During my time as a Fire Support Officer in the Army, I picked up some important lessons about communication and user-centered design that have really helped me in tech and product development. Here’s how my military experience taught me to put the customer first and break down technical language for folks who aren’t experts.

Understanding the User’s Needs

As an artillery officer, I often had to explain complex targeting info to infantry and armor officers. This meant I had to really understand what they needed on the battlefield—kind of like the principle of human-centered design, which is all about getting to the heart of user problems. By focusing on what these officers needed to know, I could tailor my communication to be more effective.

Empathy in Design

Human-centered design is all about empathy. It’s about seeing users as real people with real challenges. In military operations, this meant recognizing the stress and pressure my fellow officers were under and making sure my support was relevant and timely. This kind of empathy is crucial in any design process; it helps ensure that solutions actually meet user needs.

Bridging Communication Gaps

One of the toughest parts of my job was translating technical artillery jargon into something infantry and armor commanders could understand. This is similar to the human-centered design idea of making complex stuff easy for everyone to grasp. By simplifying my language and focusing on the key points, I made sure that everyone could make smart decisions without getting lost in technical details.

Iterative Feedback

In both military operations and product development, getting continuous feedback is key. Just like I relied on input from field officers to tweak our artillery strategies, human-centered design involves testing solutions with real users and making improvements based on their feedback. This back-and-forth helps ensure that designs really meet user needs.

Conclusion

The skills I developed as a Fire Support Officer—empathy, clear communication, and a focus on feedback—are super important for human-centered design. Whether you’re coordinating on a battlefield or working on a new product, putting the user first makes sure that what you create is not only effective but also truly resonates with those you’re trying to help.