Episodes
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Ryan is the founder of Accelerate Design Company. He's a Product and Design leader who brought food photography, live-order tracking, and remote driver training to DoorDash, launched step-function improvements to Airbnb’s checkout, messaging, search, and host calendar products, and launched products at TechCrunch Disrupt, Dreamforce, and WWDC. Ryan has led teams of all sizes, from two to 200, and is now advising companies on product management, design, and go-to-market strategy, as well as helping mid-career designers develop business skills to do more influential work and have more meaningful careers.
00:00 – Intro02:39 – Ryan's career and his thoughts on design education08:03 – Describing the ROI of Design – his course for designers14:57 – Gaining credibility by connecting design to business metrics24:17 – Tailoring tactics for your specific environment28:28 – Pursuing stakeholders through building good relationships with them30:45 – How does Design work at the different companies he worked 39:00 – The befits of scrapping incremental testing43:34 – Assessing the quality of a team before joining47:15 – On Accelerate Design company, his new business53:06 – End of show questions.
Timestamps:Connect with Ryan
LinkedIn, Accelerate DesignSelected links from the episode
Describing the ROI of Design, Ryan's course -
Doug has been in the Design world for 30 years and is well known for his role as VP of Design at IBM, where he oversaw IBM's design practice, design career and leadership programs, and the scaling of cross-functional design thinking practices. Doug is a role model for many design leaders and someone I've been looking up to for many years. Having him on the show is such an honour.
00:00 – Intro02:32 – The three chapters in Doug's career09:35 – Building good relationships at work13:18 – The environment needed for designers to do great work20:44 – The role coaching played for him and how he's coached others27:13 – How do you know when a report is ready for a promotion36:04 – An overview of the work done at IBM by Design 42:16 – The role of ethics in Design48:13 – Design in the age of AI51:04 – End of show questions.
Timestamps:Connect with Doug
LinkedInSelected links from the episode
This is a Prototype Podcast (Apple, Spotify, Google)The Making of a Manager, by Julie Zhou
The Total Economic Impact Of IBM’s Design Thinking Practice, by Forrester
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Episodes manquant?
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Dan is a seasoned designer with over 20 years of experience in leading teams at companies such as Farfetch, Just Eat, Wonderbly, and Fresha. Until very recently Dan ran a small design studio – Rubber Studio. In today's chat we get a behind the scenes view into the life of a studio owner, what's important when trying to find work, and how your life as a designer can change if you decide to start a studio yourself.
00:00 – Intro02:38 – Dan's journey into Design05:43 – His thoughts on Design education08:28 – His journey as a studio owner19:44 – What you need to know before starting a studio32:32 – What's important when pitching for work43:39 – On his talk about innovation at Hatch Conference46:36 – End of show questions
Timestamps:Connect with Dan
LinkedInSelected links from the episode
Chris Do
Just enough research, by Erika Hall
Supermensch: The Legend of Shep Gordon (Documentary Trailer)
Dan Tase: Why Innovation Fails? (And what can we do about it) – Talk at Hatch Conference -
Dan is a seasoned design executive who's led teams at Microsoft, Google, UnitedHealth Group, Walmart, and Lloyd's, among others. From working on the Surface Tablet, starting Project ARA at Google, leading the efforts to redesign Walmart.com, and more recently writing his own book, Uplifting Design, Dan believes in the importance of Design at the core of any business, and that's what we're talking about today. We also chat in detail about how his design team has doubled conversion for walmart.com, and about why he believes that you should look at your career from a perspective of two year stretches.
00:00 – Intro02:42 – Dan's journey into Design04:06 – Why Dan thinks Design is at the core of business09:11 – The forces that come down to devalue Design15:51 – Companies that show Design matters23:24 – Designing software vs. hardware and how compassion fits into this42:54 – On the redesign of Walmart.com51:29 – Dan's new book, Uplifting Design56:08 – Managing your career in two-year stretches01:04:18 – End of show questions
Timestamps:Connect with Dan
LinkedIn, Uplifting.Design, WebsiteSelected links from the episode
Neol
McKinsey Design Report
Fuelling Creative Renewal Report -
Lea is a Product & Growth Consultant with a massive proven track record of helping companies get traction. Today we talk about experimentation frameworks, how to build better relationships with Product, and about what kinds of designers are best to collaborate with.
00:00 – Intro02:36 – Lea's journey into Product03:37 – On working for one company vs. consulting 07:06 – Lea's definition of Product10:50 – Building relationships with Product19:18 – The ideal designer to work with25:08 – On experimentation47:39 – The importance of quality in a product52:39 – End of show questions
Timestamps:
Connect with Lea
LinkedIn -
Maria is a Product Design Leader at Turo and Founder of Careercoach.design. In this episode get to talk about the rise of the Player-Coach Designer, about building better relationships at work, about coaching, and we also talk about practical advice on how to approach your job search.
00:00 – Intro02:18 – Maria's journey into Design04:28 – On Player-Coach Designers12:43 – Maria's thoughts on Design leadership19:21 – Building relationships at work23:44 – Giving and receiving feedback30:27 – Maria's practice as a Coach34:10 – On finding a job48:36 – Demystifying interview questions54:24 – How to negotiate your salary56:58 – End of show questions
Timestamps:
Connect with MariaLinkedIn, CareerCoach.Design
Selected links from the episodeDemystifying common design interview questions, by Maria
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Alastair Simpson is a design leader and mentor, serving as VP of Design at Dropbox. Prior to Dropbox, Alastair was Head of Design at Atlassian, where he helped scale the design team from 20 to over 250. On today's show we chat about craft and how important it is for designers at any level, persuasion, how to present work, and how to deal with puzzling feedback.
