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UI Prototyping in the Contact Center

This post was written by Jason Alley, lead consultant at Vanguard Communications. UI prototyping is critical for contact centers implementing new agent desktop technology. This posting will review why prototyping is important, why it is often overlooked in the contact center, and what steps can be taken to facilitate effective prototyping.
Eric Krapf
Eric Krapf
June 25, 2008

This post was written by Jason Alley, lead consultant at Vanguard Communications. UI prototyping is critical for contact centers implementing new agent desktop technology. This posting will review why prototyping is important, why it is often overlooked in the contact center, and what steps can be taken to facilitate effective prototyping.

This post was written by Jason Alley, lead consultant at Vanguard Communications.

UI prototyping is critical for contact centers implementing new agent desktop technology. This posting will review why prototyping is important, why it is often overlooked in the contact center, and what steps can be taken to facilitate effective prototyping.Why is UI prototyping important in the contact center?

Here are five reasons based on past project experience:

  • User Buy-in: Agents tend to find new technology more acceptable if they are involved early (and often) in the requirements and design process. Prototyping is one way to proactively facilitate this.
  • Missing, Broken Functionality: Users are very good at identifying missing or broken functionality - they "live it," while others conceptualize it. If involved early enough in the process, agents can help IT avoid costly re-work and delays.

    A great example of this is when one agent asked, "Can I double click on the contact history line to see the email associated with the contact?" That wasn't functionality planned for, but proved to be an important addition. In this case, the development team was able to add the functionality at minimal cost without impacting the schedule because the contact history module had yet to be implemented and customized.

  • Usability: Observing agents interacting directly with UI components can uncover simple, minor modifications that can have a big impact on usability.
  • Hot Buttons: Delivering new, exciting components of functionality (or "hot buttons") can help garner acceptance. Prototyping is a great way of introducing and validating such functionality. There's also a chance you'll uncover hot buttons you didn't expect. During one prototype review session, the team discovered that a scrolling real-time ticker was the big selling point for the new agent desktop UI - something we originally thought agents would push back on.
  • Buyer/Supplier Expectations: Finally, creating a visual and interactive representation of key components of functionality is a great way of ensuring buyers and suppliers see eye to eye. Written words can be interpreted differently by different people, but a prototype offers a clear, hard-to-refute representation of what is expected to be delivered.

    Why is UI prototyping often overlooked in the contact center?

    Many companies overlook UI prototyping when it comes to contact center desktop applications (e.g., agent cockpit, softphone, contact history, multi-media desktop, reporting, etc.). Why is this so? Is it because these applications are sold to people who are typically not responsible for implementing complex software applications (e.g., IT infrastructure versus IT applications)? Or is it because the vendors themselves do not have a deep software application heritage? The answer is likely "yes" to both questions. It has been my experience that both customers and suppliers tend to underestimate the complexity associated with implementing contact center desktop applications because of their heritage - being more telephony oriented than software oriented.

    What steps should be taken? Begin treating contact center desktop application deployments more like you would a Siebel or Oracle deployment (consider it an IT Application), and make sure not to overlook UI prototyping. Here is an outline of some basic steps you can take on the prototyping front:

  • Pre-Sales Steps
  • Identify desired UI content and functionality
  • Create screen shots, mockups
  • Document desired behavior of each individual UI component
  • Review materials with business user workgroups
  • Screen shots, mockups
  • Documented behavior of UI components
  • Modify materials and review with business users (may require multiple iterations)
  • Obtain approval, sign-off from business users
  • Ensure time and money is accounted for in the contract for interactive prototyping (including multiple reviews, iterations)
  • Document critical use cases to be addressed by the interactive prototypes
  • Clearly define roles and responsibilities
  • Post Sales Steps - Design Phase
  • Develop an interactive prototype that addresses each critical use case
  • Review initial interactive prototype with business user workgroups
  • Modify interactive prototype and review with business users (may require multiple iterations)
  • Obtain approval, sign-off from business users
  • Post Sales Steps - Development Phase
  • Update screen shots, mockups and/or interactive prototype to help manage tradeoff decisions along the way
  • Missing, Broken Functionality: Users are very good at identifying missing or broken functionality - they "live it," while others conceptualize it. If involved early enough in the process, agents can help IT avoid costly re-work and delays.

