USER INTERFACE PROTOTYPING

This skill can be classified as knowledge based skill and Technical skill as the skill is based on the knowledge of specific subject, procedures and information necessary to perform particular tasks. Which can also be acquired with the help of education, training or job experience.
It can also be classified as Transferable or Functional skill as it involves :
1. This skill is based on the Actions taken to perform a task.
2. It can be transferable to different work functions.
3. The skill can be expressed in verbs

1. Understanding of Software Requirements.
2. Understanding of Use-Case Story Board.
3. Creative Thinking and Attention to the details by understanding the underlying bussiness.
4. Well understanding on the UI design principles.
5. Knowledge on use of prototyping tools.

1. Software Testing - Usability Testing
2. Software Design - User Inteface Designing
3. Software Engineering Process - As part of Software Design Lifecycle

For any software development there is need of prototypes inorder to know the design, look and end product of the software system. In case of software development, elicitation of requirements, use case diagrams and UML model diagrams help us to have an understanding of the system for all the stakeholders involved in the software design lifecycle. 

But in case of web development along with the backend functionalities another important criteria is user interface using which a client or a customer interacts with the system based on how simple and userfriendly is the user interface it could attract more no. of customers. So in order to know the design of the user interface prior to the development of the final model a prototype is made to check the look and feel of the website which is helpful for the stakeholders to approve the design before the actual implementation which decreases both the cost and effort that are invested into development of the final model.

1. UI/UX designer
2. Web Designer
3. Graphic Designer
4. Marketing Manager
5. Programmer

Below are few job postings which describes the work / activities related to the skill.

1. Graphic Designer:
Key Skills:
i) Web / Application Visual Design
ii) High Proficiency in recent Design Tools
Related Activities:
• Should be ready to work independently from conceptualization to designing and have ability to think out-of-the-box, to form delightful, creative and contemporary User Interfaces and experiences.
• Proficiency and knowledge of working with Adobe Creative Suite, and prototyping tools
• Should provide production ready specification, crops and style style-guide
• Should understand basic principles of HTML, CSS and Front-end Development to make sure that the planning is technically implementable

2. UI Designer:
Key Skills:
i) Excellent proficiency in visual design & prototyping tools
ii) Experience in design preferably delivering in products or services
iii) Fluency in Sketch, Axure, InVision, Adobe Creative Suite
Related Activities:
• Create user flows, wireframes & designs that consider the user’s end to finish experience
• Ensure implementation of visual and interactive systems that help to ensure that designs fit the technical specifications of the merchandise or application
• Adhere to style guidelines and brand standards
• Utilize industry design standards and best practices towards the implement of standard, design guidelines, and style specs

The below video provides a clear idea on user interface prototyping with a real world exapmle.

Video courtesy of Robert BradFord Youtube Channel.

In Academia the life span of the user interface prototype is relatively shorter, where it is created for one time use or as a throwaway prototype because once the term or the project is completed it is no longer maintained or taken into consideration. And having less access to tools as some free tools or academic version of the tools may not provide all the available features can also be considered as one of the disadvantages in academia.

But in Industry the life span of the skill is relatively longer where some prototypes are made to be throwaway or evolutionary prototypes, the decision is taken based on the requirements of the project and also the cost involved in developing those prototypes. In industry we are having a large variety of sophisticated tools where all the features are available for the UI developer.

1.) InVision
2.) Balsamiq
3.) Justinmind
4.) Figma
5.) Adobe XD

My Skill Score: 8/10

Reason:
To be successful in learning any skill requires time and practice and in a skill like user interface prototyping most of our work is involved in satisfying the clients and customer requirements, in order to match their needs we need to be in phase with the market standards and there is also a need to update our creative knowledge constantly.

• https://www.skillscan.com/sites/default/files/Three%20Types%20of%20Skills%20Classification.pdf
• http://www.ambysoft.com/essays/userInterfacePrototyping.html
• https://www.linkedin.com/company/eteam/jobs/
• https://www.linkedin.com/company/motion-recruitment-partners/jobs/
• https://www.linkedin.com/jobs/search/?currentJobId=1937669138&geoId=101174742&keywords=user%20interface%20prototyping&location=Canada
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B9mhOBAbsuo
• https://www.usertesting.com/blog/prototyping-tools-and-testing