To justify resources for User-Centered Design and project-wide usability activities, those responsible for planning a project should assess the relative importance of usability taking account of:
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How important is usability to ensuring that the project meets the needs of the success-critical stakeholders?
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What risks could arise from poor usability (e.g. not achieving a required level of usability, low level of adoption of a web service, poorer usability than competitive products, other financial consequences, safety risks)?
(According to ISO-9241-210: Human-centred design for interactive systems)
Content of a plan for UCD
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Identify appropriate methods and resources for UCD.
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Define procedures for integrating UCD activities and their outputs with other system development activities.
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Identify the range of skills and viewpoints in the organization that can contribute to UCD.
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Establish procedures for feedback and communication between UCD activities and other design activities.
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Integrate appropriate milestones for UCD into the overall design and development process.
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Ensure that the plan provides time for iteration, and the implementation of any changes resulting from evaluation.