[business of design] Company Culture

Blog on what your ideal company culture would be like by describing what an average day on the job would for like you. What would it look like, feel like, be like?

I start off my day by entering the bright and well lit office. Two of my favorite things about this office are the open spaces and the huge windows which allow natural light to flood in. I share my brightly painted and decorated office with two other team members. Throughout the morning we work separately on our projects but are always available to discuss ideas and provide feedback. For lunch, I head over to the on-site cafe for the soup de jour and a grilled cheese. After lunch are project meetings, check-ins, and my bi-annual performance review. During my review I have the opportunity to discuss my goals within the company and my progress towards those goals. My supervisor and I also review my project specific struggles and success, leadership, and areas to improve.

I have been super efficient today, and there were no client emergencies, so I am headed home at 6.00 pm. I leave the office and walk to catch the commuter train; I'm feeling confident, valued, and proud of the work I do.

[IxD Theory] Design in organizations

Creativity takes many forms. Designers embody a form of creativity that can sometimes create tensions within an organization. What are the tensions and why do they exist? Drawing from what we understand about other flavors of creativity, how might we facilitate the integration of design creativity into organizations?

Designers can create tension in a number of ways, especially in organizations that are run more conservatively. The type of tension I will focus on for this topic is tension in leadership.

Traditionally, a "designer" is someone who can deliver tangible products; someone with craftsmanship and the ability to make. Increasingly, however, a designer is someone who has the ability and desire to get out from behind the screen and to solve larger more systematic problems. I think a tension exists because a majority of business leaders still see designers in the traditional sense and do not understand why it is important to integrate design creativity into their organization's leadership.

I think the first step is to understand what you can do and to find a job at an organization that is flexible and open to innovation. In my Business of Design class we have been learning about leaders who use design thinking and who solve problems creatively. This, plus our discussion in IxD Theory about different types of creative leaders has influenced me to believe that one of the most important things you can do is to be an influential leader yourself. Bring design into an organization by knowing that the best solutions come from multidisciplinary teams. Be open to change and iteration, and know it's okay to be wrong. And always be inclusive, accessible, and a champion of creative culture.

[business of design]

What would do if you were an employee of Goldman Sachs who didn’t have the option of quitting - what would you say to your clients, friends and family who read Greg Smith’s letter?

This weeks business of design class is about leadership; I think one of the key traits of being a leader is taking responsibility for mistakes and knowing when you need to make changes and pivot your approach.

So, I don't know how the situation above would actually play out, but from my own relatively naive perspective, I think I would start off by acknowledging mistakes. I would discuss openly and honestly where the company went wrong, but I would also talk about the company's strengths. I would try to focus on how to get things back to a healthy place

[IxD Theory] Easy Peasy

Why does everyone think they can do interaction design? Do other design disciplines face this challenge?

I don't have direct experience with everyone thinking they can do interaction design, but assuming that is the case, I will speculate on the reasons why.

1. Interaction is a buzz word. I think because interaction design is such a new field and it's, uh...for lack of better phrase, so hot right now, there are a lot of people out there who want an interaction designer and a lot of people who don't really know what it is, but who want to get the job. 
2. Interaction designers make it look easy. A well designed object or system is universally easy to use, which can lead to the assumption that designing the interaction is simple. I think a lot of the principles of interaction design are actually common sense (keep it simple, recognition over recall, help and documentation, give people an undo), but to really design a system which meets a user's need becomes incredibly complicated. An interaction designer has to use methodology and go through deliberate processes, which not everyone can do.