Written by: Raven Chai
Published: 24 Mar 2011

What’s about this article?

It has been over one month since UX Hong Kong 2011 Conference has ended, why this article came so late, you might ask. I have deliberately waited that long to seek answers for three specific questions I have in mind during my flight back from Hong Kong:

1. Are the attendees still excited and encouraged by the event after one month back to their familiar working environment where there are not many UX enthusiasts around now? (UX Hong Kong 2011 was probably one of the first, if not the first large scale UX-related conference held in Asia region).
2. I have met many new friends through this conference (one of the best things that have happened for me) with most people mentioned that they were very encouraged by the scene, and wanted to contribute more to their local UX community. Does that still hold true after one month with all the hype is over and probably no one (including the attendee him or herself) around their working place is talking about it anymore.
3. Try observing around for a month to see if there is any domino-effect from the conference that may spur new dynamics within the industry. In my case specifically, what kind of impact has it made to the design / UX field in Singapore.

Hype gathered during event registration

What people are talking after the event

We have seen UX folks coming to this event from all over the world, including Singapore, Mainland China, Australia, Taiwan, India, Russia, United Kingdom, Korea, Canada and Japan.

Below are some of the comments from people who have attended the event:

“I liked the no-nonsense, anti-bullshit approach…” Feedback most UX conferences should shoot for Tweet from Matthew Oliphant (attendee)

“sad to leave HK today, but looking forward to seeing my lil’ buddy” Tweet from Rachel Hinman (one of the distinguished speakers at the event)

“digesting feedback, tweets, posts, “the vibe” from UXHK 2011 and planning towards UXHK 2012…” Tweet from Daniel Szuc (the event organizer)

“剛從UX HongKong Conference ( http://www.uxhongkong.com/ ) 回來。這趟最大的收穫是 Rachel Himman的Workshop: “Mobile User Experience Essentials”。經過這場Workshop，我對Mobile design的觀念完全被升級，態度也被改變，收穫非常大。” Facebook posting from Richard Tsai (attendee / sponsor)

“The highlight for me was the chance to join Steve Portigal’s workshop “We’ve done all this research, now what?” Steve is clearly a master of deep-dive research: wading into the rich and often confusing world of users in order to find insights and opportunities which will direct great design.” Extracted quote from Tom Wood’s blog post.

A couple of good articles being written by different people (even for those who have missed it) and plenty of beautifully taken photos – check them out.

Participants from UX Hong Kong

What’s my verdict

I believe many people felt very encouraged by enthusiasm shown through the conversations, some might even felt being inspired (at least for me) by the success stories told by fellow peers on the changes and impact they have made to their organisations through UX work. There’s a sense of optimism shown by many people who felt that UX field in Asia has finally matured and progressed a lot past couple of years (very few complaints was heard from people, which is a good sign).

My answers for the 3 questions I had in mind:

1. Unsure, it appears there is not much “noises” and “buzz” in past couple of weeks. Perhaps it is human nature to lose that bit of fire in their heart when people go back to their routine work cycle.
2. Yes, I have a sense that many people have became more active than ever trying to build a stronger local community after this event, while some people are waiting to be connected and contribute to the cause.
3. There have been a lot of activities in Singapore in recent weeks initiated by Design Singapore Council, encouraging companies to embrace design thinking and conduct programs to build up user-centered design capabilities within local creative agencies. Overall, things are looking positive for the UX scene here.

My personal opinion is that we have finally see a glimpse of light where we (Asia as a whole) might see the start of golden age on the widespread of UX practices across the Asia region. We may not be ready now but very likely in 5-8 years’ time where new innovations like the next Apple product or Facebook will be originated from here (Am I being too optimistic here?).

How did the event affected me

• I’m more aware on what’s happening within other countries UX communities realised that there is interest from people to know more about the UX scene in Singapore as well.
• Have a better understanding where we (Singapore) stand on the maturity of UX practice comparing to other countries (we are still a little bit behind and we need to catch up).
• Encouraged by the enthusiasm shown by other Asia communities and inspired by people who have started their local community with virtually no support (including finances) from large companies or government bodies.

People who are committed to create a better UX scene in their community

What’s next

After being inspired by many new friends from this event, I have set the following targets for myself in 2011:

• Form a more cohesive, inclusive UX community in Singapore that connects with the rest of the world
• Rally different parties (individuals, companies, creative agencies and government bodies) to accelerate the growth of UX practices in Singapore

Daniel speaking on building the UX dream in Asia

What do you think?

I would love to hear your thoughts on:

• Is Asia ready to take center-stage in new innovations with great UX?
• Do you think the UX scene in Singapore has matured over the years compared to other countries?
• What can be done to accelerate the growth of UX in Singapore? Would you want to be involved in building the UX community

I’ll end the article with two videos for your enjoyment:

Video Highlights from User Experience Hong Kong 2011

Speed and customer experience in Singapore

About the author

Raven Chai - Raven Chai is the principal consultant and founder of UX Consulting Pte Ltd. His expertise in information architecture design, usability and interaction design ensures web applications and mobile phone interfaces are delivered with effective design that evokes a positive user experience.