The goal of user experience design is to provide solutions that are effective and engaging to the people who will use them. The design process provides a powerful tool for shared understanding, scope definition, stakeholder alignment, innovation, and data-driven decision making. The end result of the process is a user-tested prototype that serves as the design specification. 

UX design takes the guesswork out of good design. It answers critical questions:

• What problem are we trying to solve, and is it the right one?

• Do we share a common vision of the solution we will provide?

• Is our proposed solution what our users and stakeholders want and need? 

We employ a 5D rubric for defining and evaluating user experiences. We measure it along these five dimensions: empowerment, efficiency, intuitiveness, engagement, and trust. Together these dimensions encapsulate key elements of how well software, websites, applications or service offerings meet and hopefully exceed user expectations. With these dimension in mind, the design process for any project aligns well with delivering user-friendly, straightforward, and intuitive systems for everyone. 

Review our compilation of UX tools

These guides will help you perform many UX activities and serve as a starting point for learning more about user-centered design concepts and approaches.