The big idea: A rapid prototype is a question your team can carry onto the street: build it fast, judge it through four lenses, collect honest feedback from 7 to 10 people and let what they show you decide the next version.
In 60 seconds
- Build a rough prototype fast around one riskiest question about people.
- Judge it through four lenses and Morville’s seven pillars, with evidence from 7 to 10 people.
- People praise to be nice, so watch what they do and turn feedback into the next version.
Do this: build version one in Class 11, hold feedback interviews with 7 to 10 people you designed for, and bring a revised version with its evidence to Class 13.
How rapid prototyping works in BUAD 317
In Classes 11 to 13 your new prototype team turns its best idea into something people can hold, use or watch. You build it fast, take it to the street, listen to what 7 to 10 people tell you and show you, and then change it. Three classes, at least two versions, one habit: iterate, iterate, iterate.
Build it
Class 11: pick your riskiest question and build a rough prototype that answers it. Paper, cardboard, a role play or a storyboard is enough.
Counts toward: D#3 Part C
Report out, then hit the street
Class 12: show version one to the class. Then carry it to at least 7 to 10 people for feedback interviews.
Counts toward: D#3 Part D
Report out the revision
Class 13: show what changed and why, then start shaping the Capstone story.
Counts toward: D#3 Parts C and D
Tell the story
Class 14: your prototype, your testing and your iterations become the heart of the Capstone presentation.
Counts toward: D#4
Refresh from IB 407
You learned the basics in London: kinds of prototypes, testing with real people, keep, change or kill, and “I like, I wish, what if.” Review them on Prototype and Test (IB 407). This page adds what BUAD 317 asks of you: four lenses, Morville’s seven pillars, feedback interviews with 7 to 10 people and report-outs.
The prototyping mindset
The Class 11 slides open with four habits. They matter because a team that falls in love with version one stops listening.
Relax
A rapid prototype is supposed to be rough. It is a question, not a final exam. Build in hours, not weeks.
Try: set a 45-minute timer for version one.
Be flexible
Expect the street to change your idea. A feature you love may be the one people skip.
Try: decide before testing what result would make you drop a feature.
Consider different viewpoints
Your team comes from finance, supply chain, accounting, marketing and more. Each sees a different risk. So does every stakeholder.
Try: have each teammate test it as a different stakeholder.
Think outside the box (or circle)
Do not assume the answer is an app. A service, a script, a new step in a process or a change to a space can be the stronger idea.
Try: prototype two very different versions and test both.
Four lenses: desirable, feasible, viable and sustainable
IB 407 taught three lenses. The BUAD 317 syllabus adds a fourth, sustainability, and asks you to weigh all four at the same time, not one after another. Each lens is a question your feedback interviews should help answer.
Desirable
Does it meet real needs, wants and expectations of the people you design for? If they do not find it valuable or enjoyable, it will not last.
Street evidence: people use it without coaching, ask to keep it or tell you what job it does for them.
Feasible
Can it be built and run with the resources, technology and skills that actually exist?
Street evidence: the people who would run it (staff, IT, operations) say how, and what is missing.
Viable
Does it fit the organization’s goals: money, market fit and the ability to grow?
Street evidence: a decision maker or expert reacts to cost, savings, revenue or mission fit.
Sustainable
Will it stay valuable, maintainable and ethically responsible over time?
Street evidence: you know who keeps it running after the pilot, what upkeep costs, and who could be harmed or left out.
These four lenses return in BUAD 497. Your senior technical report asks you to cluster and evaluate ideas on all four and to explain in the executive summary why your solution is desirable, feasible, viable and sustainable.
