Jonathan Earthy

The improvement of human-centred processes-facing the challenge and reaping the benefit of ISO 13407

Human-centred design processes for interactive systems are defined in ISO 13407 and the associated ISO TR 18529. The publication of these standards represents a maturing of the discipline of user-centred design. The systems development community see that (at last) Human Factors has processes which can be managed and integrated with existing project processes. This internationally agreed set of human-centred design processes provides a definition of the capability that an organization must possess in order to implement user-centred design effectively. It can also be used to assess the extent to which a particular development project employs user-centred design. As such, it presents a challenge to the Human Factors community, and indeed a definition of good practice may even be regarded by some as an unwelcome constraint. This paper presents the background to the process-level definition of user-centred design and describes how it relates to current practice. The challenges, benefits and use of a defined human-centred design process are presented. The implications for Human Factors and other disciplines are discussed. In Appendices A?D, the process terminology and the contents of ISO 13407 and ISO TR 18529 are described in more detail, and three examples are given (in Appendix D) of using this process improvement approach to improve the actual design methods in three organizations.

New ISO Standards for Usability, Usability Reports and Usability Measures

Several new and revised ISO standards will be published in 2016/17 that define the basic terms and concepts of usability ISO 9241-11, give guidance on processes and outcomes of human-centred design ISO 9241-220, provide examples of measures that can be used in usability evaluation ISO/IEC 25022 and 25023 and define what should be included in usability evaluation reports for usability tests, inspections and surveys ISO/IEC 25066. The paper explains some of the new content and how it can be used.

What Are User Requirements? Developing an ISO Standard

Although much has been published on how to collect user requirements, there is surprisingly little guidance on the specific information that should be included in a user requirements specification, or on the syntax of user requirements statements. An ISO working group that has been developing a series of documents to define good practice for the content of human-centred design deliverables is now working to get consensus on the content of user requirements specifications. Two types of user requirements have been identified: (a) requirements for a user to be able to recognize, select, input or receive physical entities and information, and (b) use-related quality requirements that specify criteria for outcomes such as effectiveness, efficiency, satisfaction, accessibility, user experience and avoidance of harm from use. A user requirements specification should also contain information about constraints, the context of use, goals and tasks to be supported, design guidelines and any recommendations for design solutions emerging from the user requirements. This paper explains some of the challenges in developing the standard.

ISO Standards for User-Centered Design and the Specification of Usability

This chapter will be of interest to people wishing to find out more about usability and how to achieve it, and to those responsible for delivering and sustaining usable systems. It introduces the international standards for usability and their use in government system acquisition, and details their requirements for ergonomics and human-centered design (HCD). It describes the ISO process models, HCD processes, and design guidance. It describes the application of the ISO-HCD process to government systems from the perspectives of requiring HCD in government system contracts as a means of reducing the risk from poor usability, inclusion in process improvement, product specification, and validation. It also discusses the effect of project scale and provides the details of relevant standards.

The Processes to Manage (and Minimise) the Human Risk in Complex Systems

This paper explores the use of the Human-System process (HS) model in managing the human-related risk in complex systems. The HS model is a proposed ISO Publicly Available Specification (PAS) [ISO PAS tba:2002] A specification for the process assessment of human-system issues. It presents a view of the system life cycle with an emphasis on the identification and handling of issues related to people (users and other stakeholders). The model is focused on system acquisition and operation but includes processes related to Human Resources (e.g. selection and training). It is intended for use in process assessment and improvement, but could also support planning and the assessment of competence. A process assessment approach to IEC 61508 [IEC 61508:1998] has been proposed for software-related processes [Benediktsson et al 2001], and is recommended here as a validated means of assessing organisational capability to deliver systems in a user-centred manner. The relationship between the processes in the HS model and those required by Health and Safety is discussed. The HS model is also proposed as a means of addressing compliance with Regulations across sectors in a consistent way.