Transcript Sustainability Personas SEAG Intro Presentation

Using personas
Sharing the goals of the
Sustainable Edinburgh
website
Neil Allison
University Website Project
Overview
1. A quick introduction to personas
•
The what, why and how…
2. Meet the Sustainable Edinburgh
website personas
3. Group session
•
•
Getting to know the personas
Making them “real”
5 steps to a user-focused website
1. Recognise that business results depend on
making your customers happy
2. Realise that you are not the user
3. Learn about your users by interacting with them
4. Make the findings of your research
understandable & actionable
5. Make decisions based on this user knowledge
What is a persona?
• A stand-in for real users
– Representing the needs of user groups
• Identifying the user motivations, expectations
and goals that drive online behaviour
• Based on knowledge of real users
• Helping us keep the user at the forefront
as website content & features develop
But what
are the
benefits?
Personas bring focus
The User Is Always Right
by Steve Mulder
Personas build empathy
The User Is Always Right
by Steve Mulder
Personas encourage consensus
The User Is Always Right
by Steve Mulder
Personas bring efficiencies
The User Is Always Right
by Steve Mulder
How do we use personas?
• Get to know their traits & behaviours
– Challenge them: they should evolve & grow
• Reference them in website
development meetings
• Discuss content and feature decisions
using their attitudes and desires
How do we know
we’re doing it properly?
• When you find yourself saying:
– “I doubt Herbie would ever want to do that”
• And no one asks:
– “Who’s Herbie?”
• We’re probably getting there 
Sustainability personas
Meet your website visitors
100%
The Process of Change
Mainstreaming of Social
Responsibility & Sustainability
SRS part of
UoE ‘Business
As Usual’
Recognise & communicate
SRS activity & achievement
Creating “SRS is
where the kudos
is”
Support best practice,
innovation & leadership
Unlocking resources;
getting out of the
way; giving
‘permission’
Great to see the
University doing
this - but is it for
real?
Embed SRS into policies,
strategies & procedures
Evolving “the way we
do things around here”
Settlers
Like local & belonging;
doing what’s normal
Demonstrate & report our main
soc., env., econ. impacts
“Feel good: we’re part
of the solution; we’re
managing it
effectively”
Could be good
for me - but why
is it so
complicated?
Pioneers
SRS personal
& professional
interest of few
individuals
They should
look after us
before worrying
about the rest of
world
Attracted by what’s interesting,
always questioning
Prospectors
Want to make their lives
better & be seen to succeed
0%
Time
Developed by Osbert Lancaster, Footprint,
based on: Research into motivating
prospectors, settlers and pioneers to
change behaviours that affect climate
emissions and Using values modes from
Cultural Dynamics Strategy & Marketing
www.cultdyn.co.uk
Jack: Bit of a lad, proud dad
• Technician in School of Engineering
• Age 31
• Married with a son aged 3
• Lives in Musselburgh
• Keen footballer, stock car mechanic
High autonomy in job
Doing a good job is important, but family & friends come first.
He enjoys being a family man and wants to be a great dad for
his son. He’s worried though that he’ll have less time for five-a-side
football and being a mechanic for a local stock car team.
Jack and his wife’s dream is to move out the old council flat
they own into a brand new house with a garden for their kid.
Jack thinks climate change is for real, but doesn’t believe
anything he can do will make any real difference.
It’s big business that’s the problem, and anyway it’ll be a while
before his family and people locally experience any problems.
He knows there’s some scientists at the University working on
climate change - perhaps they’ll help fix it. He wants to get on with
his own life - not worry about other people.
His wife Tanya buys organic and fairtrade food when she can
afford it: organic is healthier and fairtrade’s a nice way to help
people. Jack’s suspicious that fairtrade doesn’t really help anyone
and that organic food is a con - but if it keeps Tanya happy ...
