Jamaica
SlashRoots Foundation
Lessons Learnt: The Perils & Pitfalls of Designing for People
Topics: User Experience, Design
Why, when we launch products, are people not using them? That’s because we often fail to consider the needs of real people before we build. As digital makers, we need to reflect on the logistical issues that threaten our projects, and impede our ability to empathise with real people.
Denique Ferguson had seen and experienced one too many “pretty-useless” websites, public “e-disservices”, and other instances of technology complicating instead of easing people’s lives.Foreseeing a lifetime of resigned exasperation with things as they were, Denique decided to pursue an MSc in Human-Computer Interaction Design instead.She currently hones her craft as a Senior Service Designer at the SlashRoots Foundation, researching, practising, and occasionally teaching user experience and service design principles. Denique has conducted design research in a variety of cultural and institutional contexts, including Kingston (Jamaica), Kampala (Uganda), and Cape Town (South Africa).
