By name: UX Process Workflow description: "UX design process methodology integrating NNG's 6-phase design thinking, top company methodologies (IDEO, Double Diamond, Google Sprint, IBM EDT, Lean UX), and the vibe coder's bridge from AI-assisted development to evidence-based UX. Grounds developers in Empathize → Define → Ideate → Prototype → Test → Implement before building. Use when the user mentions: UX process, design thinking, design methodology, vibe coding, AI-assisted design, design process, user-centered design, human-centered design, design sprint, double diamond, lean UX, UX workflow, design phases, empathize define ideate."
UX Process Workflow — From Process to Product
Foundation
The gap between "prompting an AI to generate UI" and "designing a product people love" is not capability — it's process. This skill bridges that gap by grounding every build session in established UX methodology, mapped to how developers actually work in the terminal.
The Core Problem
Modern AI-assisted development (vibe coding) creates a dangerous shortcut:
Traditional: Empathize → Define → Ideate → Prototype → Test → Implement
Vibe coding: Prompt → Ship → Hope
The result: pixel-perfect UIs that solve the wrong problems, look identical to every other AI-generated interface, and erode the developer's own design judgment over time (arXiv:2509.10652).
The Solution
Ground yourself before you build. This skill provides:
- Process frameworks — NNG, IDEO, Double Diamond, and 6 more methodologies adapted for terminal workflows
- The vibe coder's bridge — Concrete checklists that slot UX thinking into AI-assisted development
- Academic foundations — ISO 9241-210, Norman's 7 principles, cognitive laws that explain why process matters
- Sumi command mapping — Every process phase maps to specific Sumi commands
The Speed Run: Process in 60 Seconds
For builders who won't read further — the entire UX process in one block:
BEFORE you prompt: "Who is this for, and what problem does it solve?"
WHILE it generates: "Does this match the user's reality, or the AI's patterns?"
AFTER it generates: Run /vibe-check + /include. Fix severity 3-4. Ship.
That's it. Three questions. Two audits. Everything else in this skill is the why behind those three lines.
Real-World Impact: Process vs. No Process
| Metric | Without Process (Prompt → Ship) | With Process (Ground → Build → Test) |
|---|---|---|
| Screens shipped | 10 screens/day | 3 screens/day |
| Screens users actually use | 2-3 of 10 | 3 of 3 |
| Accessibility violations | 15-25 per screen (average) | 0-3 per screen |
| Redesign cycles | 4-7 (because wrong problem) | 1-2 (because right problem) |
| Time to "done" | Feels faster, takes longer | Feels slower, ships sooner |
| User satisfaction | "It looks nice" | "It solves my problem" |
| Brand differentiation | Looks like every other AI-generated app | Looks like your product |
The math: 10 screens × 5 redesign cycles = 50 screen-builds to get 2-3 right. vs. 3 screens × 1 redesign cycle = 6 screen-builds to get 3 right.
Process doesn't slow you down. Skipping process slows you down.
NNG Design Thinking — The 6-Phase Framework
Nielsen Norman Group's design thinking model is the most widely-validated UX process. It organizes into three macro stages:
Macro Stage 1: UNDERSTAND (Empathize + Define)
The stage most vibe coders skip entirely. You cannot design what you do not understand.
Phase 1: Empathize
Goal: Understand users' needs, pain points, and context through direct observation and engagement.
Methods:
- Contextual inquiry — Observe users in their natural environment performing real tasks
- User interviews — Semi-structured conversations focusing on behaviors, not opinions
- Diary studies — Longitudinal capture of experiences over days or weeks
- Empathy mapping — Synthesize what users Say, Think, Do, and Feel
- Stakeholder interviews — Understand business constraints, technical limitations, and organizational goals
Key principle: Empathy is not sympathy. It's not "feeling sorry for users." It's understanding their mental models, frustrations, and workarounds deeply enough to design for their actual reality.
In terminal workflow: Before prompting any AI to generate UI, spend 2 minutes answering:
- Who will use this? (Not "users" — a specific person with a specific job)
- What are they trying to accomplish? (Task, not feature)
- What's their current workaround? (They're solving this somehow today)
- What frustrates them about the current solution?
- What environment are they in? (Mobile on a train? Desktop in an office? Accessibility needs?)
