Agreed. This one tends to be underestimated in settings where methods
are intended to capture actionable knowledge and (bluntly put) make
people exchangeable, yet it is the defining force underlying every act
of method development and deployment. Great topic for academic
methodology research, in my opinion.
But the tools of our processes are not necessarily original
(personas are
very similar to demographic profiling I saw for political direct mail
years before About Face came out). Nor should they be. We should
draw upon
other fields to improve our own.
Here is another issue where I agree with you. Methods and techniques
seems to be an area where the interaction design field sometimes
forgets to look at experience in related fields. You mention marketing
and political communication; I could add industrial design and
architecture. Dreyfuss (1955), Jones (1970) and Mayall (1979) between
them sum up a fair portion of what is now presented as innovative
methods and perspectives at UX conferences.
There are probably many more fields holding methodological experience
that we could benefit from.
/Jonas
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