Nathan Davies

Way back in March I ran a workshop for designers to discuss the potential impact of AI on our roles, and on the people who run and use the services we design. I finally, FINALLY wrote it up here: https://lnkd.in/eHfr-gCD

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🤔 🧠The (one of) hard part about contracting design is doing good work when you are the second (or third) designer hired to touch/design a product/software already underway. 🗺️ Coming in and picking up where design teams left off years ago, and learning on your own is no easy task. 💫 It’s not impossible, but if you let 🤯😖 imposter syndrome get you, it will feel like you are in over your head, especially if you don’t have total agency/time for learning. 👩🏾‍🏫 My advice- or 💪🏾practice, has been to: - 🧘🏾‍♀️ breath, - 🚫🧠remind yourself that you are not performing brain surgery, so your mistakes are not fatal - 🧐 ask questions - ✍🏾 spend time reading and summarizing information in digestible chunks - 👩🏾‍💻deciding process and time needed once you have come to an understanding. 💁🏾‍♀️ This takes time, but when you focus, get out of your head, it will eventually become clearer.

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Some interesting perspectives in this post and the comments. It has been disheartening to witness the shrinking and devaluation of UX and research in the US in the past few year after a decade of growth. At the same time, “product” has continued to lead influence - which aligns with the American executive mindset discussed here - with top-down feature-driven roadmaps and fast delivery focuses to *try* to maximize profits. One idea that could help is to more closely connect product leaders and researchers specifically. Researchers should be the right hand to a product managers, partnering to set meaningful roadmaps that align to validated user needs. What about switching the common title of UX Researcher to Product Researcher? How about more Senior UX designers switching to Product Management? I beleive UXers have the skills to be much stronger product owners than many PMs already out there, and can guide these valuable partnerships. This is a major time of change for our industry. Let’s try some new strategies to accomplish what we all strive for - making better experiences for users.

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We got our first website accessibility audit in quite a while done recently. It's important not to be daunted by the report you get back – we are thoroughly working through it to make the improvements needed. We're trying to design and develop things in a robust way, and a nice bonus was some big recently shipped work had no known issues. It just shows that when you build accessibility in from the start it makes a huge impact. #accessibility

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🚀 Just when you thought Miro couldn't get any better, today they unveiled a new AI Prototyping feature and it seems to be a game-changer for designers and product innovators. 💡✨ I've been a harsh critic of AI specifically it relates to creating usable design artifacts such as wireframes, mockups and prototypes. Today that changes. It looks like spending hours iterating on designs will soon be a thing of the past as Miro--via the AI pioneers at Uizard by Miro Labs--will soon provide customers with the ability to create interactive prototypes in seconds! Miro's AI-powered tools are streamlining more and more processes like never before—leaving more time for what truly matters: creating unforgettable user experiences. Join the waitlist: https://lnkd.in/e65DQZ-R #Miro #AIPrototyping #DesignInnovation #UXDesign #PrototypingMadeEasy #Uizard

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We recently started a new ritual in our design team that we're pretty excited about. We've called them UX Watch Parties, and they're a great way to help us understand user behaviour, identify issues with the product and bond with our peers on the product team. Learn more about how you can successfully host these yourself in my latest blog post: https://lnkd.in/gyaKN35V #designops #productdesign #teambuilding #designteamrituals

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I love these examples and couldn't agree more that design thinking can benefit so many parts of your organization. I'd say this is a big reason for the longevity and success of our partnerships over the years. At Aero Interactive we tend to initially engage with orgs on their product or website design needs, but find ourselves advising on other business needs that come up organically. Understanding that user experience design goes far beyond the confines of a screen is crucial. It's about crafting an exceptional customer journey across every touchpoint. At Aero, we don't just start with the design of a digital product; we strategize around the entire customer experience journey. From the initial interaction with our digital platforms—be it through a landing page, our website, or engaging videos—to nurturing prospects into becoming loyal customers and advocates of our digital products. Our approach is rooted in a deep understanding of target audiences and the transformative paths we envision for them. This holistic strategy ensures that every digital interaction is not only seamless but also deeply resonant with users' needs and expectations. Honestly with this being such a natural part of the job, it's hard to remember every conversation, but here are a few examples of questions that have come up and solutions we've provided as a design partner: ➝ How can we better convey the value of our brand to our target audience and get them to that "aha" moment that makes users come back to our digital product? ➝ How can we take our clients on a cohesive journey with the business not just inside the digital product but across all touchpoints? ➝ What processes does our internal team find themselves repeating that could be designed and automated for efficiency?

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Don’t Optimise Something That Shouldn’t Exist. That’s an Elon line. And while I’m not normally one to praise the dude… it is a neat thought. And strangely applicable to the group payments space. Because here’s a hot take - what if ‘bill splitting apps’ don’t really need to exist. **cough Beem, Splitwise Inc. cough** What if you never had to manually tally up and enter what you paid for dinner in an app just so your mates can pay you back. Hell that’s called accounting! What if the split was done at checkout. Integrated. Where everybody could pay and take responsibility for their own share. Free of data entry and accounting. Yeah. Social payments is about to get spicy with Backpocket . Watch this space. #grouppayments #socialpayments #socialfinance #collectivefinance #backpocket #innovartion #payments 

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Tools are just that, tools. However Im finding that more and more designers are fast tracking to the UI side of design as it allows them to communicate. This is heavily influenced by the tool they are using and given the power of figma, it’s easy to see why this is typically the path chosen. This form of communication based around the UI and interactions which non designers find it easier to understand and provide feedback on. The journey and effort to deal with the research, testing and working through the fundamentals of a problem are less traveled due to the challenges on the path. At no point in my career was design easy or had the right buy in or budget. It had always been a case or highlighting the value of design and when “ they got it” the challenge became easier. Reinvesting in time into earlier stages of design at the sacrifice of UI and Interaction to develop your UX should be the stepping stone to truely develop end to end design has been a strategy I’ve used which yielded positive outcomes. A tough one to balance but when it works, it’s work. To the #designers, less figma more design. (Ie how would you communicate this without figma) To the #design Leaders, stay strong and let your #resilience shine!