    A great example of this is when one agent asked, "Can I double click on the contact history line to see the email associated with the contact?" That wasn't functionality planned for, but proved to be an important addition. In this case, the development team was able to add the functionality at minimal cost without impacting the schedule because the contact history module had yet to be implemented and customized.

  • Usability: Observing agents interacting directly with UI components can uncover simple, minor modifications that can have a big impact on usability.
  • Hot Buttons: Delivering new, exciting components of functionality (or "hot buttons") can help garner acceptance. Prototyping is a great way of introducing and validating such functionality. There's also a chance you'll uncover hot buttons you didn't expect. During one prototype review session, the team discovered that a scrolling real-time ticker was the big selling point for the new agent desktop UI - something we originally thought agents would push back on.
  • Buyer/Supplier Expectations: Finally, creating a visual and interactive representation of key components of functionality is a great way of ensuring buyers and suppliers see eye to eye. Written words can be interpreted differently by different people, but a prototype offers a clear, hard-to-refute representation of what is expected to be delivered.

    Why is UI prototyping often overlooked in the contact center?

    Many companies overlook UI prototyping when it comes to contact center desktop applications (e.g., agent cockpit, softphone, contact history, multi-media desktop, reporting, etc.). Why is this so? Is it because these applications are sold to people who are typically not responsible for implementing complex software applications (e.g., IT infrastructure versus IT applications)? Or is it because the vendors themselves do not have a deep software application heritage? The answer is likely "yes" to both questions. It has been my experience that both customers and suppliers tend to underestimate the complexity associated with implementing contact center desktop applications because of their heritage - being more telephony oriented than software oriented.

    What steps should be taken? Begin treating contact center desktop application deployments more like you would a Siebel or Oracle deployment (consider it an IT Application), and make sure not to overlook UI prototyping. Here is an outline of some basic steps you can take on the prototyping front:

  • Pre-Sales Steps
  • Identify desired UI content and functionality
  • Create screen shots, mockups
  • Document desired behavior of each individual UI component
  • Review materials with business user workgroups
  • Screen shots, mockups
  • Documented behavior of UI components
  • Modify materials and review with business users (may require multiple iterations)
  • Obtain approval, sign-off from business users
  • Ensure time and money is accounted for in the contract for interactive prototyping (including multiple reviews, iterations)
  • Document critical use cases to be addressed by the interactive prototypes
  • Clearly define roles and responsibilities
  • Post Sales Steps - Design Phase
  • Develop an interactive prototype that addresses each critical use case
  • Review initial interactive prototype with business user workgroups
  • Modify interactive prototype and review with business users (may require multiple iterations)
  • Obtain approval, sign-off from business users
  • Post Sales Steps - Development Phase
  • Update screen shots, mockups and/or interactive prototype to help manage tradeoff decisions along the way

    • A great example of this is when one agent asked, "Can I double click on the contact history line to see the email associated with the contact?" That wasn't functionality planned for, but proved to be an important addition. In this case, the development team was able to add the functionality at minimal cost without impacting the schedule because the contact history module had yet to be implemented and customized.

  • Usability: Observing agents interacting directly with UI components can uncover simple, minor modifications that can have a big impact on usability.
  • Hot Buttons: Delivering new, exciting components of functionality (or "hot buttons") can help garner acceptance. Prototyping is a great way of introducing and validating such functionality. There's also a chance you'll uncover hot buttons you didn't expect. During one prototype review session, the team discovered that a scrolling real-time ticker was the big selling point for the new agent desktop UI - something we originally thought agents would push back on.
  • Buyer/Supplier Expectations: Finally, creating a visual and interactive representation of key components of functionality is a great way of ensuring buyers and suppliers see eye to eye. Written words can be interpreted differently by different people, but a prototype offers a clear, hard-to-refute representation of what is expected to be delivered.

    Why is UI prototyping often overlooked in the contact center?