Timestamps:
00:00 – Intro02:28 – Alastair's journey into Design06:34 – On building the right habits11:24 – Sharing work, getting feedback, and storytelling27:45 – How to get good at presenting work31:44 – Soft skills that are important for designers33:56 – Craft of Design vs. surgical optimisation41:29 – Leading through craft47:16 – The importance of inspiring others50:06 – What Alastair hopes will happen over the next decade52:02 – End of show questions
Connect with AlastairLinkedIn, Medium
Selected links from the episodeThe one critical skill most designers overlook, by Alastair
Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion, by Robert Cialdini
Start With Why, by Simon Sinek
Atomic Habits, by James Clear -
Sean has spent the past 25 years at the intersection of commerce, consumer behaviour, and data-driven feedback loops. This included working for Tesco, GfK, and two long stints with Amazon, among others. In this chat we talk about how design can better work with product, how to speak the language of our senior stakeholders, and what he's learned about hiring from interviewing over a thousand people at Amazon.
Timestamps:
00:00 – Intro03:54 – How does Product act differently in small vs. in big companies05:53 – Interviewing others as a Bar Raiser at Amazon10:55 – Portfolios – How do you get to the bottom of study cases?13:24 – The one question Sean likes to ask in interviews17:58 – How does a good relationship between Design and Product look like?29:58 – Challenges that Product faces when they deal with Design49:10 – Making it 'cheap' to be wrong53:23 – Why sometimes Design reports to Product56:53 – End of show questions.
Connect with SeanLinkedIn
Selected notes from the episodeSean's 10 Product Development Principles (to create the right culture and velocity):
1. Solve the right user need
2. Measurable accountability to outcomes
3. Release value in slices (avoid long bets)
4. Put data in the hands of decision makers
5. Build once, run everywhere
6. Make it cheap to be wrong
7. Build it fast AND proper
8. Extreme focus on top priorities
9. Simplify, simplify, simplify
10. Be credible -
We're switching gears a little from Design and catch up with Tom Scott, who's sharing his thoughts on building and using your network for your job search, the rise of the player-coach designer, and his thoughts on design education.
Timestamps:
00:00 – Intro03:52 – Community approach in recruitment09:30 – The current state of design recruitment13:56 – Portfolios – Do you need them?23:04 – How to build and use your network for your job search29:51 – The rise of the player-coach designer36:51 – On design education44:28 – End of show questions
Connect with TomLinkedIn, Verified, Verified Insights, Verified Insider Podcast
Selected links from the episodeWhy You Shouldn’t Hire Junior Designers, by Christian Vasile
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We're launching season 3 together with Nate Langley (Monzo), talking about how constraints breed creativity, the five pillars you want to touch on in interviews, and the importance of an integrated brand experience.
Timestamps:
00:00 – Intro03:38 – How Nate started out05:50 – On confidence and how to build it14:17 – Best ways to start out in Design21:09 – Individual Contributor vs. Manager track28:45 – How to do well in interviews40:26 – On how constraints breed creativity 45:58 – End of show questions
Connect with NateLinkedIn, ADPlist
Selected links from the episodePeak, by Anders Ericsson & Robert Pool
The Rebalancing of Design Management, by Cap Watkins -
Get your notebooks out for this conversation, because Alex is sharing all about his experience leading design organisations, and about his management style, and about how to frame design at the C-level.
Connect with Alex
LinkedIn, Website, Medium
Selected links from the episodeThe value of design at the C-level
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On this episode I talk to Ioana about the importance of speaking your stakeholders' language, how you can learn from her career trajectory, and about design education.
Connect with Ioana
LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter, Mento Design Academy, Honest UX Talks Podcast, TikTok
Selected links from the episodeUX Rescue
Democracy Lab
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Megan shared how the entire 99designs team is involved in research, the challenges of designing for a global audience, and parallels between sports and work.
Connect with Megan
LinkedIn, Website, Twitter, ADPlist
Selected links from the episodeDovetail
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Ed talks about the behind-the-scenes work of a design leader, ways of building relationships, and his thoughts on design education.
Connect with Ed
LinkedIn, Website, Medium, ADPlist
Selected links from the episodeUndercover User Experience Design
The Five Dysfunctions of a Team
Daring Greatly
The Coaching Habit
The Heart Tree Start framework
The People Paradox: Human Nature's Impact on Digital Transformation
Shape Up by Basecamp
Google's HEART framework
UXClub.com
Spotify's Failed #SquadGoals -
Our conversation was centered around linking Design with the wider business efforts and round hiring – how to stand out, how to create a better portfolio, and what to ask in interviews.
Connect with Nati
LinkedIn, Website, Medium
Selected links from the episodeThings I wish UX candidates would ask me during interviews
Knowing the business: A must skill for young designers
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David shares with us his framework for experimentation and how to build trust with your product team. We also talk about the crossover of skills between entrepreneurs and designers.
Connect with David
LinkedIn, Website
Selected links from the episode
Article on experiment maps
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