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Life has a way of asking us who we are. Some people have an answer, others don't. For a long time, my answer for who I was depended on my job title, and I experienced fulfilment and bliss through work, but I've also spoken to people who don’t have an answer. It matters if we have an answer or not, because the World often shapes one for us. My latest essay for mindfuliving.substack.com explores this idea through three historic examples: Theseus, John Donne, and the Tor-Kwagh-Hir—a mythic warrior, a Renaissance poet, and an African visionary. These stories show us how to overcome even the most dire situations. *Link to essay in the comments*

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Our Senior Product Designer Rosie Dent-Spargo held a superb session in February with the Product Design team to create values and principles. Using guidance from Dan Makoski's book Uplifting Design, the session was dynamic and layered. The focus wasn't solely on creation, but also how we might embed principles and values into daily work. This write up is the Rolls-Royce of "How to"s, and is a very valuable read for those looking to create and instil values and principles within any team. https://lnkd.in/e7DXm_Ca #productdesign #principles #values

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Design isn’t just a cost, it’s an advantage. Is showing your value a constant battle? You're definitely not alone. At DesignOps Aligned, we transform that struggle into a triumph. A few months ago, a senior UX designer faced redundancy. Her turning point? Embracing the right processes to showcase her worth. Here's what worked: 1. Align with Objectives Sync your goals with the company's vision. Push growth with every design. 2. Document Everything Chronicle your projects. Prove how designs hit key metrics. 3. Communicate Clearly Share insights often. Use data to back up your decisions. Let design's value shine. 4. Collaborate Connect with cross-functional teams. Build strong ties with developers and PMs. 5. Create KPIs for Designs Pinpoint your design's impact. Measure with precision. Refine your processes and step into your role as a strategic asset. What processes have you embraced to highlight your value? Share below!

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🚀 We are live 🚀 Introducing https://mysticteller.com - the AI-Powered app for online tarot readings. We’re finally up on the web and running, and live on Producthunt (https://lnkd.in/exAEQWAS). 🔎 We are a small, dedicated team of two that worked day and (quite literally) night to publish our first bootstrapped product. Every bit of feedback, support or upvote would be much appreciated 🙌🏻. 🔮 Have a look, give it a try, and remember we are offering free readings on email verification. On top of that, an extra 40% off the first order with the code LAUNCHDAY on Stripe. #mysticteller #aipowered #aitarot #producthunt #productlaunch 

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🚀 Why do designers pour our hearts into passion projects? For me, it’s about: 👉 Honing the craft: staying sharp and leveling up. 👉 Keeping up with tech: understanding an applying improvements  👉 Moving fast, experimenting, learning: iterating without layers of process 👉 Creating for joy: building something you love and connecting with the people who use it. Will it make you rich? ❌ Probably not. Will it earn you a shiny new title? ❌ Nope. But here’s the thing: when your engineering partner gets a heartfelt note from a customer (like we did recently) saying your app has helped them, that means a lot. Passion projects stretch you, challenge you, and, let’s be honest, don’t always fit into the “career growth” box. Yet, they reward you in ways that are deeply personal and incredibly fulfilling. To everyone out there working on your passion project: keep going. You’re growing, you’re creating, and you just might be having an impact on someone’s life. Why do you work on your passion project? 

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Of all the new AI tools I love the replace content feature and renaming layers. I think making prototypes as close to real content is important to keep presentions from going off the rails. https://lnkd.in/e4CGR9TV

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Disabled button with a tooltip on hover – let's analyse this design decision together - and, can we do better? Available in podcast or article form, however, they do complement each other well! New podcast episode: https://lnkd.in/dPtM9qmM New article: https://lnkd.in/dZstCP29 Problem space: - disabled buttons - showing important information for the flow - usage principle for tooltips Also, if you listen to this on Spotify, please vote for approach you think is better - as is or redefined 🫶 #design #ux #designPodcast #usabilityHeuristics #errors #tooltips

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Highlighting my article on the topic of Dark UX patterns and how they impact client journeys and experiences. https://lnkd.in/dm_zcXZ #design #designthinking #designbuild #designstrategy #product #producctdesign #productmanagement #productstrategy #designprinciples #innovation #designers #digitaltransformation #ux #uxdesign #uiux #uidesign #designinnovation #application #software #softwaredesign #usability #userresearch #research #usercentereddesign #productleadership #uxwriting #designsystems #empathy #interfacedesign #usabilitytesting #userexperience #productdesign #accessibility #ui #ai #genai 

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To build a stable design system you need to start with a central model, and then when the base is well established, move to federated contribution. This will keep the vision, brand, structure unified and keep everyone updated with the DS. Article by Nathan Curtis

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What does your design situation look like right now? (a) I’m being asked to design new features with no time to fix existing ones (b) I’m trying to get permission to deliver good UX (c) I’m trusted to get on with the job (d) Other

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