Design Thoughts / Design Process

Originally published on JOTFORM.COM Cozy. That’s how I felt. Tucked beneath what may have been the world’s softest blanket. I took a deep breath and rolled onto my side. It was a familiar moment — the moment when my 6 a.m. alarm clock sounded, after a night of tossing and turning. The moment when my daily responsibilities had yet to… Read More ￫

We’ve all been there — hopelessly staring at the screen and waiting for design inspiration to swoop in and save the day. When that doesn’t happen, use these tactics to help you get out of those design ruts: Sketch it out There are certainly many scenarios when we have to move quickly to crank out a design. But when it’s possible,… Read More ￫

During a recent conversation with David Sleight, Design Director at ProPublica, I found myself realizing and saying “we need design that is faster and design that is slower.” Who are we and what is this thing called design? When I say “we,” I mean our whole industry, when I say “our whole industry,” I mean design, and when I say “design,”… Read More ￫

Five pitfalls that get in the way Today’s change of pace demands that collaboration and processes be sped up to meet the growing expectation of customers and stakeholders. But is this growing crunch on time stifling creativity? It isn’t enough to make decisions, products and services quickly, we must encourage creativity and create an environment to help the business succeed in… Read More ￫

Since I started speaking about calm technology and designing with attention, designers and developers often ask me if a particular product they’re helping create is calm — i.e. designed to seamlessly, unobtrusively integrate with person’s life and daily habits. We deal with non-calm products every day. Jeremiah Owyang noticed that the new Facebook Messenger asks users to turn on notifications… Read More ￫

So much goes into building a website. There is a fairly standard design process which every designer should work through to achieve great results and minimise the risk of failure when starting a new project, including journey maps, site maps, user flows, personas, content, Lo-Fi and Hi-Fi Wireframes, UI audits. However, it’s not just about creating a good set of… Read More ￫

Designers love to talk about their process. From brainstorming wacky ideas to prototyping potential solutions, there is a lot to love. But one of the most critical parts of the design process that is seldom talked about at conferences and meetups is synthesizing user research. That is why I jumped at the opportunity to give a talk about conducting proper… Read More ￫

Why do well-funded companies with ample resources often ship broken user experiences? No one is immune. Even design darlings do it sometimes. As users discover a company’s product, read about it, sign up or install, then use it, they may traverse the output of many different teams. Broken handoffs are common. We all have war stories. A few highly-trafficked sites… Read More ￫

Ever struggled with managing your projects or PMs trying to do so? Well, there is an app… hmm… or something different for that. Recently I took on the Design Council’s Double Diamond process, “revamped” it, and published it (Link at the end of the post). People have questioned how my approach would relate to “real” project management and projects. This… Read More ￫

“A Design sprint is a time-constrained, five-phase process that uses design thinking to reduce the risk when bringing a new product, service or a feature to the market.” If you’re thinking about doing your first sprint ever, follow this article when talking with clients, developers, and even designers. Use the accompanying documents, and practice how to introduce, frame, and pitch… Read More ￫

Design sprints were incubated by Jake Knapp during his tenure at Google and it’s starting to create serious buzz in board rooms and corner offices. Here’s what all business executives need to know about it… Moving at the speed of a startup If you’re like most business executives in larger companies, you probably keep an eye on the startups in your… Read More ￫

Sprints are all the rage, but beware the snake-oil! This is what I learnt by taking part in a modified design sprint, run by people with incomplete understanding of the Google Ventures Design Sprint process. Jake Knapp describes Design Sprints as a greatest hits of productivity, decision making, innovation, creativity, and design — and I think that’s true. But I… Read More ￫