interviews
Design
Learning from User Testing
It’s important that as much of the learning you get from this process is new, you want to be surprised by the results. You should hope to have a substantial list of previously unknown problems to fix by the end.
Leadership
Don’t ‘Press Gang’ your crew
Be prepared to pick someone who experiences are less than ideal, but is willing to learn. Look for people you can work with even if their skills are not a perfect fit.