In the early 2000s, I was working in Milan, actively engaged in project management and user experience—two fields I studied and explored with great passion. I wrote extensively on the subject, both out of personal interest and through editorial collaborations: I reviewed books for a specialized magazine and, in return, could keep them, further fueling my learning journey.
During that period, I came across Jesse James Garrett’s “The Elements of User Experience” diagram. I don’t recall exactly how I discovered it, but I vividly remember its impact on me. It was a groundbreaking contribution: not only did it help popularize the term “User Experience” (already present in a 1988 text by Donald Norman but little used at the time), but it also offered a clear and organized structure to a discipline that had previously seemed fragmented.
Fascinated by this vision, I had the idea to translate the diagram into Italian. I contacted Garrett, who enthusiastically welcomed the proposal, and I worked on the translation, which was then officially published. In hindsight, I might make some different terminological choices, but it remains an interesting and significant experience.
At the time, probably neither Garrett nor I could have imagined how the term “User Experience” would evolve over time, becoming a fundamental pillar in digital professions. I thought my contribution would end with the translation of the diagram, but the discipline continued to grow, along with the visibility of Garrett’s work.
As a testament to this success, Garrett later published a book based on the diagram (and then a second edition) that, like the diagram, is clear, precise, and comprehensive, without exceeding 250 pages.
Garrett wrote yesterday on LinkedIn that the diagram turns 25 years old.
After so many years, I still find it gratifying to know that my name appears in the book’s acknowledgments for contributing to the dissemination of the diagram in Italian. It’s a memory I cherish, a small piece of a journey that has left a mark on the history of User Experience.