Sumi mapping: /intent (0.2) captures this as a structured problem statement.
Phase 2: Define
Goal: Synthesize empathy findings into a clear, actionable problem statement.
Methods:
- Problem statement — "Users who [X] need [Y] because [Z]"
- How Might We questions — Reframe problems as opportunities ("HMW make checkout feel instant?")
- Personas — Behavioral archetypes (not demographic stereotypes)
- Jobs to Be Done — Functional, emotional, and social jobs the product fulfills
- User stories — "As a [persona], I want [action] so that [outcome]"
- Success criteria — Measurable outcomes that define "done" (functional, usability, accessibility, business)
Key principle: A well-defined problem is half-solved. Most design failures trace to building the right solution to the wrong problem.
In terminal workflow: Write a single sentence: "Users who [X] need [Y] because [Z]." If you can't fill this in, you haven't empathized enough.
Sumi mapping: /intent (0.2) generates the problem statement, persona, HMW questions, and success criteria.
Macro Stage 2: EXPLORE (Ideate + Prototype)
Generate and test multiple solutions before committing.
Phase 3: Ideate
Goal: Generate a breadth of possible solutions without premature commitment.
Methods:
- Brainstorming — Quantity over quality, defer judgment, build on others' ideas
- Crazy 8s — 8 ideas in 8 minutes, forces divergent thinking
- How Might We — Each HMW question generates 3-5 potential solutions
- Competitive analysis — Study how others solve the same problem (not to copy — to understand the solution space)
- Design patterns — Known solutions to known problems (Sumi's screen-flow-patterns catalog)
- Sketching — Low-fidelity exploration before any code or AI generation
Key principle: The first idea is almost never the best idea. Diverge before you converge.
In terminal workflow: Before prompting AI to generate a component, list 3 different approaches. Even 30 seconds of divergent thinking improves outcomes.
Sumi mapping: /inspo (1.2) finds patterns; /benchmark (1.3) reveals competitive approaches; /taste (1.1) establishes style direction.
Phase 4: Prototype
Goal: Build quick, disposable representations to test ideas — not ship-ready code.
Methods:
- Paper prototypes — Sketch on paper, test with users pointing at elements
- Wireframes — Low-fidelity digital layouts showing structure without style
- Interactive prototypes — Clickable mockups (Figma, code) testing specific flows
- Wizard of Oz — Human simulates AI/backend behavior to test the interface layer
- A/B prototypes — Build 2 versions of a critical interaction to test with users
Key principle: Prototypes are questions, not answers. Build them to learn, then throw them away.
In terminal workflow: Use AI to rapidly generate 2-3 variations of a component or screen. Treat these as prototypes to evaluate, not production code.
Sumi mapping: /screen (4.2) and /ship (4.3) generate prototypes; /drip (4.1) establishes the design foundation.
Macro Stage 3: MATERIALIZE (Test + Implement)
Validate with real users and ship with confidence.
Phase 5: Test
Goal: Evaluate prototypes with real users to identify problems before shipping.
Methods:
- Usability testing — 5 users, think-aloud protocol, task-based scenarios
- Heuristic evaluation — Expert review against Nielsen's 10 heuristics
- Cognitive walkthrough — Step through tasks from the user's perspective, checking learnability
- A/B testing — Statistical comparison of design variants with real traffic
- Accessibility audit — WCAG 2.2 compliance, screen reader testing, keyboard navigation
- Analytics review — Behavioral data revealing where users struggle
Key principle: Testing is not validation — it's learning. The goal is to find problems, not prove your design works.
In terminal workflow: After AI generates UI, run Sumi audits before deploying. Each audit simulates expert evaluation.
Sumi mapping: /vibe-check (2.1) heuristic evaluation; /brain-scan (2.2) cognitive audit; /include (2.3) accessibility; /flow (2.4) journey audit; /dark-scan (3.1) ethics; /roast (5.1) critique; /judge (5.3) comprehensive review.
Phase 6: Implement
Goal: Ship the validated design with production quality, accessibility, and performance.
