Software projects usually go astray when developers build the wrong features well, rather than building the right features badly. Dr. Ralph is an expert in combining user research and product design to build the right product. To request a consultation, email him at paul@paulralph.name.

Some signs that your project may benefit from user research and design consulting include:

• Users do not seem to know what they want
• Stakeholders disagree about the goal of the project
• Users’ preferences keep changing
• Stakeholders disagree about key product features
• Many product features are not extensively used
• Your team has no dedicated product designer or no user experience specialist
• You are having trouble writing user stories
• Developers and management are at odds about how to proceed
• You have had a bad experience with a Scrum (or agile) coach
• You have had trouble transitioning to agile development