Low autonomy
Sees SRS highly
relevant to work
x
Unclear about
relevance to work
High personal
interest in SRS
x
Little personal
interest
Confident in own
knowledge of SRS
Jack likes his job and is keen to take on more responsibility
- and he’d like the money. However he feels he should get
more recognition for the work he puts in - he keeps the show on the
road but the academics get the credit.
He reckons he’s in with good chance of promotion if he plays
his cards right.
x
x
Uncertain about
SRS
Jack wants (from Sustainable Edinburgh):
University wants Jack to (in relation to SRS and other objectives):
Pain Points. Jack:
• Doesn’t like being blamed for the world’s problems
• Accepts change is necessary, needs information, not persuasion
• Isn’t convinced that problems are here and now
Sustainable Edinburgh should:
• Show Jack how he is helping solve problems
• Explain how changing his behaviour is effective and important
• Demonstrate how Jack can leave a legacy for his son
Marcia: Ready to make her mark here … or elsewhere
• Senior Lecturer in School of Law
• Age 35
• Single no children
• Lives in Leith, rented flat
• Recently moved from Canada
• Enjoys travel
Marcia specialised in corporate law for her first six months
She’s already well liked and respected by staff and students.
She feels she’s found her feet (this post is a step up for her) and is
ready to start making her mark - ‘things could do with shaking up
around here’.
Marcia’s keen to progress up the academic ladder, and she’s
open minded about whether she’ll stay at Edinburgh long term.
She likes the department and the City, but hasn’t had time to
get to know people or Edinburgh - she feels cooped up and wants to
meet people and have some fun.
Marcia is aware of climate change and CSR issues in general
- and sees that they will increasingly affect some aspects of
corporate law - one of her friends has researched First Nations’ legal
challenges to mining in Canada.
While she knows she’s ‘not supposed’ to fly she has family
back home and all of Europe to explore - what’s she supposed to
do!?
She read about some wonderful ethical fashion ranges in the
magazines - but they’re extortionate and the stuff in the shops is too
‘worthy’.
Marcia loves her MacBook Pro which she uses to Skype and
Facebook with friends and family - she didn’t like feeling guilty when
she read about the criticism of Apple for using ‘blood’ minerals from
Africa.
High autonomy in job
Sees SRS highly
relevant to work
High personal
interest in SRS
Confident in own
knowledge of SRS
Low autonomy
x
Unclear about
relevant to work
x
Little personal
interest
x
x
Uncertain about
SRS
Marcia wants (from Sustainable Edinburgh):
University wants Marcia to (in relation to SRS and other objectives):
Pain Points. Marcia:
• Doesn’t like being blamed for the world’s problems
• Doesn’t like hearing about the implications of her behaviours &
choices
• Doesn’t want to ‘give up’ any of the good things in life
Sustainable Edinburgh should:
• Make changes easy, contemporary and cost effective (but if it’s
worth it, she’s happy to pay)
• Show how people she admires are leading the way
• Show how SRS could help Marcia advance her career
Herbie: laid back hippie, but gets things done
• Senior HR Manager in CMVM
• Age 53
• Married, two children at university
• Lives in Stockbridge
• Keen musician
Herbie previously worked for an international IT company.
He has been at Edinburgh for 7 years. He still takes pleasure
in the idiosyncrasies of academia - even when it frustrates him as he
tries to bring it into the modern world! He’s intrigued by how a such a
strange system actually works pretty well.
His colleagues see Herbie as quirky and unconventional - but
he’s recognised as a fair and supportive manager, and despite
seeming very laid back he knows everyone, knows the system and
can get things done.
Herbie and his family have lived in the same house since
before the children arrived. He has a wide network of friends locally
and through work, plays a regular jazz session a Stockbridge pub,
volunteers with a music therapy group and is on the board of a small
international development NGO.
Herbie is very aware of development and social justice issues
- and of the international implications of climate change for the
poor. He’s ambivalent about climate change policy in the west believing it dominated by corporate interests.
