David Webster

I’ve been thinking a lot about how we might charge for “service as a software” products in the future. I predict packaging and pricing for these products to actually start looking a lot more like how we charge for human labor — T&M, consulting fees, maybe eventually even some version of a regular salary based on complexity of computation or job to be done. Curious to know your thoughts. #ai #design #productmanagement #business #strategy

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𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗜 𝗘𝗺𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗰𝗲 𝗚𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗟𝗼𝘀𝘁 Sometimes mid way through developing a new product I’ll find myself feeling like I’m lost in the woods. In order to avoid walking in circles, I need is a landmark to head towards. In product design, my landmark is the solution I aim to create for my customers. At the beginning, I don't know exactly how to reach that solution. If I stay focused on the solution I know I’ll find my way, if I don’t I may be circling in the woods forever! But if I keep taking steps towards the landmark, I'm bound to encounter a stream or a river that will lead me out.

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We secured $770k in design salaries in our first month operating in the US 🎉 We placed exceptional: • Product Design Director in California • Two Senior Product Designers in Oregon and North Carolina • Senior Product Designer in London Some of these searches started before July, but last month was when all the offers were finally signed. I could not be more excited with the results! Shoutout to the most design-savvy and caring recruitment team at Hirey | Design Recruiters 🖤 Looking back all I can say is that: Last year was D-E-V-A-S-T-A-T-I-N-G. I believe many of you experienced the same. I was full of self-doubt and nagging thoughts: "Will what I do ever be needed again?" “Maybe it’s time to shut down and go back in-house?” “Am I just a good IC, but not a business owner?” Now, everyone says the market is picking up, and autumn should be fruitful in hiring. Fingers crossed! But we’re ready to face any challenges that come our way. To all small business owners who’ve made it through hard times without losing the team: I believe now we can do anything! #hiring #recruitment #entrepreneurship #motivation #community #design

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🤹‍♂️ “I had no idea you could do that” As we attempt to scale and white-label our design systems, we've run into providing some options that leave our team a bit stumped and scratching our heads. After doing some research, I’m appreciating all the efficiency gains you can pull off with just a few Figma tricks and tutorials. → Small components are easy, but as components get more complex or resemble layouts, tracking all the possible nested variations is impossible. → Sometimes components have optional elements that show and hide depending on the needs of a specific client or context. → “You get a logo, you get a logo, everyone gets a logo“ Everyone has their own branding, which means toggling between multiple logos and lockups. With some digging, we found resources to help with all of these use cases: 🖼 Building flexible components with "slots" by Luis Ouriach is a super useful walkthrough for experimenting with the concept of slots in Figma. “Slots” allow you to create a placeholder component inside a more complex “container” component allowing you to build more flexible and context-specific layouts. https://lnkd.in/gp2JEFFU 🙈 An Introduction to Boolean Variables in Figma by UI Collective offers a simple overview of how to apply use the hidden gem of variables options. Boolean variables allow you to show and hide elements not just in prototypes but in component variants. This was useful when we wanted to toggle elements within components for various themes. https://lnkd.in/gWt8QRit 🎭 Modes: Changing a Branded Header by Nate Greenwall was exactly the solution I was looking for when I needed to offer multiple logo options from a centralized library. The playground file maps out how you can pull this off with string variables and modes. https://lnkd.in/gJhcemcm 💎 I hope some of the resources that we've leveraged at Exygy can be helpful for you and your teams working in Figma. → Leverage slots for nesting smaller components within larger container layouts. → Utilize boolean variables to show and hide elements across variants. → Experiment with using string variables to switch elements like logos for different brands. #figma #ui #design #DesignSystems #variables

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As AI, VR, AR, & MR continue to dominate conversations in and about our industry, I’ve been prompted to think about what kind of change I hope these advancements will spur in the product design practice. Here are some of my thoughts and how more technology could save us from the robots.

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Hey industrial designers check out this informative AI event Thursday for IDSA, RSVP in the link below!

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I had an amazing chat with Sera Tajima on her podcast about modern work life, navigating a design career, being Head of Design of a startup, and living your life with intention. Hope you all enjoy this one, episode below!

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I love this article on what we've learned over the past 10 years of Material Design at Google: Form should follow feeling. We need variety as well as consistency where it matters. Just start designing with others and see where lots of iterations take you. And put human connection first to make it interesting. Material has come a long way from "digital paper" and what the world needed 10 years ago, a focus on consistency above all to make the exploding world of apps understandable. I'm super excited by where we're at right now and everything the next 10 years of Material will bring to create unique, but still highly usable, digital products that embrace the feeling of using them. https://lnkd.in/gQC93JdW

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How do you use data in design? Here’s an interesting perspective: data can be a source of power. That's from Wendy Owen, who leads design for Facebook at Meta. Wendy describes using data (of all kinds) as a source of power to build her intuition and create better conversations across the team. I like the different ways she talks about data and the different sources she considers (observational, behavioral, etc). The variety reminds me of Tommy Geoco's “Shapes of Work” concept. Full interview in the comments. #design

