Tip #2. Conduct UX activities ahead of the sprint.
Many people reported challenges in trying to fit both design and development for the same feature into a single sprint. Two weeks is usually not enough time to conduct research, create wireframes and designs, AND do the development work for the selected user stories.
The most common advice for overcoming this challenge was to stagger the UX/UI and the development work stream so that research and design are completed before the sprint begins. For example, UX creates the screens in sprint 1. Then development takes the completed designs and codes them in sprint 2.
“I worked one sprint ahead as a UX/UI lead. I would work with the scrum master and product owners to prioritize projects in the backlog and fulfill the UX/UI requirements a sprint before production. My time had to count differently toward the sprint, omitted from velocity, but very efficient.”
“Research and design should stay at least one sprint ahead. Give yourself time to do thorough user research and test your designs.”
“Make sure to design as much upfront so you can prototype and test concepts before development needs to start.”
“Spend investigative time during sprints in anticipation of needs for the upcoming sprints.”
“Have mockups ready for sprint planning.”
Working ahead of the development stream gives designers time to think through and test assumptions with real users. Staying ahead allows the entire team to review mockups and identify potential issues before the design of that feature is ready for the sprint.
The size and complexity of the project affects how far ahead of development UX designers should work. Most practitioners report designing ahead by 1 to 2 sprints.
This is a coordinated effort that requires communication among team members. Just because designs are completed (or mostly done) before the development sprint does not mean that the UX designer simply hands off the designs to the developers and moves on. While UX designers should constantly plan ahead, they must also support the current sprint, advise the team, and make adjustments as necessary.
Moreover, all team members, including project managers, product owners, and engineers, should work closely with the UX designer throughout the process so that when the design is “ready,” everyone is in sync. The back- and front-end developers need to understand and support the designs, interactions, and user flows.
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