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ChaPter 11 • Designing effeCtive outPut 317

COnsUlting OppORtUnity 11.5

A Field Day

“The thing of it is, I get impatient,” says Seymour Fields, owner Seymour continues, “I can tell you what we disliked about
of a chain of 15 highly successful florist shops/indoor floral mar- the reports I worked with. There were too many darn layers,
kets called Fields that are located in three midwestern cities. “See too much foliage, or whatever you call it, to go through. Even
this thing here?” He taps his computer display irritatedly. “We do with a screen in front of me, it was like paging through a thick
all the payroll and all the accounting with these things, but I don’t report. What do you call that?”
use it like I should. I actually feel a little guilty about it. See?” he “Menus?” Potts suggests helpfully. “The main point is
says, as he makes a streak on the display with his finger. “It’s even that you didn’t like having to go through lots of information to
got dust on it. I’m a practical person, though. If it’s sitting here, get to the display you needed.”
taking up space, I want to use it. Or smell it, or at least enjoy look- Seymour Fields looks happily at Potts and says, “You’ve
ing at it, like flowers, right? Or weed it out, that’s what I say. The got it. I want to see more fields on each screen.”
one time I tried something with it, it was a real disaster. Well, look, How should Potts design screen output so that Fields and
I can show you if I still remember how.” Seymour proceeds to try to his group can get what they want on each screen while observ-
open a program but can’t seem to get it working. ing the guidelines for good display design? Remember that
Clay Potts, a systems analyst, has been working on a systems the group members are busy and that while they wouldn’t be
project for the entire Fields chain. Part of the original proposal was caught without their smartphones, they don’t use their desk-
to provide Seymour and his vice presidents with a decision support top systems very often. Design a hyperlinked page that would
system that would help them devise a strategy to determine which work well in a DSS for the vice presidents. What should be
European markets to visit to set up purchase agreements for fresh included in the first display, and what should be stored in
flowers, which outlets to ship particular kinds of flowers to, and hyperlinks? List elements for each and explain in a paragraph
how much general merchandise, such as planters, vases, note cards, why you have decided on this strategy.
and knickknacks, to stock in each outlet.

1. Realize differences between corporate objectives and objectives of key stakeholders. There
will be differences in why each group values collaborative technologies that you discover
in the outlooks of both groups.
2. Serve as the voice of the customer to your client organization. In recommending the inclu-
sion of Web 2.0 technologies for externally facing websites, you need to be able to articu-
late the needs of the customer to the organization.
3. Recognize the importance of visual page design for effectively displaying collaborative
tools. Whenever users have an expectation of placement on the web page (for Facebook
links, Twitter icons, tagging capability, and so forth), you must observe the convention,
or at least reinforce the emerging convention. So users will expect to be able to “Make
a Comment,” “Like us on Facebook,” or hit an “in share” button to share content on
LinkedIn, or touch a “g+ 1” icon to share comments or content on Google +, click a birdy-
labeled button to tweet, or click a button showing an icon of an envelope to email the story
or content to a friend, or subscribe to RSS content with a colored hyperlink simply labeled
RSS. Often these options appear at the top of a web page or in tabbed format at the top of
the page and then are repeated at the bottom of the page. Another popular display conven-
tion for providing collaborative tools is along the left side of the page. Users are getting
more accustomed to seeing this array of interactive options displayed in a predictable pat-
tern on corporate websites. See Figure 11.15 for an example.
4. Revise and update the Web 2.0 technologies offered frequently. Develop a plan (and a set
of tools) for revising and updating collaborative tools offered on both internal and external
websites when styles, customs, and the tools change.
5. Work to integrate Web 2.0 technologies with the existing branding. Ensure that mes-
sages are consistent throughout outwardly facing websites and in all public-facing
communications.