Methods:
- Design system consumption — Build with tokens, not magic numbers
- Component library — Reusable, tested, accessible components
- Progressive enhancement — Core functionality works without JavaScript
- Performance budgets — Time-to-interactive targets, bundle size limits
- Monitoring — Post-launch metrics tracking against success criteria
Key principle: Implementation is not "coding the design." It's translating design intent into technical reality while preserving every UX decision.
In terminal workflow: Use Sumi BUILD commands with full context from earlier phases.
Sumi mapping: /drip (4.1) tokens; /screen (4.2) screens; /ship (4.3) components; /onboard (4.4) onboarding; /extract (4.5) Figma pipeline.
The Understand → Explore → Materialize Framework
NNG's three macro stages create a memorable mental model:
┌─────────────────┐ ┌─────────────────┐ ┌─────────────────┐
│ UNDERSTAND │ │ EXPLORE │ │ MATERIALIZE │
│ │ │ │ │ │
│ Empathize │ ──► │ Ideate │ ──► │ Test │
│ Define │ │ Prototype │ │ Implement │
│ │ │ │ │ │
│ "Know the │ │ "Generate │ │ "Validate and │
│ problem" │ │ solutions" │ │ ship" │
└─────────────────┘ └─────────────────┘ └─────────────────┘
Sumi Phase 0: GROUND Sumi Phases 1-3 Sumi Phases 4-5
+ Phase 1: DISCOVER DISCOVER, DIAGNOSE, BUILD, LAUNCH
FORTIFY
How Sumi's 6 Phases Map to NNG
| NNG Phase | NNG Stage | Sumi Phase | Sumi Commands |
|---|---|---|---|
| Empathize | Understand | Phase 0: GROUND | /ground (0.1), /intent (0.2) |
| Define | Understand | Phase 0: GROUND | /intent (0.2) |
| Ideate | Explore | Phase 1: DISCOVER | /taste (1.1), /inspo (1.2), /benchmark (1.3), /pulse (1.4) |
| Prototype | Explore | Phase 4: BUILD | /drip (4.1), /screen (4.2), /ship (4.3) |
| Test | Materialize | Phase 2: DIAGNOSE + Phase 3: FORTIFY + Phase 5: LAUNCH | /vibe-check, /brain-scan, /include, /flow, /dark-scan, /trust-scan, /roast, /judge |
| Implement | Materialize | Phase 4: BUILD | /ship (4.3), /onboard (4.4), /extract (4.5) |
Note: Sumi's phases don't map 1:1 to NNG because Sumi is iterative — you may prototype (BUILD) before you test (DIAGNOSE), then loop back. The NNG framework provides the thinking, Sumi provides the doing.
Company Methodology Map
Eight leading companies have each adapted design thinking into their own process. Each emphasizes different strengths. Choose based on your context.
| Company | Methodology | Best For | Duration | Key Innovation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| IDEO | Human-Centered Design | Complex, ambiguous problems | Weeks-months | Radical empathy, multidisciplinary teams |
| UK Design Council | Double Diamond | Structured diverge/converge | Days-weeks | Discover-Define-Develop-Deliver framework |
| Google Ventures | Design Sprint | Time-critical product decisions | 5 days | Compressed prototype-and-test cycle |
| IBM | Enterprise Design Thinking | Large organization alignment | Ongoing | Hills, Playbacks, Sponsor Users at enterprise scale |
| Lean UX | Build-Measure-Learn | Startup/hypothesis-driven | Continuous | MVP-first, data-driven iteration |
| Spotify | Design Thinking + Squads | Autonomous team design | Continuous | Squad autonomy with design system alignment |
| Microsoft | Inclusive Design | Accessibility-first | Ongoing | "Solve for one, extend to many" |
| Vercel/Figma | Design Engineer Workflow | Design-to-code speed | Hours-days | Designer-developer convergence, MCP integration |
Deep dive: See
references/company-ux-methodologies.mdfor full methodology breakdowns, NNG phase mapping, and AI-adaptation guides for each.
Quick Selection Guide
Are you...
Solo developer / vibe coding?
→ Lean UX + Vercel/Figma workflow
→ Focus: hypothesis, quick prototype, test with Sumi audits
Small team (2-5)?
→ Google Sprint (compressed) or Double Diamond
→ Focus: structured diverge/converge, time-boxed decisions
Large organization?
