Sigma Kudos is dedicated to making the experience of using your products efficient and enjoyable for users. Our goal is therefore to design the elements of that superior experience at every level of your product. We call this Experience Design, and we deliver it to you through a number of services.

All our services use the User-Centered Design (UCD) philosophy, which ensures that the technology in your products is arranged in a way that maximizes user satisfaction. It is performed in the context of actual use and at a lower cost. In applying this method in everything we do, we provide significant benefits to your products and even to your own product development cycle.

We offer these services as individual services, or combined into specific, complementary sets.

User research	Collect real-life data about how the users of an existing product actually use it in everyday life in the work context
Methods:	Analysis of existing user feedback, interviews, and in-context observations of actual users, based on personas, or user profiles, defined as part of this service.
Output:	A detailed report on the observed usage patterns, problems, and human behavior. Recommendations for product design improvements

Usability assessment	Assess the usability of a product.
Methods:	Evaluate the product against a set of standard evaluation criteria, which are based on ISO9241 augmented by other industry-standard criteria.
Output:	A detailed report on the findings.

Workflow analysis and usage definition	Analyze the steps that users take to complete defined tasks. Use this data to create optimized workflows that deliver efficiency, speed, and pleasure of use.
Methods:	Card sorting, affinity mapping, various flow capture and flow visualization techniques.
Output:	A detailed visual description of the task flows that users perform (or should perform). A description of user work and personal goals when using the product.

Interface design	Design the structure and operation of a user interface to meet the specified usability requirements for a service, product, or information set.
Methods:	Iterative prototyping on paper and online, testing, interaction and visual design, all done in close collaboration with the product development team.
Output:	A detailed specification for the user interface. Prototype test results demonstrating improved usability measured against the ISO9241 criteria.

Information architecture and visual design	Design the architecture, delivery system, and appearance of the information system covering some or all phases of the product lifecycle.
Methods:	System Product Information (SPI) is used as the overall framework for delivering this service, with some additional activities such as iterative testing.
Output:	A detailed outline of the various information components, a description of the logic of use, and a proposed technical solution for implementation (for example, tools, classroom or multimedia format for training).

Sigma Kudos applies UCD in everything it does, which brings you a number of benefits:

UCD Activity	Benefits
Requirements Engineering
Thorough user research is carried out to establish user profiles (personas), find out about usage reality, and feed that back to you, the customer, as part of the product/project requirement process. Requirement scope is the entire product, not only information.	Lower R&D and documentation costs Better scoping of functions Easier prioritization of product operation model–technology is subservient to the user, not the other way round Documented evidence of actual product use, going beyond user perception
Information creation is prioritized, in form, objective, and content, based on researched, actual product usage, and on user priorities and preferences. We produce a detailed design plan that covers all aspects of design, in support of a superior user experience.	Lower documentation and learning cost – only what needs to be documented actually is Higher information quality and relevance User experience described in detail, providing clear objectives for the entire product development team
Information design approach and scope
The information design approach focuses on what users do with the product and how they behave. The best possible balance is sought between feature requirements and efficient usage requirements.	Lower R&D and documentation costs Information is more accurate and better focused The user view is formally built into the product development cycle
The information solution is an end-to-end solution, encompassing all the visual and functional elements that the user deals with when using the product, both internal and external to the product.	Content is tested repeatedly for usability and accuracy, which reduces support and rework costs Prototyping allows for the best possible solution to be tried out and verified Less room for error in terms of designing what is right for the user
Information testing
The solution is tested by actual users, analyzed by a UCD expert, and iteratively improved early and throughout the product development cycle. Prototyping is used at all levels.	Content is tested repeatedly for usability and accuracy, which reduces support and rework costs Prototyping allows for the best possible solution to be tried out and verified Less room for error in terms of designing what is right for the user
User interface design & development
Sigma Kudos takes responsibility for, or significantly contributes to, the design and development of the product user interface, and uses specialist interface designers to do so.	Higher relevance of the information (better quality). The user information does not have to make up for product design faults. Lower R&D and documentation costs.
Tools and technology
The tools and technology used to develop the end-to-end solution are chosen based on what works best for the user (efficiency and pleasure).	Lower documentation and learning costs, due to a selective use of the right tools, usually combined with your own standard tools. Higher user satisfaction through a better integration of the product and the information system, ideally in a single visual and functional environment.
Liaison and influence with customer product team
The Sigma Kudos ED team interacts with all customer product development functions and notably with R&D at product design and operation levels.	Higher quality of content. Lower documentation and learning costs, by not confining information development to a passive, descriptive activity for product features.
Quality metrics
In addition to operational efficiency, quality of content, and information volume metrics, we also use ISO 9241 metrics to assess the quality of product design and product information.	Broader metrics that allow iterative design improvements even while the product is being developed – which saves on R&D, documentation, learning and support costs.
Team skills
A Sigma Kudos UCD team is most often a multidisciplinary team that includes information consultants as well as software engineers, interaction designers, visual designers, and instructional designers.	Better consistency and coherence between all information components. Better design and more efficient end-to-end solutions, because all members of the team enrich each other’s contributions, and those of your own teams.
Project management
Sigma Kudos project management is fully part of your overall management of the project.	The Sigma Kudos team helps you resolve product-wide issues, and is very flexible – adapting its own design strategy to the development and life cycles of your products. We provide supplemental services to you on request, should major design changes call for a different end-to-end solution.