Is it time for an IoT and Digital Health Participant Experience Standard?

I am participating in Internet of things (IoT) and digital health events and conferences and am seeing a consistent and concerning lack of focus on how people experience consuming IoT and digital health data and services. This experience goes beyond the digital user experience (UX) of the individual application. In this context the experience refers to the larger end-to-end participant journey as they interact with data and devices.

IoT and digital health exist in an incredibly complex environment of overlapping complementary platforms and devices made even more complex by the number and variety of people and organizations participating in the delivery and consumption of data and services. 

As the growth of IoT and digital health companies and services continues to explode (there are over 160 digital health startups in the Denver area alone) we need a universal experience standard to guide integrating new platforms and devices into the existing ecosystems.

Developing devices and services in this environment requires a holistic understanding of each participants life journey as they interact with IoT and digital health data and services. Most organizations lack the experience design expertise or resources to develop this understanding on their own. They will need to work with other organizations - and even with competitors - to set standards for how devices and platforms will deliver data and services with an optimal participant experience. They will need to get out of the office and develop a deep understanding of the people who are participating in the data and services they provide.

As devices and platforms integrate more deeply into our lives organizations are responsible for the positive or negative impact of the experiences they are creating. Experience needs to be a standard that is intentionally designed, not left to (hopefully) grow on its own.