→ IBM Enterprise Design Thinking
→ Focus: alignment across teams, stakeholder playbacks
Building for accessibility?
→ Microsoft Inclusive Design
→ Focus: "solve for one, extend to many"
Complex/ambiguous problem space?
→ IDEO Human-Centered Design
→ Focus: deep empathy, field research, radical solutions
Continuous product iteration?
→ Spotify model + Lean UX
→ Focus: squad autonomy, continuous experimentation
The Vibe Coder's Process Bridge
The Three Risks of Skipping Process
Research (arXiv:2509.10652) identifies three concrete risks when developers use AI to generate UI without UX process:
Pseudo-productivity — Shipping more features faster while solving fewer real problems. 10 AI-generated screens vs. 1 well-researched screen: the latter wins.
Homogenization — AI-generated UIs converge on similar patterns, creating a sameness that erodes brand differentiation and fails edge cases.
Skill erosion — Developers who always accept AI suggestions lose the ability to evaluate, critique, and improve design independently.
The Process Bridge: Before / While / After
The bridge doesn't require abandoning AI-assisted development. It adds process around the AI interaction.
BEFORE Prompting (2 minutes)
The pre-prompt checklist prevents the three risks by forcing human judgment before AI generation:
## Pre-Prompt Checklist (2 min)
- [ ] Who is the user? (name a specific persona, not "users")
- [ ] What task are they completing? (verb + noun, e.g., "booking a flight")
- [ ] What's their current workaround? (how they solve this today)
- [ ] What's the success metric? (how you'll know this works)
- [ ] What platform/context? (device, environment, accessibility needs)
WHILE Generating (ongoing)
Evaluate AI output against UX principles in real-time:
## Generation Evaluation
- Does this match the user's mental model, or the AI's training data?
- Is this solving the defined problem, or a different one?
- Would this look identical from a different AI? (homogenization check)
- Does this handle edge cases? (empty, error, loading, offline, first-use)
- Is the information hierarchy correct? (most important → least important)
AFTER Generating (5 minutes)
Post-generation audit catches the issues AI-generated UI consistently misses:
## Post-Generation Audit (5 min)
- [ ] Run `/vibe-check` — catches heuristic violations
- [ ] Run `/include` — catches accessibility gaps
- [ ] Check: does this UI work for the persona defined in BEFORE?
- [ ] Check: does this UI handle all 7 states? (empty, loading, populated, error, partial, offline, updating)
- [ ] Check: would you ship this if you couldn't use AI to generate more?
Deep dive: See
references/vibe-coder-ux-bridge.mdfor the complete bridge framework with anti-patterns, examples, and the 15-minute full UX check.
Academic Foundations
ISO 9241-210: Human-Centred Design
The international standard for human-centred design (2019 revision) defines six principles:
- The design is based upon an explicit understanding of users, tasks, and environments
- Users are involved throughout design and development
- The design is driven and refined by user-centred evaluation
- The process is iterative
- The design addresses the whole user experience
- The design team includes multidisciplinary skills and perspectives
Every Sumi phase maps to at least one ISO 9241-210 principle. Phase 0 GROUND addresses principles 1 and 2 directly.