    Many companies overlook UI prototyping when it comes to contact center desktop applications (e.g., agent cockpit, softphone, contact history, multi-media desktop, reporting, etc.). Why is this so? Is it because these applications are sold to people who are typically not responsible for implementing complex software applications (e.g., IT infrastructure versus IT applications)? Or is it because the vendors themselves do not have a deep software application heritage? The answer is likely "yes" to both questions. It has been my experience that both customers and suppliers tend to underestimate the complexity associated with implementing contact center desktop applications because of their heritage - being more telephony oriented than software oriented.

    What steps should be taken? Begin treating contact center desktop application deployments more like you would a Siebel or Oracle deployment (consider it an IT Application), and make sure not to overlook UI prototyping. Here is an outline of some basic steps you can take on the prototyping front:

  • Pre-Sales Steps
  • Identify desired UI content and functionality
  • Create screen shots, mockups
  • Document desired behavior of each individual UI component
  • Review materials with business user workgroups
  • Screen shots, mockups
  • Documented behavior of UI components
  • Modify materials and review with business users (may require multiple iterations)
  • Obtain approval, sign-off from business users
  • Ensure time and money is accounted for in the contract for interactive prototyping (including multiple reviews, iterations)
  • Document critical use cases to be addressed by the interactive prototypes
  • Clearly define roles and responsibilities
  • Post Sales Steps - Design Phase
  • Develop an interactive prototype that addresses each critical use case
  • Review initial interactive prototype with business user workgroups
  • Modify interactive prototype and review with business users (may require multiple iterations)
  • Obtain approval, sign-off from business users
  • Post Sales Steps - Development Phase
  • Update screen shots, mockups and/or interactive prototype to help manage tradeoff decisions along the way
  • Hot Buttons: Delivering new, exciting components of functionality (or "hot buttons") can help garner acceptance. Prototyping is a great way of introducing and validating such functionality. There's also a chance you'll uncover hot buttons you didn't expect. During one prototype review session, the team discovered that a scrolling real-time ticker was the big selling point for the new agent desktop UI - something we originally thought agents would push back on.
  • Buyer/Supplier Expectations: Finally, creating a visual and interactive representation of key components of functionality is a great way of ensuring buyers and suppliers see eye to eye. Written words can be interpreted differently by different people, but a prototype offers a clear, hard-to-refute representation of what is expected to be delivered.

    Why is UI prototyping often overlooked in the contact center?

    Many companies overlook UI prototyping when it comes to contact center desktop applications (e.g., agent cockpit, softphone, contact history, multi-media desktop, reporting, etc.). Why is this so? Is it because these applications are sold to people who are typically not responsible for implementing complex software applications (e.g., IT infrastructure versus IT applications)? Or is it because the vendors themselves do not have a deep software application heritage? The answer is likely "yes" to both questions. It has been my experience that both customers and suppliers tend to underestimate the complexity associated with implementing contact center desktop applications because of their heritage - being more telephony oriented than software oriented.

    What steps should be taken? Begin treating contact center desktop application deployments more like you would a Siebel or Oracle deployment (consider it an IT Application), and make sure not to overlook UI prototyping. Here is an outline of some basic steps you can take on the prototyping front:

  • Pre-Sales Steps
  • Identify desired UI content and functionality
  • Create screen shots, mockups
  • Document desired behavior of each individual UI component
  • Review materials with business user workgroups
  • Screen shots, mockups
  • Documented behavior of UI components
  • Modify materials and review with business users (may require multiple iterations)
  • Obtain approval, sign-off from business users
  • Ensure time and money is accounted for in the contract for interactive prototyping (including multiple reviews, iterations)
  • Document critical use cases to be addressed by the interactive prototypes
  • Clearly define roles and responsibilities
  • Post Sales Steps - Design Phase
  • Develop an interactive prototype that addresses each critical use case
  • Review initial interactive prototype with business user workgroups
  • Modify interactive prototype and review with business users (may require multiple iterations)
  • Obtain approval, sign-off from business users
  • Post Sales Steps - Development Phase
  • Update screen shots, mockups and/or interactive prototype to help manage tradeoff decisions along the way
  • Buyer/Supplier Expectations: Finally, creating a visual and interactive representation of key components of functionality is a great way of ensuring buyers and suppliers see eye to eye. Written words can be interpreted differently by different people, but a prototype offers a clear, hard-to-refute representation of what is expected to be delivered.

