Ishraq Ahmad

A user interface (UI) design is the design of software application or website which focuses on user experience and interaction. The main objective is to keep software application or website as simple as possible so that user can easily use it. Typically, design process involves requirements gathering, prototyping, information architecture and graphical design.

Successful CTO’s say that it is inappropriate to have a software engineers manage UI design process. Why? Well, the answer is simple, do you make UI designer (graduated from Art schools) responsible for software engineering? Of course not! We know UI designers can’t handle deep technical details and bits/bytes calculation of software development. It will be an utter failure. Still we allow software engineers to copy and snatch designs from here and there and put them together to look nice. Despite all of us know that 95% of software engineers have no artistic sense. It seems like software engineering is more important than UI design.

Let’s go back in history. In 1997, Apple stock level was down to its lowest levels and company was in big trouble. At that time, Apple’s new CEO Steve Jobs did two things, changed company focus to meet customer’s core requirements and started using industrial design in products. If you ask any financial experts about Apple, you will hear them saying that design saved Apple. Even today, when we think of Apple the first thing comes into mind is artistically designed products which look like pieces of sculpture. So, UI design can save company as it did for Apple.

Having software engineers participate in UI design could add serious risks to product. There are many factors which forces us take these risks. Number one factor of taking these risks is money. We all want to save money and try to maximize profit by reducing cost of development. Hiring a separate designer and other expenses are much higher as compared to turnkey solutions or stealing from web. Second is time, designers do need time to think and create something using their imagination. They cannot be rushed. I am sure there could be more factors but if we try to evaluate money and time factor versus risks which we add to project. You will find out money and time is far less than the risks of project failure. Imagine, having a design of gray color website for a school and an orange color web site for Supreme Court of the country.

Last but not least, we should have everyone do their own jobs as jack of all trades rarely succeeds.

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Tags: UI, user interface