This document discusses key lessons learned about failures in technology projects and social business initiatives. It summarizes common mistakes such as assuming users will do what you want, not doing research, and failing to develop strategies for content, search, and navigation. The document advocates developing a user experience focused on what people want through a combination of technology, process, and understanding people and culture.

1. Hi!
I’m @karenmcgrane from
Bond Art + Science.
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2. PRESPER ECKERT & JOHN MAUCHLEY
“ One would think that if a man
invented a machine that
revolutionized the world, took out
a patent on that machine, and had
the full financial and legal resources
of a major American corporation on
his side, he would spend most of
the rest of his life enjoying fortune
and fame.
Edison did. Bell did.
By and large, Pres Eckert and John
Mauchley did not.
— Shurkin, Engines of the Mind
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3. ENIAC
(1946)
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4. BINAC
(1949)
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5. 60 YEARS LATER,
WE’VE LEARNED A LOT.
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6. WE’VE LEARNED A LOT ABOUT
FAILURE.
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7. Hardware
Programming Languages
Operating Systems
Software Applications
Websites
1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010

8. Over budget
Didn’t meet
requirements
Scope creep
Not tested
before launch
Missed deadlines
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10. Michael Fauscette, IDC + Natalie Petouhoff, Forrester Research
Social CRM Summit, February 2010 10

11. Hardware
Programming Languages
Operating Systems
Software Applications
Websites
Social Business
1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010
Technology +
Process People +
Culture

12. HOW TO FAIL AT
SOCIAL BUSINESS
IT’S
EASY!

13. ASSUME YOU’RE READY.
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14. 14

15. 15

16. ASSUME GRASSROOTS
INITIATIVES WILL SCALE.
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17. John Maeda, Laws of Simplicity 17

18. DON’T DO ANY
RESEARCH.
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19. Thinking you can get behavior
from demographics
is like thinking someone’s
home address will tell you
how they drive to work
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20. ASSUME USERS
WILL DO WHAT YOU
WANT THEM TO.
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21. 

KPIs
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22. Leaving on
Not getting
time
yelled at
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23. MAKE
HiPPO
DECISIONS.
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24. HiPPOs rule the world when it comes to
creating customer experiences. And that’s a
bad thing. No matter what the optimal
customer experience should be on the
website, and regardless of your competence,
the HiPPO decides what goes on the site.
Avinash Kaushik, Experiment or Go Home! 24

25. SEE ALSO:
SEAGULL MANAGEMENT
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26. THERE’S NEVER BEEN A
RELATIONSHIP PROBLEM
THAT A BABY COULD SOLVE
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27. THINK WEB 2.0 WILL SOLVE
YOUR WEB 1.0 PROBLEMS.
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28. CONSIDER YOUR UX PROBLEM
SOLVED
BECAUSE YOU HIRED AN IA.
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29. Your UX problem
is here
Your IA is here
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30. DON’T FIX SEARCH.
AND WHILE YOU’RE AT IT,
DON’T FIX NAVIGATION EITHER.
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31. The need to move back and forth between
multiple applications and separate windows is
what IDC calls “death by navigation.”
The business cost of “death by navigation”
is extraordinary.
IDC, “Getting Results by Empowering the Information
Worker: What Web 2.0 Offers Beyond Blogs and Wikis” 31

32. DON’T DEVELOP A
CONTENT STRATEGY.
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33. “
The reality of social media initiatives—that they’re
internal commitments, not advertising campaigns
—has derailed more than a few organizations from
really implementing effective, measurable
programs. Most companies can’t sustain social
media engagement because they lack the internal
editorial infrastructure to support it.
They don’t have a content strategy.
—Kristina Halvorson
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34. The main reason enterprise social
fails is content strategy.
The adoption would be there
if the value proposition were there.
Amy Vickers, VP Enterprise Solutions, Razorfish 34

35. HOW TO SUCCEED AT
SOCIAL BUSINESS

36. USER EXPERIENCE IS
THE ART + SCIENCE OF
DESIGNING DIGITAL PRODUCTS
THAT PEOPLE WANT TO USE.
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37. User Social
Experience Business
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38. Thanks!
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