{"id":6306,"date":"2025-07-01T11:17:52","date_gmt":"2025-07-01T10:17:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/klipklaar.nl\/geen-onderdeel-van-een-categorie\/designing-means-testing-and-then-testing-some-more\/"},"modified":"2026-06-22T10:46:51","modified_gmt":"2026-06-22T09:46:51","slug":"designing-means-testing-and-then-testing-some-more","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/klipklaar.nl\/en\/human-centered-design\/designing-means-testing-and-then-testing-some-more\/","title":{"rendered":"Designing means testing\u2014and then testing some more"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Government services don\u2019t have to be finished to learn from users. Designing a service for people means testing what you create, over and over again. This blog post is about how you can let users\u2019 knowledge be your primary guide when creating government services\u2014and why that is essential for developing better policies and better implementation. <\/p>\n\n

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“We can’t make this public yet” <\/h2>\n\n

\u201cBut it hasn\u2019t been brought before the House yet.\u201d\u201cPeople might start thinking it\u2019s already been decided.\u201d\u201cWhat kind of expectations are you creating then?\u201d<\/p>\n\n

I heard this often when I worked at various implementing organizations. Testing with users before something has been formally agreed upon, politically legitimized, or administratively finalized creates tension. Because, in the government\u2019s logic, \u201cthe outside\u201d is what counts. And that \u201coutside\u201d is twofold: on the one hand, you want to communicate democratically legitimized decisions; on the other hand, as a service provider, you want to align with what people need in their specific situations. I previously referred to this as the government\u2019s dual \u201coutside<\/a>.\u201d <\/p>\n\n

Because of that pressure, user testing is often postponed or even canceled. It has to be \u201cofficial\u201d first. But what if that very delay is what causes us to know less, learn less, and ultimately be less able to make adjustments? <\/p>\n\n

An important principle of human-centered design<\/h2>\n\n

The ISO standard for human-centered design makes it clear: A design must be driven and refined through user evaluation. That means: you create something, you show it to the people you\u2019re making it for and who will use it, you learn from it, and you adapt it. Not just once, but continuously. <\/p>\n\n

This principle builds on earlier principles from this blog series:<\/p>\n\n