    Why is UI prototyping often overlooked in the contact center?

    Many companies overlook UI prototyping when it comes to contact center desktop applications (e.g., agent cockpit, softphone, contact history, multi-media desktop, reporting, etc.). Why is this so? Is it because these applications are sold to people who are typically not responsible for implementing complex software applications (e.g., IT infrastructure versus IT applications)? Or is it because the vendors themselves do not have a deep software application heritage? The answer is likely "yes" to both questions. It has been my experience that both customers and suppliers tend to underestimate the complexity associated with implementing contact center desktop applications because of their heritage - being more telephony oriented than software oriented.

    What steps should be taken? Begin treating contact center desktop application deployments more like you would a Siebel or Oracle deployment (consider it an IT Application), and make sure not to overlook UI prototyping. Here is an outline of some basic steps you can take on the prototyping front:

  • Pre-Sales Steps
  • Identify desired UI content and functionality
  • Create screen shots, mockups
  • Document desired behavior of each individual UI component
  • Review materials with business user workgroups
  • Screen shots, mockups
  • Documented behavior of UI components
  • Modify materials and review with business users (may require multiple iterations)
  • Obtain approval, sign-off from business users
  • Ensure time and money is accounted for in the contract for interactive prototyping (including multiple reviews, iterations)
  • Document critical use cases to be addressed by the interactive prototypes
  • Clearly define roles and responsibilities
  • Post Sales Steps - Design Phase
  • Develop an interactive prototype that addresses each critical use case
  • Review initial interactive prototype with business user workgroups
  • Modify interactive prototype and review with business users (may require multiple iterations)
  • Obtain approval, sign-off from business users
  • Post Sales Steps - Development Phase
  • Update screen shots, mockups and/or interactive prototype to help manage tradeoff decisions along the way

    • Why is UI prototyping often overlooked in the contact center?

    Many companies overlook UI prototyping when it comes to contact center desktop applications (e.g., agent cockpit, softphone, contact history, multi-media desktop, reporting, etc.). Why is this so? Is it because these applications are sold to people who are typically not responsible for implementing complex software applications (e.g., IT infrastructure versus IT applications)? Or is it because the vendors themselves do not have a deep software application heritage? The answer is likely "yes" to both questions. It has been my experience that both customers and suppliers tend to underestimate the complexity associated with implementing contact center desktop applications because of their heritage - being more telephony oriented than software oriented.

    What steps should be taken? Begin treating contact center desktop application deployments more like you would a Siebel or Oracle deployment (consider it an IT Application), and make sure not to overlook UI prototyping. Here is an outline of some basic steps you can take on the prototyping front:

  • Pre-Sales Steps
  • Identify desired UI content and functionality
  • Create screen shots, mockups
  • Document desired behavior of each individual UI component
  • Review materials with business user workgroups
  • Screen shots, mockups
  • Documented behavior of UI components
  • Modify materials and review with business users (may require multiple iterations)
  • Obtain approval, sign-off from business users
  • Ensure time and money is accounted for in the contract for interactive prototyping (including multiple reviews, iterations)
  • Document critical use cases to be addressed by the interactive prototypes
  • Clearly define roles and responsibilities
  • Post Sales Steps - Design Phase
  • Develop an interactive prototype that addresses each critical use case
  • Review initial interactive prototype with business user workgroups
  • Modify interactive prototype and review with business users (may require multiple iterations)
  • Obtain approval, sign-off from business users
  • Post Sales Steps - Development Phase
  • Update screen shots, mockups and/or interactive prototype to help manage tradeoff decisions along the way
  • Post Sales Steps - Design Phase
  • Develop an interactive prototype that addresses each critical use case
  • Review initial interactive prototype with business user workgroups
  • Modify interactive prototype and review with business users (may require multiple iterations)
  • Obtain approval, sign-off from business users
  • Post Sales Steps - Development Phase
  • Update screen shots, mockups and/or interactive prototype to help manage tradeoff decisions along the way
  • Post Sales Steps - Development Phase
  • Update screen shots, mockups and/or interactive prototype to help manage tradeoff decisions along the way

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