"Make Yourself Useful" at Your Government Agency

Details and downloads at: http://firstgov.gov/webcontent/usability/world_usability_day.shtml

The interagency Web Managers Forum Usability Task Group encourages government web managers, usability specialists, and others to "Make Yourself Useful!" by organizing one of the following activities at your agency:

1) Assess the usability of your agency's public website

• How usable is your website? - Take the Usability I.Q. Test and rate your site against the top 25 usability guidelines (MS Word, 60KB, November 2006) to see how it stacks up.

• Usability for $1.98 - Using a laptop or paper prototype, conduct a "usability-study-on-the-cheap" in the lobby or cafeteria of your building. Ask users to find the three most important items on your website.

2 ) Improve your Intranet

• Re-architect your agency's Intranet homepage - The Intranet is often the ugly stepdaughter of websites; it never gets asked to the ball. On copies of the Intranet Home Page, ask employees to highlight or write in the three areas they find most useful. Have them scratch out areas they never use.

• Create personas for your Intranet - Ask employees to complete a simple demographic survey (MS Word, 190KB, November 2006) so you have a better idea of who your typical users are and what they need.

3) Think about usability beyond computers

• Redesign an important form - Choose a form (electronic or paper) and ask employees to help redesign it. Do a "lobby card sort" with cards or Post-Its or ask employees to highlight important fields with a marker. Choose the parking application, a health insurance explanation of benefits, the pay and benefits statement, or other "troublesome" form.

• Revise signage in your building - Post new signage for the day. Make sure employees understand the connection to World Usability Day by staffing a table in the lobby and soliciting feedback on the new signage.

How can I get people involved and share what we learn?

Incentivize!

Give every participant something for helping. Even an apple or a roll of mints shows appreciation.

Report Your Findings

Photograph the event if you can. Document your findings. E-mail a summary (with pictures) to your web team; the head of human resources; the agency head--and employees. Ask for follow-up.

Bonus - Give Commendations

Have you seen a website, an online form, or some other product that reflects great usability? Or just the opposite? Have some fun and use the Usability Commendation (PDF, 665 KB, November 7, 2006 requires Adobe Acrobat Reader) and Usability Violation (PDF, 617 KB, November 7, 2006 requires Adobe Acrobat Reader) to rate usability in and around your agency.

Print and give commendations to owners of websites and applications that are usable (or not usable). Print blank commendations to hand out in the lobby. Doing so will help people see what's working well and what needs improvement.

Details and downloads at: http://firstgov.gov/webcontent/usability/world_usability_day.shtml