Morville’s seven pillars of user experience
Peter Morville (2004) drew user experience as a honeycomb of seven qualities. He wrote it for websites, but the questions work for any prototype: a form, a service, a space or a process. Use them to plan what you ask testers and to sort what you hear.
| Pillar | What it means | Ask or watch for |
|---|---|---|
| Useful | It serves a real purpose and does a job people need done. | “When would you use this? What would you stop doing instead?” |
| Usable | People can use it easily, without help. | Hand it over with a task. Where do they stall or ask a question? |
| Desirable | Its look, feel and tone make people want it. | “What word would you use to describe it to a friend?” |
| Findable | People can find it, and find what they need inside it. | “How would you hear about this? Where would you look for it?” |
| Accessible | It works for people with disabilities and different abilities, languages and situations. | Test with someone who has low vision, limited English or very little time. |
| Credible | People trust it and believe what it tells them. | “Would you trust this? What would make you trust it more?” |
| Valuable | It delivers value to the organization behind it, for its mission or its bottom line. | Ask a manager or expert what it would save, earn or improve. |
How the pillars and lenses connect
Six of the pillars (useful, usable, desirable, findable, accessible, credible) are about the person, so they feed your desirable lens. Valuable is about the organization, so it feeds viable. Feasible and sustainable need different testers: the people who would build and run it.
Source
Morville, P. (2004, June 21). User experience design. Semantic Studios. The honeycomb diagram is his. The table above is our own summary.
How street feedback works: 7 to 10 people
If the point of a prototype is to test an idea, feedback from the people you design for is what moves it forward. Part D asks you to carry your prototype to at least 7 to 10 people, capture what they say and do, and use each conversation to push the idea further.
Four ways to get feedback
The syllabus and the Field Guide’s Get Feedback method name four channels. Strong teams mix at least two.
Group interview
Bring back a small group, ideally people from your Part A interviews, and let them react together.
Choose it when: you want to hear people build on or disagree with each other.
Watch out: one loud voice can steer the room. Ask quieter people first.
Intercept interview
Stop people where the problem happens (a lobby, a bus stop, a waiting room, a dining hall) and ask for five minutes.
Choose it when: you need many quick reactions in the real setting.
Watch out: keep it short and ask permission before you take notes or photos.
Expert interview
Show it to someone who knows the system: a clerk, a nurse manager, a plant supervisor, a city planner.
Choose it when: you need evidence for feasible, viable or sustainable.
Watch out: experts know the rules, not always the user’s experience. Pair them with users.
Co-creation session
Invite the people you design for to change the prototype with you: cut, draw, rename, rearrange.
Choose it when: people keep saying “it would be better if…” and you want to see what they mean.
Watch out: plan the activity. An open “what do you think?” stalls.
People praise to be nice
Most people do not want to hurt your feelings, so they say “I love it” and move on. Tell them up front that this is a rough tool for learning and that you want honest, even negative, feedback. Then ask questions that make criticism easy: “What would you change first?” “Where did you get stuck?” “What would make you stop using it?” Write down what they do, not only what they say.
A five-step feedback interview
Set it up
Introduce yourself and the challenge in one sentence. Ask permission to take notes. Say: “This is an early draft. You cannot hurt our feelings.”
You capture: who they are, by role, with no names.
Hand it over with a task
Do not give a tour. Give a small job: “You are applying for a permit tomorrow. Use this to figure out what to bring.”
You capture: where they hesitate, skip or work around it.
Stay quiet, then ask why
Let them struggle a little. Afterward, ask about the moments you saw: “You paused there. What were you looking for?”
You capture: exact quotes.
Walk the lenses
Pick two or three pillars or lenses that fit this person. Users speak to useful and usable. Staff speak to feasible. Managers speak to valuable and viable.
You capture: evidence for each lens.
Push the idea further
Ask “What would make this better?” and “Who else should see this?” Then thank them, and tell them what you will do with their input.
You capture: one change idea and one new tester.
Who counts toward your 7 to 10A mix that gives you real evidence
- The people you designed for. Go back to people from your Part A street interviews when you can. They can tell you whether you heard them right.
- At least one extreme user. The most rushed, newest or most frustrated person shows you where the prototype breaks.
- Someone who would run it. Frontline staff, an operations lead or IT tell you whether it is feasible.
- Someone who decides or pays. A manager, director or partner reacts to viable and sustainable.
- Not your friends. Roommates, teammates and classmates are kind, not useful. Practice on them, but do not count them.
Report-outs in Classes 12 and 13What to bring so the class can help
- The prototype itself, not a slide of it. Let classmates hold it, click it or act it out.