He feel a lot of ‘climate action’ is middle class hippies trying to
lead the good life rather than bringing about real change.
He’s had a home energy check and has done what he can
given it’s a traditional stone terraced house. He cycles and uses the
bus around town.
He’s happy to see the University do more on these issues,
though he’s not sure how directly relevant it is to his work. He’s
reserving judgment about the seriousness of their commitment.
High autonomy in job
Low autonomy
x
Sees SRS highly
relevant to work
x
Unclear about
relevance to work
High personal
interest in SRS
x
Little personal
interest
Confident in own
knowledge of SRS
x
Uncertain about
SRS
Herbie wants (from Sustainable Edinburgh):
University wants Herbie to (in relation to SRS and other objectives):
Pain Points. Herbie:
• Recognises this stuff is complex - and gets frustrated when
presented with simplistic analysis, and simple solutions
• Concerned that this initiative will result in lots of noise and little
effective action
• Suspicious that this is really a cost cutting agenda
Sustainable Edinburgh should:
• Provide evidence of effective change
• Encourage Herbie to take action, and not just debate this issues!
• Give Herbie opportunities to be part of taking this agenda forward
Eva: is an enthusiast - almost an evangelista
• 2nd year PhD student, Social
Anthropology
• Age 25
• Single
• Lives in student flat in Tollcross
Eva is researching aspects of bonded & forced labour in India.
She’s also a campaigner with an Edinburgh based fairtrade
NGO and active in a several University societies. She travelled to
India after graduating and volunteered for 6 months at a project for
child quarry workers.
Eva is finding it difficult to focus on her PhD - although she’s
passionate about improving peoples’ lives she’s finding the slog of
research tedious.
She’d rather be spending time with her friends putting the
world to rights - she’s concerned her research won’t really make any
impact and result in just another thesis that no one except the
examiner will read.
Eva is very aware of social justice and climate change issues.
While she agrees climate change is important, she believes
it’s distracting attention from improving the lives of oppressed people
in the developing world.
While she’s pleased that fairtrade and ethical products are
now widely available, she’s concerned that multinationals and
supermarkets have watered down standards. She’s also frustrated
that lots of people buy ethical stuff because it’s fashionable and
aren’t really interested in the issues.
She feels carbon offsetting is just another example of the west
trying to make the poor pay for our over indulgence, and that the
political agenda has been captured by the corporates.
Eva is vegan. Her flatmates joke (just) about not being able to
buy anything without being told what’s wrong with it.
High autonomy in job
x
Low autonomy
Sees SRS highly
relevant to work
x
Unclear about
relevance to work
High personal
interest in SRS
x
Little personal
interest
Confident in own
knowledge of SRS
x
Uncertain about
SRS
Eva wants (from Sustainable Edinburgh):
University wants Eva to (in relation to SRS and other objectives):
Pain Points. Eva:
• Get frustrated when people are encouraged to do the ‘right’ thing for
the ‘wrong’ reason
• Believes people need to understand the full picture - making it simple
makes it seem as if you’re not serious about the issues
Sustainable Edinburgh should:
• Provide a range of actions which Eva can evaluate and make up her
own mind on
• Provide access to detailed information and evidence
• Encourage Eva to learn to communicate more effectively
Group session
• 4 groups: 1 persona each
• Comments, suggestions
– Does your persona seem real?
– Anything missing from the group as a whole?
• Fill the gaps – practical, tangible objectives
– What do you think your persona wants?
– What does the University want your persona to do?
Next steps
• Your comments & feedback integrated
into the personas
• Final working copies distributed
• At all future steps of website planning &
review, put yourself in their shoes
– Remember: You are not the user!
– The site is for Jack, Marcia, Herbie & Eva
Thank you
• Any questions?
• Further reading:
– Persona articles & resources
http://bit.ly/a35FNF
– Cultural Dynamics Strategy & Marketing
Using values modes: www.cultdyn.co.uk