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2 years with Nectar! 🤘🔥 My favorite highlights: → Our team’s growth from 23 employees to 90 employees. Product alone grew from 6 of us to 21 strong now 🙌🏼, and we’re a sleek, efficient, resilient team under Brian Cressall and Nate Tingey. → Established Nectar’s Design System and built our component library, significantly improving speed, consistency, and quality of design and implementation. → Completed a massive UI design refresh for the existing product (bless the devs still building it 🫡 ). → Launched Nominations, the largest and most impactful new feature we’ve built at Nectar yet. → Completely scrapped a project, because it was the right thing to do. Grateful to work on a team that’s hyper-focused on our ultimate goals, and is sincerely willing to let sunk costs be irrelevant. → Ideated, designed, and launched our new product Internal Communications in 8 weeks with a small, mighty team 🤯 I’m still amazed we managed it. → $40M Series B funding in April 2024 with PeakSpan Capital. → Saw our efforts, motivation, and passion pay off when Nectar was recognized as the 2nd Fastest Growing Company in Utah County, 1st fastest growing software company in Utah, 8th fastest growing software company in the U.S., and 87th fastest growing company in the U.S. (across all industries). → 300% increase in revenue in Q3 2023 vs Q3 2024 (Q3 was also 50% above our revenue Q2 2024). → Saw every department at Nectar grow in excellence. I’m in awe of the caliber of Engineering, CS, Marketing, Sales, and what they accomplish. → Relished the challenge and variety of asks in the beginning as Nectar’s sole designer, including working on print design (looking at you, 28’ tradebooth) and animations for the first time. That animation announcing Nectar’s new logo a year ago? That was my first animation, and I’m still proud of myself for figuring it out enough to make that 😂. → Spent way too much on Holiday gas station runs (RIP old office). This is a long list, but for the record I cut it in half from what it was 😅. I’m grateful Nate reached out on LinkedIn right at the perfect time when I was looking to switch things up, and that we’ve made a great team ever since. Getting to work closely with our little product design team—Nate, Mason, Tyler, and Maya—and many, many others keeps me growing and keeps me motivated on the daily. Nectar’s mission and way of working resonated with me from the beginning. It’s rewarding to see our company continue to gain momentum and maturity, all while seeing how much room we still have to grow. Very, very grateful to be part of the journey. As we say, it’s still Day 1 at Nectar. 🚀

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The automobile industry has always made user experience in the car a cornerstone of its success. They must lead the way in today's market, where the economy is driven by user experience. In-car user research is vital for exceeding user expectations, driving innovation, enhancing safety, and ensuring market competitiveness! #userresearch #UXDesign #automobileUX

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🚀 Exploring AI & User-Centered Design: Where UCD Falls Short 🤖🔍 AI is transforming our world, but is User-Centered Design (UCD) keeping up? In my latest blog, I dive into my experience and challenges of integrating UCD with AI, covering key points like: 🔹 The Dilemma of Unknown Unknowns: How AI introduces new, unpredictable issues. 🔹 Data Gaps: The impact of missing data on inclusivity and fairness. 🔹 Big Data Complexity: Why designers need new skills in data analysis. 🔹 End-User Complexity: Making AI understandable for users. 🔹 AI Behavior: The need for ongoing maintenance and refinement. Drop your thoughts and experiences in the comments—I’d love to hear your perspective! 👇📢 https://lnkd.in/g9yAHQ5p #AI #Design #UserCenteredDesign

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📱✨ Excited to share my latest project: A full redesign of Panasonic’s Miraie app! 🏠 I’ve transformed this smart home platform with: • Intuitive user interface • Enhanced accessibility features • Streamlined device connectivity • Personalized user profiles • Intelligent energy-saving modes The result? A seamless, user-friendly experience that’s boosting engagement and making smart living accessible to all. Check out the full case study to see how we’re shaping the future of connected homes! #MiraieApp #UXDesign #SmartHome #Innovation Thoughts on this redesign? I’d love to hear your feedback! 💬

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Check out this awesome article written by Jess Sattell, Lynn Hao, and Angelie Herreria- Tagle with help from Sue G. on lessons learned from bringing Spectrum 2 from idea to reality.

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Great writeup on the value design can bring to product organisations irrespective of technoöogical shifts such as AI.

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The video for my talk at Front: a UX & Product community conference is live. This session, Codifying Design Decisions, builds on my last talk at Front, How to Establish and Maintain a Design System from two years ago https://lnkd.in/grcaxC4i

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Incorporating inclusive and equitable design practices results in: 1. Reaching new users who are underserved by existing products by designing solutions that authentically connect with them 2. Developing more differentiated products with new features, potentially unlocking new market opportunities and revenue streams 3. Product designers experiencing more meaning and purpose in their work, and design participants (who are underserved by the current market) feeling heard and included in the design process Read more about our work here: https://lnkd.in/gDzFazm7

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My colleague Anthony Sanchez and I had a conversation about good design vs. beautiful design on the latest episode of Currents on the Funsize Show Podcast by Funsize. I'm interested to hear your personal thoughts on the topic. #design

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