Kara Pernice
Nielsen Norman Group
Massachusetts, United States
Contact Kara
Discover and connect with journalists and influencers around the world, save time on email research, monitor the news, and more.
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Past articles by Kara:
Democratize User Research in 5 Steps
Democratization of user research makes it possible for anyone to study users. Assessment, training, coaching, and helpful resources set people and teams up to succeed. → Read More
Four Factors in UX Maturity
Improving UX maturity requires growth and evolution across 4 high-level factors: strategy, culture, process, and outcomes. → Read More
The 6 Levels of UX Maturity
Our UX-maturity model has 6 stages that cover processes, design, research, leadership support, and longevity of UX. Use our quiz to get an idea of your organization’s UX maturity. → Read More
How to Maximize Insights in User Testing: Stepped User Tasks
You can learn the right kind of things and much more in user tests if you start with broad tasks instead of immediately leading to areas of interest. Prepare additional, focused tasks that can be used to direct users. → Read More
The Layer-Cake Pattern of Scanning Content on the Web
When headings and subheadings visually stand out on the page and are descriptive, users engage in an efficient scanning pattern that allows them to quickly find the information that they need. → Read More
5 Signs to Diagnose Low UX Maturity in Your Organization (Video)
How can you determine whether your organization is doing UX right? One tool is to estimate the UX maturity: high (set up for systematic success) or low maturity (mostly fail, and ship bad design, unless you're lucky). This video presents the main signs of low UX maturity. → Read More
The User Experience of Public Bathrooms
Public restrooms are plagued by unusable toilet-paper dispensers, difficult flushing controls, and poor stall-status visibility. Many of these issues can be addressed by following standard usability practices. → Read More
Internet of Things (IoT) and User Experience (Video)
The Internet of Things (IoT) poses many challenges since these systems rarely follow even basic usability guidelines. UX professionals have many opportunities for contributing to this new generation of devices and solutions in a major way. → Read More
UX Debt (Video)
Understand the four critical activities that design teams should be focusing on when it comes to UX debt. → Read More
Branding an Intranet
The name of the intranet, its logo, and the visual relationship with the company’s external website are key elements to consider when establishing a brand and an identity for your intranet. → Read More
Where Should UX Report: Centralized, Product, or Somewhere else? (Video)
There are clear benefits and drawbacks to doing UX work as part of a UX team or a product team. Knowing and addressing these can help you grow the organization’s UX maturity, improve awareness about UX, and hone your craft. → Read More
User Interviews: How, When, and Why to Conduct Them
User interviews have become a popular technique for getting user feedback, mainly because they are fast and easy. Use them to learn about users’ perceptions of your design, not about its usability. → Read More
Why is UX so Difficult? (Video)
UX practitioners who feel inept at their job usually face far greater challenges than improving their design, craft or research prowess. Rather, addressing development schedules, Agile, Scrum, Lean, and team member’s roles can create the greatest challenges. → Read More
Design Systems and Their Benefits (Video)
Go beyond a brand or UX style guides to create engaging, consistent user interfaces. At the same time, fit design activities within in short development cycles, spending the least possible development time and money. → Read More
When to Use Which UX Research Method (Video)
Don’t just do usability tests. Do what you need. Consider five criteria to help you determine the most effective UX research method to use for your situation, to meet research goals, and achieve desired outcomes. → Read More
10 Intranet Tips Executives Should Know (Video)
A good intranet increases productivity and can be an excellent motivational tool. Intranets are vital to an organization's success and requires executive support. Learn what management can do to support better intranets. → Read More
Banner Blindness Revisited: Users Dodge Ads on Mobile and Desktop
Users have learned to ignore content that resembles ads, is close to ads, or appears in locations traditionally dedicated to ads. → Read More
User Testing Facilitation Techniques (Video)
Facilitate better usability studies with these 3 techniques: Echo, Boomerang, and Columbo. These methods allow you to get clarification from participants with minimal disruption or bias. → Read More
Remote Moderated Usability Tests: How and Why to Do Them
Remote moderated usability tests are fast, easy, and deliver better-quality findings than unmoderated tests. → Read More
Affinity Diagramming: Collaboratively Sort UX Findings & Design Ideas
Affinity diagramming is an activity used to organize research findings and design ideas. When done in teams, it increases involvement and ownership for UX work. → Read More