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The Importance of Being Equitable in Product Design
Article

The Importance of Being Equitable in Product Design

Melissa Dudek, Laura Eisenbeis, Naomi Alem, Jerry Ronaghan, Dutch MacDonald and Kedra Newsom Reeves
Boston Consulting Group, 2022
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Editorial Rating

7

Qualities

  • Visionary

Recommendation

The world is beginning to get a taste of what human-centered, inclusive design can do. During the COVID-19 pandemic, populations underserved by traditional banks were able to get much-needed government relief payments through mobile-first fintech solutions, and Planned Parenthood has released a gender-neutral health- and period-tracking app called Spot On. The advantages of equitable design will only become more apparent as time goes on, and if your company wants to reap the benefits, consider following the advice in this special report from the Boston Consulting Group.

Summary

When developing a new product, seek insights from multiple disciplines and from a variety of users. Embrace inclusive design.

The more diverse opinions a design team solicits when designing a product, the more equitable that product is likely to be. Design is an iterative process, and the product should be researched and tested by diverse users in many environments throughout that process. Diverse testing means that designers can recognize unexpected opportunities and understand the impact of various design decisions.

Recent digital products have demonstrated the power of inclusive design. Consider neobanks, or fintech solutions like Cash App...

About the Authors

Melissa Dudek, Laura Eisenbeis, Naomi Alem, Jerry Ronaghan, Dutch MacDonald and Kedra Newsom Reeves are professionals with the Boston Consulting Group.

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