What Is Performance Experience Design?

By Jerry Hamburg

You’ve designed one of your most successful learning and development journeys. You have every indication that your people have the knowledge they need to perform beautifully. Yet, when it comes to the moment of action—unfortunately, you don’t see consistent results.

Why? Because context matters. Even with the best designed learning experiences, knowledge doesn’t always lead to behavior. Yet, we are seeing an exciting evolution in how we design intentional experiences, often within the work context, to help people perform.

Have you ever experienced one of these scenarios?

You’re hesitant to provide helpful feedback to a colleague. You know how to give feedback and understand its value, and yet sometimes something prevents you from doing it.

You have an important priority you need to make time for on your calendar. Yet, you just said yes to another project knowing it will leave you little time to focus on your priority.

I could go on, but the point is, while we may have the knowledge and skills essential for behavior change, often they are not enough. Humans are complex—and humans in groups are even more complex. In addition to knowledge, our behavior is shaped by our mindsets, emotions, social group, tools, environment, and physiology.

Said simply, as learning professionals, we need to get better at changing behavior by creating experiences for the whole human, the groups in which they work, and the context/environment for their work.

Behavior change requires a multidisciplinary approach.

It also requires that we take the holistic performance experience into account. Performance Experience Design (PXD) provides the through line that brings together all the disciplines of design—including technical user experience design, learning experience design, the neuroscience of change, and more—to allow individuals to do their best work.

For successful Performance Experience Design, we have to answer these questions:

What results do we seek, not just for the learner, but the organization as a whole?
How well do we understand the people who need to perform differently—not just on the surface or by role, but as a whole human?
What are the moments that matter—and what does successful behavior look like in those moments?
What experiences can we design that influence a person’s emotions, mindsets, and actions?

One real-world example of experience changing behavior

Consider your last excellent buying experience at a retail store. Everything about that experience was designed for you to make a purchase, including but not limited to:

The identification of a need, whether through advertising or social media
The perception of the brand
The feeling you get when approaching the store
The scents you smell upon entering
The warm welcome and guidance from an associate
The colors, signage, and fixtures
Strategic displays that provide language and choices
Placement of goods
The ease of checkout, down to the tap of the credit card
A sincere thank you and invitation for you to return

Of course, it doesn’t end there. Maybe you received a thoughtful follow-up customer communication that your business matters or a special offer based on your buying preferences to encourage your return. The bottom line is that everything in THAT retail store WAS designed to drive purchases.

What if we applied a similar design mindset to the performance experience? The context for performance in organizations isn’t the same as the environment needed for retail shoppers. However, as we evolve as a profession, there are lessons to be learned as we think of ourselves as designers of experiences meant to change behaviors (and not solely creators of content).

The PXD approach starts with deep knowledge of, and empathy for, your specific employees’ reality and the factors that encourage their performance. It balances this with an equally deep understanding for where you want your organization to go and why. Then it paints a real picture of how to get there by delivering a series of right-sized and right-timed experiences that will change hearts, minds, and actions.
Here are three ways you and team can get started with performance experience design:

#1. Consider the three lenses of performance to gain perspective

Preparing individuals for the work (training, clear communications, understanding the why)
Supporting or guiding individuals in the work (job aids, environmental guidance, social interactions, cues)
Changing the work environment (physical/digital workspace, how meetings are conducted, how tasks are assigned, how feedback is shared)

#2. Consider what’s needed to design the right experience

Mindsets (like designing for the individual and the team, reducing complexity, etc.)
Models (like a habit model or Daniel Pink’s Autonomy, Mastery, Purpose model)
Methods (like empathy mapping, force-field analysis, personas, and more)

#3. Consider performance science activators in the context of work

Every time we learn something, the brain undergoes a physiological change, and the circuitry is reconfigured. Repeated actions, which are caused by triggers and eventually embedded as habits, create stronger circuits.

Habits help our brains conserve energy and allow us to move more efficiently through life, eliminating the need to consider every choice. Research shows up to 40% of daily actions are habits.

We mimic others, often unconsciously, thanks to our brain’s special “mirror neurons,” which reflect what someone else is going through. For example, when someone does something that we think is embarrassing, we feel a little embarrassed.

Sometimes we act before we know why. A core part of our brain constantly scans for threat, and when it detects a threat (perceived or real), it sends a panic signal to act, often shortcutting the more logical part of our brain.

We are driven for social acceptance; maintaining a positive self-image is a primary behavior driver. Even those who believe they don’t conform to societal standards are pulled toward social acceptance.

Unlocking potential with performance experience design

At TiER1, we believe PXD is the next evolution of innovation in the learning and performance field. It weaves together learning and development, employee experience, and the overall organizational strategies to create healthy, high-performing organizations.

I hope you feel inspired and intrigued. We invite you to join us in the journey to continue to evolve and innovate how we create better workplaces that realize the fullest potential of people.