Google UX Research Internship Project 2023

As a UX Research Intern at Google, I designed and implemented a generative research project that used design-based methods to drive design considerations for a novel, emerging product.

Duration: 12 weeks

Challenge: Help the team understand end-user sentiment and related needs of engineers and designers in regard to an emerging product in unexplored/novel product area.

Team: I was part of a Machine Learning UX team consisting of designers, researchers, and project managers, and communicated with engineers and product managers across product areas.

TL;DR:

I designed, fielded, and reported out on an exploratory design-based, qualitative project to answer pressing concerns of cross-functional members of the Machine Learning team, and to identify promising directions for and potential roadblocks in the design and reception of an emerging product area. Results include actionable insights, a working design framework, and next steps for team UX researchers.

Proprietary details not included for work described this project.

Objectives

The team was working to brainstorm a novel product with projected success based on recent advancements in the performance and capabilities of Artificial Intelligence (AI). With many application areas being non-existent prior to these advancements, companies, developers, and researchers and designers have little knowledge of the impact of particular uses of AI in society—presenting a huge challenge for the team. I was tasked with bringing to the team a more robust understanding of user sentiment on emerging ideas, prototypes, and general directions in this space to inform design decisions.

  • One objective of the stakeholder interviews was to immerse myself in the project history to understand ongoing challenges for the team and relevant roadmaps.

  • I also needed to understand the core business objectives driving motivations for the proposed product area. I asked related questions to design a viable study that would move the team closer to key objectives

  • Aligning on project vision and outcomes remained a crucial element in scoping and making the best use of the project. I needed to ensure that the xFN team (with varying goals) would all walk away with important insights.

AI Design Workshop + Ramp Up

While conducting stakeholder interviews and synthesizing the few pieces of literature and internal studies available on the novel area, I embedded in my research process multiple opportunities to brainstorm through design. One such activity consisted of joining together with researchers and designers on the team for a multi-day design workshop on evolving AI in product design. These sorts of activities jump-started my creative and user-centered thinking processes, which aided in developing relevant research questions as well.

Research Plan Outline

  • Summary

  • Background

  • Related Work

  • Research Questions

  • Objectives

  • Methodology + Analysis Plan

  • Timeline

Stakeholder Deep-Dives

Conducting generative research in a (largely) unexplored space meant that I needed to lean-in heavily into the major questions, observations, and challenges present in the work of the broader xFN team—who I identified as my primary stakeholders (as is often the case) in this research study. I scheduled and conducted cyclic stakeholder interviews with product designers, product & project managers, engineers and engineering managers, and other UX researchers on within the Machine Learning organization. These interviews were conducted at the onset and throughout the project to inform the direction of the study designed, share early insights, and elicit fresh feedback.

Example photos of workshop activities — not from proprietary project

Project Planning & Recruitment

Throughout xFN interviews, design workshops, and literature reviews, I cyclically craft and refine the project plan and roadmap. In this document, the project scope, goals (and non-goals), research questions, methodology and implementation details take shape. This document is living and a primary source to keep the team updated on project status. I share this research plan with multiple team members at critical points to elicit feedback and ensure that their primary concerns remain top-of-mind across the project plan.

Methodology

Since the project is exploratory, I select promising design & arts-based methods (e.g. co-design) to co-create meaning surrounding new topics the team is exploring with potential end-users. I then follow up with in-depth interviews to probe user sentiments on ideas the team cares about—and concerns that are of interest for users who might interact with emerging products.

Once the project is approved, I work with the internal recruitment team to establish a recruitment plan for each part of the study.

Next

Meta UXR Evaluative & Comparative Study