Don Norman's 7 Fundamental Design Principles
From The Design of Everyday Things (2013 revised edition):
| Principle | Definition | Process Implication |
|---|---|---|
| Discoverability | Is it possible to figure out what actions are possible? | Test with unfamiliar users |
| Feedback | Is there full and continuous information about results? | Define expected system responses in Design phase |
| Conceptual model | Does the design project clear understanding of the system? | Empathize to understand user mental models |
| Affordances | What actions are possible? | Map affordances to user tasks, not features |
| Signifiers | Where should actions take place? | Test that signifiers match affordances |
| Mapping | Is there a clear relationship between controls and effects? | Prototype to verify spatial/logical mapping |
| Constraints | Are there physical, logical, semantic, or cultural constraints? | Define constraints during problem definition |
Cognitive Laws That Explain Why Process Matters
| Law | What It Says | Why Process Prevents Violation |
|---|---|---|
| Hick's Law | Decision time increases with number and complexity of choices | Define phase constrains the solution space |
| Fitts's Law | Time to target depends on distance and size | Prototyping reveals sizing/placement issues |
| Miller's Law | Working memory holds 7±2 chunks | Empathy reveals users' actual cognitive capacity |
| Jakob's Law | Users spend most time on other sites — they expect yours to work the same | Ideation includes competitive analysis |
| Doherty Threshold | Productivity soars when response time < 400ms | Testing phase measures actual performance |
| Peak-End Rule | Users judge experiences by the peak and end moments | Define phase identifies emotional moments |
| Von Restorff Effect | Distinctive items are more likely to be remembered | Ideation explores visual hierarchy options |
| Aesthetic-Usability Effect | Attractive things are perceived as more usable | Style direction (Phase 1) matters before building |
Process-to-Sumi Command Mapping
The complete mapping from UX process phases to Sumi's 22-step journey:
NNG UNDERSTAND ─────────────────────────────────────────────────
Empathize → /ground (0.1) Process orientation
→ /intent (0.2) Problem + persona + HMW
Define → /intent (0.2) Success criteria + constraints
NNG EXPLORE ────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Ideate → /taste (1.1) Style direction
→ /inspo (1.2) Pattern research
→ /benchmark (1.3) Competitive analysis
→ /pulse (1.4) Metrics planning
Prototype → /drip (4.1) Token system
→ /screen (4.2) Screen compositions
→ /ship (4.3) Component prototypes
NNG MATERIALIZE ────────────────────────────────────────────────
Test → /vibe-check (2.1) Heuristic evaluation
→ /brain-scan (2.2) Cognitive audit
→ /include (2.3) Accessibility audit
→ /flow (2.4) Journey audit
→ /dark-scan (3.1) Ethics scan
→ /trust-scan (3.2) AI trust audit
→ /copy-check (3.3) Content audit
→ /responsive (3.4) Device audit
→ /roast (5.1) Design critique
→ /judge (5.3) Comprehensive review
Implement → /ship (4.3) Production components
→ /onboard (4.4) Onboarding flows
→ /extract (4.5) Figma pipeline
→ /remix (5.2) Iteration redesign
When to Use This Skill
This skill auto-activates when the user mentions:
- UX process, design process, design thinking, design methodology
- Vibe coding, AI-assisted design, prompt-and-ship
- Human-centered design, user-centered design
- Double Diamond, Design Sprint, Lean UX, IDEO
- Empathize, define, ideate, prototype, test (as process phases)
- "Where do I start?", "What's the right process?", "Am I skipping steps?"
- "I'm just vibe coding", "prompt and ship", "AI generated my UI"
- "My app looks generic", "everything looks the same", "no differentiation"
- "How do I make better UIs?", "my designs feel off", "something is wrong but I can't tell what"
- "I shipped without testing", "how do I know if this is good?"
- "What would a senior designer do?", "how do real design teams work?"
The Builder's Cheat Sheet
Quick-reference for builders who want process without theory:
I have 2 minutes
Run /intent on whatever you're about to build. Just the problem statement. That's it.
I have 10 minutes
/ground → /intent → then build with the constraint stack pasted into your prompt.
I have 30 minutes
/intent → /taste → /drip → then build. You now have a defined problem, visual direction, and token system.
I have 2 hours
Full Phase 0→5 journey. /ground → /intent → /taste → /inspo → /drip → /screen → /ship → /vibe-check → /include → /roast. This is what real design teams do.
I have a real product to ship
Follow the full 22-step journey via /guide. Run every audit. Loop /roast → /remix → /roast until all scores are 7+. This is how Stripe, Linear, and Notion work.
The one non-negotiable
Whatever your time budget: run /vibe-check + /include before shipping. 5 minutes. Zero excuses.
Cross-References
This skill connects to and is grounded in:
nng-ux-heuristics— The 10 heuristics used in the Test phaseux-research-methods— Research methodologies for the Empathize phasecognitive-psychology-ux— Cognitive laws that justify process rigoragentic-ai-generative-ux— AI-assisted design patterns and risksux-ethics-content-strategy— Ethical frameworks for the Define phaseux-metrics-measurement— Measurement frameworks for success criteriadesign-systems-architecture— System thinking for the Implement phasedesign-critique-case-studies— Case studies showing process impact (Stripe, Linear: process-heavy; Sonos 2024, Healthcare.gov: process-light failures)