The role of interaction design?

Interaction designers are responsible for designing products that create a positive user experience. They assist with the development of product design-strategy and work with the product development team to ensure the design product meets both business and consumer objectives.

These designers follow along with the entire design process and are responsible for everything from conducting market research to analysing business problems and designing solutions. Interaction designers analyse consumer behaviour to identify any opportunities to optimise the usability of a product. They also communicate their designs with different teams in an organisation, including engineers, management and potential customers.

Objectives and Responsibilities of the IxD Designers

Analysis: Interaction Designers are tasked with analysing complex product and consumer requirements and the creation of a design that maximises the product’s potential while simultaneously ensuring long-term sustainability in the market.

Design: The Interaction Designer is actively involved in the actual design of the product and works very closely with the product development team. The Interaction Designer participates in the development of engaging, usable, and beneficial interactions for the user through the business’s product.

At this capacity, the Interaction Designer develops new or improved visual designs for the product while still maintaining the brand’s repo.

Collaboration: The Interaction Designer is a position that demands collaboration with various product managers in the development of the product along different stages. The Interaction Designer especially works closely with the product development department to ensure that the product is designed with the view of availing the best possible user experience for the consumers.

At this capacity, the Interaction Designer works in a team that is mainly composed of engineers, product managers, and User Experience personnel (UX) in an effort to deliver first-class consumer experiences through the business’s product. This is achieved through this collaboration; leading to the production of high quality and relevant products.

Product Life Cycle: The Interaction Designer is responsible for guiding the product through its various stages in the lifecycle. This is achieved through specification of the products navigation or direction at each stage, information organisation, and formulating interaction design.

Consumer Interactions: The Interaction Designer is also tasked with consumer interactions. This is because the role demands that the Interaction Designer intimately understand how the product is being received by the consumers along with the experience that the consumers get from the product.

The application of various consumer and market analyses may be good but there is no better way to find out how the consumers are experiencing the business’s product than personally interacting with them and getting feedback.

Testing/Product Interaction: Apart from the consumer interaction, to perform his functions even more effectively, the Interaction Designer is tasked with the interaction of the product.

This is for the purpose of saving the business time and resources by identifying flaws, defects, and points of improvement in the product prior to the release into the market.

By experiencing the product on a personal level, the Interaction Designer is able to honestly asses his own experience and present product departments with the initial pointers for the product’s improvement.

At this capacity, the Integration Designer reviews the product’s specs, recommends production alternatives, and ensures maintenance of a high quality production standard.

Additionally, he compares the business’s product experience with the experience exuded by competing brands and comes up with product feature suggestions that will give the business’s product a competitive edge in the market.

Below are some of the Skills of an interaction designer: 

• Extremely computer-centric
• Graphics-oriented
• Very good knowledge of the product cycle and product design principles
• Good understanding of graphic design principles
• Proficient in interaction design software such as Adobe Creative Suite and Axure 
• Strong understanding of HTML and XML
• Proficient in Microsoft Office applications such as Word and PowerPoint
• Ability to illustrate prototype concepts quickly
• Experience working with CAD applications
• Strong proficiency in coding
• Great reading comprehension
• Strong written and verbal communication skills
• Excellent time management skills