- Your riskiest question and why you chose it.
- Who you tested with, by role, and which channels you used.
- Two or three exact quotes and one thing you watched someone do.
- What changed from the last version, and the feedback behind each change. In Class 13, put version one next to version two.
- What you will test next. Each round should get a little more real.
Expect direct, human-centered feedback from Lane, Jules and your classmates. Treat it as data about the prototype, not a verdict on your team. The BUAD 497 topic Feedback, Imposter Syndrome and Blind Spots explains why.
What Parts C and D rewardThe rubric levels, from beginning to highest
D#3 is a team grade built from Parts A to D. For Part C (the rapid prototype), the syllabus describes four levels:
Beginning
A representation of your idea that someone else can understand.
Developing
A physical or visual representation others can evaluate and improve. A partial solution with little or no iteration.
Meets expectations
Lets people evaluate specific features. Multiple iterations, with a record from low to high resolution and what testing taught you.
Highest level
Multiple representations, tested from multiple perspectives, in a thorough and engaging way. More complex prototypes that try more than one approach.
For Part D (feedback interviews), the syllabus asks you to share the prototype with lots of people for a variety of reactions, welcome honest and even negative feedback, write down what you hear, and use each conversation to ask more questions and push the idea further.
The takeaway: the top levels reward iteration and a record of it. Save every version and keep your feedback log.
From feedback to the next versionHow to turn a pile of notes into one change
- Within a day, each tester’s notes go on sticky notes, one idea per note, just like your Part A download.
- Sort the notes by lens (desirable, feasible, viable, sustainable). Empty columns show you who to test with next.
- Mark what people did versus what they said. Behavior wins when the two disagree.
- Pick the one or two changes that answer the most important problems. Do not fix everything at once, or you will not know what worked.
- Build the next version, write down what changed and why, and test again.
IDEO.org’s Design Kit calls this “Integrate feedback and iterate.” It expects you to repeat the loop several times, not once.
Try it: Street Feedback Log
Tool · BUAD 317
Street Feedback Log
Log each feedback interview on your rapid prototype and see what to change before the next report-out.
- 1Describe
- 2Log testers
- 3Iterate
Street feedback so far
All checks
Put it to work: Deliverable #3, Parts C and D
Parts C and D of Deliverable #3 are graded as a team, together with Parts A and B. Here is how to move from a first build in Class 11 to a revised prototype in Class 13 that is ready for your Capstone.
Name the riskiest question
As a new prototype team, pick the one thing that would sink the idea if you are wrong. Write it as a question about people that you can watch happen.
Your deliverable: the question at the top of your Street Feedback Log, used in every Part D interview.
Build version one fast
Choose the roughest form that lets someone use the idea: a paper mock-up, a storyboard, a cardboard model, an acted-out service. Build two different versions if your team disagrees.
Your deliverable: D#3 Part C, version one, ready for the Class 12 report-out.
Run a lens check as a team
Before you test, write what you believe for each of the four lenses and which of Morville’s pillars you most need to check. The gaps tell you who to recruit.
Your deliverable: a recruiting list that covers users, an extreme user, someone who would run it and someone who decides.
Take it to the street
Hold feedback interviews with at least 7 to 10 people, using at least two channels. Use the five-step interview, capture exact quotes and log each person by role.
Your deliverable: D#3 Part D: your feedback interviews, logged and sorted by lens.
Iterate and report out again
Choose one or two changes backed by feedback. Build version two and test it again. In Class 13, show both versions side by side and explain each change.
Your deliverable: the revised prototype and a record of iterations from low to high resolution (Part C).
Carry the evidence forward
Pick the quotes, numbers and before-and-after pictures that tell the story best. Keep the full log for senior year.
Your deliverable: the research, testing and iterations part of your D#4 Capstone, and later the Prototype Testing and Iteration sections of your BUAD 497 technical report.
Example: a city permit office’s first-visit checklistA made-up team from version one to version two
The insight from Part A. Homeowners applying for small renovation permits often made two or three trips because they did not know which documents to bring.
