ReadySetGit/Interview-Checklist.md

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##### Related Documents

- [User Needs](User-Needs)
- [Interview Notes](interview-notes.html)

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**Process impact:** This checklist will help you plan customer
interviews.

### Pre-Interview Checklist

1. Decide what goals you want to accomplish
2. Prepare a list of questions
   - Ask about things you know you need to find out, based on your
     current understanding of the requirements
   - Keep questions simple. Don't use multi-part questions, break
     complex topics into individual questions.
   - Confirm key assumptions. E.g., "You are the one who actually
     would use this software, right?" "The total needs to be
     displayed and updated as each item is scanned, right?"
   - Avoid leading or multiple-choice questions because the right
     answer might be one that you don't know about yet. E.g., WRONG:
     "Would you log in to the system from your desk here or from
     home?" RIGHT: "Where are some of the places you would be sitting
     when you log in?" "Here in my office, but also when I work with
     others sometimes I log in from their office or from a machine in
     the lab or conference room... so, I don't want a cookie saved
     there."
   - Try to find out the priority of each requirement: essential,
     expected, desired, or optional.
   - Write some more open-ended questions to see if new important
     requirements come up.
   - Don't ask too many questions that seem out of scope, you could
     accidentally change the scope or set incorrect expectations.
     E.g., "Would you like the system to also do ten other cool
     things?" "Sure!"
3. Select interviewees that represent all important stakeholders
4. Review your questions. Do you think they can be answered? Will they
   help achieve your goals? If not, go back and revise.
5. Decide whether you want to do this interview via email, telephone,
   or in person
6. Schedule an interview a time and place for the
   interviewee's convenience. Plan on the interview lasting one hour.

### Interview Checklist

1. Be prompt, courteous, and business-like
2. Introduce yourself and explain why you are there
3. Make sure that you are interviewing the person you think you are.
   Get their contact information (e.g., email address) if you don't
   already have it.
4. Ask permission to take notes. Don't record or video tape.
5. Confirm the amount of time you and the interviewee have for
   this session.
6. Give a quick indication of the type and number of questions that you
   have
7. Work through the questions.
8. Listen. That is why you are there.
9. If the interviewee refers to existing documents, systems, equipment,
   or people, make sure that you understand what he or she is
   talking about. If it is important, ask if you may have a copy or
   screenshot (but, don't ask for anything containing proprietary
   information), or make a note of the important aspects of the items
   referred to. Note the URLs of any existing public
   websites discussed.
10. Try not to answer the questions yourself, or to react to interviewee
    requests by making promises to solve problems. Interviews are for
    understanding the problems, not solving them or setting schedules
    or deliverables.
11. Write down action items to follow up on finding more information.
    E.g., if the interviewee starts explaining at length something that
    you know you can learn on your own, or if they don't know the answer
    and start speculating at length, you should try to move on the
    next question.
12. If you find that you have prepared the wrong questions, focus on
    getting information that will help you prepare the right
    follow-up questions.
13. Finish on time. If you need more time, continue via email or
    another meeting.
14. Summarize action items that you will follow up on
15. Ask if the interviewee has any questions for you, or if there was
    something more that they wanted you to ask.
16. Make sure to leave contact information
17. Thank the interviewee for their time

### Post-Interview Checklist

1. Within 24 hours, read your notes and fill in any important details
   that were said but not written down
2. Type up your notes so that they can be shared with the team and
   archived
3. Formulate any important follow-up questions
4. Within 2-3 days, send a follow-up email message to
   - Thank the interviewee again
   - Confirm that you have their correct email address, and make it
     easier for them to reply to you
   - Ask any important follow-up questions
   - Give status on your action items, if any. E.g., "I searched
     Google for that product you mentioned and I couldn't find a
     users manual, but I did find a magazine review of it." Or,
     "After I interviewed you, I spoke with Bob, and he confirmed
     that some current products do cost $0.00."