What Are the Core UED Design Processes Used by Top Chinese Tech Companies?

Introduction

Design processes for User Experience Design (UED) vary across companies; Chinese designers discuss their companies' principles and workflows, offering valuable insights.

Design Principles from Tencent

Interaction designer eviliu emphasizes two main concerns: the origin of design principles and coordination with upstream and downstream teams. The principles are:

User‑first focus – integrate user experience throughout the process, using brainstorming, competitive analysis, and focus groups to deeply uncover design needs.

Clear role division – split tasks into research, interaction, and visual design, with defined responsibilities.

Expert designers and project PMs – experts guide design direction through reviews; PMs manage schedule, tasks, and resources.

Design standards – after project completion, create specification documents to preserve design concepts and ensure style consistency.

To cooperate with upstream/downstream teams, eviliu suggests:

Participate in early product planning to align design with product goals.

Coordinate with product and project PMs for demand scheduling, matching design pace with development.

Conduct experience walkthroughs and usability testing after design hand‑off to ensure quality and user expectations.

Implementation focus includes:

Effective management tools (e.g., Prowork, TAPD, UID) to standardize workflow.

Agile project management to improve efficiency and respond quickly.

Tailored operations for different product goals, setting flexible process paths.

Continuous improvement through regular process reviews.

Insights from Baidu

Li Shufu highlights two detailed practices:

User research – after each deep interview, the team holds an internal briefing to share insights, allowing all members to feel the research process.

Product design – both visual and interaction designs require first‑draft discussions, iterative refinement, and deeper product thinking.

FaceUI’s Structured Workflow

Product application analysis – understand product use and market context before design.

Concept design – generate initial concepts, documented by copywriters or creative leads.

Feasibility study – assess technical, social, and risk factors.

Detailed user requirement interpretation – PMs and designers align on user‑centered needs, often involving group deep‑dive sessions.

Design implementation – includes interaction design (architecture, prototypes, usability testing) and visual design (brand analysis, style positioning, visual prototypes).

Usability testing – plan, execute, process, analyze, report, and discuss test results.

Product release – final hand‑off to customers, a milestone for the design team.

Diff’s Nine‑Step Process

Product issue spotting – read PRD, ensure alignment with PM, identify gaps, propose ideas.

Rapid sketch communication – visualize key flows and layouts for consensus.

Wireframe creation – produce process diagrams and full‑page prototypes for clear understanding.

Visual design – explore style, design key pages, and create interaction animations.

Visual asset output and annotation – store assets (e.g., Dropbox) and use tools like Markman.

Track data‑validation points – list features or design debates needing user data.

Organize design files and update component libraries.

Post‑development detail follow‑up – rely on specifications, then fine‑tune margins, fonts, and animations with developers.

Project design summary – document problems, solutions, mistakes, and achievements.