Riskiest question. Can a first-time applicant tell, before leaving home, exactly which documents to bring?
Version one. A one-page paper checklist and a printed mock-up of a text reminder.
Feedback interviews. Eight people: five applicants caught in the lobby (intercepts), a short group interview with two more, the front-counter clerk and a plans reviewer (expert interviews), and a co-creation session with an applicant who reads English as a second language.
What they heard and saw. Six of eight found the right list fast. Two said the text reminder was the part they would use. The clerk said the checklist could print today, but the text needed IT’s approval. The co-creation session produced a simpler layout with larger type.
Lens gaps. No one had asked who would update the checklist when rules change (sustainable), and only one tester checked accessibility.
Version two. Text reminder moved to the top, a Spanish version added, a named owner for updates, then retested with three applicants at the counter.
Do this, not thatHabits that make feedback useful
Do this
- Build rough and fast, then improve it.
- Give testers a task and watch.
- Ask what they would change first.
- Test with users, staff and a decision maker.
- Write evidence under all four lenses.
- Keep every version and every note.
Not that
- Polishing version one for a week.
- Giving a sales pitch, then asking “Do you like it?”
- Counting praise as proof.
- Testing only with roommates and classmates.
- Leaving sustainable blank because it is hard.
- Fixing ten things at once, so you cannot tell what worked.
Before you submitA quick check for Parts C and D
- [ ] Our prototype answers one clear, riskiest question about people.
- [ ] We held feedback interviews with at least 7 to 10 people we designed for, not friends.
- [ ] We used at least two channels: group, intercept, expert or co-creation.
- [ ] We watched people use it, and we wrote down exact quotes.
- [ ] We have evidence for desirable, feasible, viable and sustainable.
- [ ] We asked about several of Morville’s pillars, including accessible.
- [ ] We built at least a second version and can explain each change.
- [ ] We kept participants’ identities private and asked permission for photos.
Go deeper
Your reading and methods
Related topics
BUAD 317 is taught by Lane Morris, PhD and Jules Morris, PhD.
Back to all BUAD 317 topics · Next: The Capstone Presentation and Your Summer Plan
In-class team activity · 25 min
Get Past "I Love It"
By the end: A tested feedback plan for your prototype: one riskiest question, a recruiting list that covers all four lenses, and the interview moves that got past polite praise in the room. Your instructor will give you the password in class.
Part of BUAD 317, taught by Lane Morris, PhD and Jules Morris, PhD, in the Smith GLS human-centered leadership program, toward the Human Centered Consulting Certificate.
Frequently asked questions
What is a rapid prototype in human-centered design?
A rapid prototype is a quick, rough version of an idea that people can hold, use or watch, built to answer one question about whether the idea meets their needs. It can be paper, cardboard, a storyboard, a role play or a simple digital mock-up. You build it in hours, test it with real people and change it based on what they show you.
What do desirable, feasible, viable and sustainable mean?
They are four lenses for judging a prototype. Desirable asks whether it meets real needs and wants of users. Feasible asks whether it can be built and run with the resources and technology available. Viable asks whether it fits the organization's goals, money and growth. Sustainable asks whether it will stay valuable, maintainable and ethically responsible over time.
What are Morville's seven pillars of user experience?
Peter Morville (2004) described user experience as a honeycomb of seven qualities: useful, usable, desirable, findable, accessible, credible and valuable. He wrote it for websites, but the qualities work as feedback questions for any prototype. Six describe the experience of the person using it. Valuable describes the benefit to the organization behind it.
How many people should test a prototype for BUAD 317?
Part D of Deliverable #3 asks each prototype team to carry its prototype to at least 7 to 10 people for feedback interviews. Choose people you designed for, including someone from your Part A interviews, an extreme user, someone who would run it and someone who decides. Friends and classmates are good for practice but do not count.
How do you get honest feedback on a prototype?
People praise to be nice, so tell them it is a rough draft and you want honest, even negative, feedback. Give them a task instead of a tour, stay quiet while they try it and ask about the moments where they paused. Questions like "What would you change first?" make criticism easy. Write down what they do as well as what they say.