In a team with different skillsets, one can be hopeful and idealistic about the outcome. The goal is to work as one team, put users first and create awesome experiences. Unfortunately, things don’t always go as planned.

Here’s some barriers to working in multi-disciplinary teams and how to address them:

Barrier 1: Design is looped in last minute

You may be part of a team that doesn’t see design or research as a part of the product or business process. The issues may be UX maturity of the group. Design may be seen as the icing on the cake or seen to have the primary role of “making things pretty”.

Tip: Focus on UX education, starting with key partners (or people you collaborate with the most). Building trust in the design process takes time.

Barrier 2: Miscommunication between disciplines

It is not always easy to clearly communicate the technology behind the application to non-technical team members, including content writers, legal experts and design. This can easily become a game of “telephone” where research insights get lost in the mix or the reality of technology complexities are largely ignored.

Tip: Find a knowledgeable point of contact, prepare questions and get in quality time listening to their explanations.

Barrier 3: Uneven foundation problem

Everyone starts from unique skillset, background, knowledge. While diverse perspectives are a strength for the team, it can also cause miscommunication and ultimately lead to bad collaboration.

Have frequent conversations to share what team members are learning and perspectives from their expertise. Make sure to level set before starting a new project without making the assumption that everyone is coming from the same perspective.

Time spent laying down this foundation is time saved later on!

#collaboration #ux #communication #design #technology #barrier