Jenny Huang

Pause, Clarify, and Strategize! In UX and project management, time pressure often dictates our pace, sometimes at the cost of deeper discovery. Yet, I’ve found that taking even a single extra day to review challenges with stakeholders can yield game-changing insights. This deliberate pause can illuminate nuances in stakeholder expectations and uncover potential roadblocks before they impact the project. While we’re often encouraged to ‘move fast and break things,’ I’ve seen how the mindful application of ‘pause, clarify, and strategize’ can create room for more effective, sustainable solutions. Taking this approach has led to a smoother process with fewer mid-project surprises and stronger buy-in from stakeholders, who appreciate the opportunity to voice their perspectives early.” #UXDesign #ProjectManagement

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Learn about Maria's journey on building and scaling our Design System!

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Design without reason is like building without a foundation. In my latest newsletter explain what design rationale is.

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There’s a subtle difference between “educating” stakeholders and making the impact of your work visible. One of these can help you win promotions, autonomy, and co-conspirators. The other can distract you from your craft at best… or devalue your work at worst. Thought-provoking article from Sara Wachter-Boettcher on how designers can reframe “advocating for design” in a way that avoids burnout and sidesteps the gaslighting.

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This is a great post for designers moving into management/leadership roles. The nature of your job changes dramatically and it's important to figure out the most effective ways to help your team and the company. As noted in the article, it's very easy to have your time consumed by managerial tasks (operational work). Being deliberate about how you want to spend your time, focusing on the change you want to bring about and working consistently towards that end are critical skills to learn. #UX #Design #DesignLeadership https://lnkd.in/e_g4TRJx

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Design leaders, the red flags you miss during interviews are setting you up for trouble down the line. 🚩 🚩 🚩 Hiring is rarely easy, but if you want to build a thriving design team (without creating a toxic culture!), it’s so important to know what to screen for in candidates. It’s always easier to avoid bringing on the wrong person in the first place than to have to clean up the mess later. What’s the secret? I’ll give you a hint: Sometimes you have to dig deeper with your questions—including the questions you ask yourself. 👀 In my latest post for the Executive Designer, I discuss red flags, green flags, conflicts, and other hiring pitfalls. Give it a read and let me know your thoughts! https://lnkd.in/gwcYyR_j #ExecutiveDesigner #designteam #hiringtips #redflags

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Diversity in design isn't just a buzzword—it's a business imperative. 🌈 As a hiring manager, I've seen firsthand how diverse teams boost creativity, product quality, and profitability. I believe in building teams that reflect our users and bring fresh perspectives to every project. How do you ensure fairness during the hiring process when you have to look at portfolios? Here is my perspective on the challenges of inclusive hiring. #DiversityInDesign #InclusiveHiring #TeamBuilding

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Working on Design Systems means dedicating your career to fostering "buy-in." This article provides excellent strategies for managing this throughout the product lifecycle. My favorite sections are "Offer No Easy Exits" and "Make It Everyone’s Baby." Read the article: https://lnkd.in/ei26MMjR Thank you for writing this PJ Onori! #DesignSystem #UXEngineer

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It has been my continuous struggle to showcase the contributions of the design team to business. Slapping the rules at product level seems unjust. Finiding out a comparative for a specific feature becomes difficult to assess. I am on my journey towards putting a right measuring metrics for the same. Let's connect if you are also looking out or something that might have worked well for you. #uxdaily #productmetrices #designmetrices #productstrategy #designstrategy

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This got me thinking. I hear a lot of leaders say they're looking for cultural transformation, and want to shift in a direction that values reactivity, challenge confrontation, and collaboration. What they're describing is a design-driven culture. Many of these attributes are vital when UX is at the center. If that resonates, then looking at design maturity is the better route. #DesignMaturity #DesignDriven #Culture

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I’ve had the privilege of working with designers and engineers so deeply committed to creating exceptional user experiences that they go beyond their defined roles, stretching the boundaries of design and engineering alike. Designers start coding to bring interactions to life exactly as they envision—something hard to achieve with design tools alone. Engineers move beyond just “making it work” to crafting every detail, caring about the nuances that make an experience delightful. In previous roles, to support and amplify these talents, I’ve set up "design prototyping" or "design technology" teams that bridge engineering, product, and design. These teams help close gaps, allowing designers and engineers to collaborate seamlessly and push their boundaries. At Slack, we’ve established the Design Engineering function—a role critical to our mission of elevating craft, accelerating prototyping, and strengthening design-engineering collaboration. This function came to life through an ongoing journey of learning and adapting how best to align design and engineering to unlock product innovation, led by Chris Delbuck. Big thanks to Ethan Eismann for the support. Transformations like this happen only with passionate leaders and doers like Chris, Gleb Denisov, and Naman Kedia, work together to unlock their skills and people superpowers. Their dedication and example drive change. Chris and Naman have documented this journey in a blog post, where they also lay out the career paths and foundational blueprint for Design Engineers. Their insights can serve as a guide for others setting up design engineering teams for success. 🔗 Check it out here:

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🚫 When Not to Use Toasts: Avoiding Bad UX 👇 Learn why overusing toasts can harm user experience. Check out Max Schmitt's latest insights on when toasts aren't the best choice in UX design and how to create better user interactions. Let's enhance user experience together! 💡 Read more: [When Not to Use Toasts: Avoiding Bad UX https://lnkd.in/dKB4F_Yn #UXDesign #UserExperience #UI #DesignThinking #UXResearch

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Here's a hard truth UX design leaders find themselves learning: No one will buy into your UX design ideas if they can't see how those ideas matter to them. You can get executives to buy into your UX ideas by learning to think like an executive. Once we know how UX design might benefit the organization, in terms of value that executives understand, we can communicate it clearly. https://lnkd.in/ejzJqAp

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Here's a hard truth UX design leaders find themselves learning: No one will buy into your UX design ideas if they can't see how those ideas matter to them. You can get executives to buy into your UX ideas by learning to think like an executive. Once we know how UX design might benefit the organization, in terms of value that executives understand, we can communicate it clearly. https://lnkd.in/ejzJqAp

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Isn't it strange how the types of process materials in portfolios is different than how real work is done in UX? I talk about what materials we commonly see in portfolios that are never used in real work, then I talk about some that we really do use. https://lnkd.in/g45JT7Qk

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Nice article by Mike Fortuna linking Design to Business. While it makes the case for cost savings by having reusable elements, I think the argument for cost savings could be reinforced by an explanation of the "opportunity cost" of also not being able to work on other design work.

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