Jake Knapp

The Jobs to Be Done framework is crucial for product designers, especially as the line between product managers and designers continues to blur. This article can revolutionize how we approach problem discovery and opportunity identification, offering deeper insights during the design phase. It's a must-read for anyone looking to elevate their design process and deliver exceptional results.

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This episode of the Finding Our Way podcast articulates, with such clarity, what’s been on my mind about the value proposition of design as a function. A business could leverage creating a stellar user experience as a strategic lever to succeed in the market, or NOT. The latter is totally acceptable where designers primarily focus on production tasks (like UI designs) in an org that prioritizes churning out features. Yet, it’s a bitter pill to swallow for many designers. They feel disgruntled and get exhausted speaking to the deaf ears about how great an outcome design can bring to the table and how influential they could be outside of Figma. This podcast talks about how many designer leaders are struggling to deal with this reality. As someone who is not in a leadership position, I feel the struggle too. But if I were to stay positive and constructive while prioritizing my mental sanity, these would be some options to consider. - Get hired by a company that REALLY values design (think Airbnb, Linear) - Be extremely good at your craft and find fulfillment in it, regardless of its direct impact on the bottom line—as long as you remain employed 🤷🏻‍♀️ - Elbow your way into cross-functional discussions as much as possible, at least within your team, to find opportunities to demonstrate what you can do outside of Figma. You can help expand the perspective on design that your cross-functional partners have, one person at a time. https://lnkd.in/gjheYY_f

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Highlighting my newest article on Making Research outputs actionable. https://lnkd.in/eS48shQz #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

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I’m noticing a peculiar design related anti-pattern of sorts in the post ZIRP economic environment. It’s where companies have the budget to staff design talent, albeit in lower numbers, but the development budget is so limited that teams are unable to implement the work designers produce. This is the third economic downturn I’ve experienced and we always get pendulum swings. In this one, there seems to be a bias toward austerity and implementing the least expensive solution.

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Useful warning here from Phill Julian about Figma's default setting on AI content training. If you want to protect your IP/design work processes, take a moment to decide whether you want them training Figma's AI models...

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Empathy in Application Design: Why Great Leaders Foster Great Teams As leaders in product design, empathy isn’t just a tool; it’s a necessity. Empathy fuels the connection between design vision and human need, but it also creates an environment where designers can bring their full selves and creativity to the table. In my experience, fostering a culture of empathy has fundamentally improved team dynamics and the quality of our work. Here’s how I see it in action: ↳ Open Communication: Empathy encourages active listening, where team members feel truly heard. This creates space for honest feedback and innovation because designers feel safe to express ideas and iterate openly. ↳ User-Centric Vision: When we prioritize empathy, we keep our users front and center. Our product decisions are made with their experiences in mind, ensuring we’re solving real problems in meaningful ways. ↳ Empowered Teams: By showing empathy toward our teams, we support their growth and confidence, which in turn fuels their passion and productivity. A team that feels valued is a team that strives for excellence. → True Story... sharing insights from what it's like to be on a great team: In a project designing a web app for elderly users, our team faced a common challenge: most of us were young and didn’t fully understand the tech limitations older adults might face. To bridge this empathy gap, we held “empathy workshops” where each team member simulated age-related challenges—using gloves to limit dexterity, applying screen filters to mimic vision impairments, and adjusting text sizes to the maximum. A few product team members quickly realized the frustration of navigating with shaky hands and commented, “We had no idea how challenging even simple actions could be.” This experience reshaped our design & development process: we made buttons larger, simplified navigation, and enhanced contrast. By stepping into our users’ shoes, our deliverables went beyond meeting requirements—they genuinely addressed user needs, making the app truly intuitive. With empathy as a foundation, we didn’t just deliver a product; we delivered a meaningful, user-centered experience. Empathy-driven leadership isn’t a buzzword; it’s a pathway to building cohesive, high-performing teams. Leaders who prioritize empathy create an environment where collaboration thrives, communication flows, and great design flourishes. #Leadership #ProductDesign #Empathy #Teamwork #UXDesign #LeadershipInAction

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There’s a lot of talk about how designers need to communicate differently—especially with non-design peers. If you’re hitting roadblocks, it could be because you’re not explaining the rationale and best practices behind your choices, which builds authority and trust. Clear, strategic communication can make all the difference in aligning teams and getting buy-in. #DesignLeadership #EffectiveCommunication #Collaboration

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For anyone wanting to learn more about how we're working on AI as a design team here at Klaviyo, have a listen to this interview with Alexandra Holness

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Really annoyed at Figma's price gouging here. There is no reason other than greed: https://lnkd.in/gfdrEiWH Oh, and I emailed them about it and this line from their reply was particularly poignant: "Additionally the minimum for enterprise is a $5k invoice minimum. 6 enterprise seats or made up with other products." To put that in context... our monthly Adobe bill (for 8 CC, 7 PS, 6 Acrobat licenses) is ~NZ$2k... Amazing how quickly enshittification sets in... #Figma #Design #SoftwareLicensing

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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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I talk to senior designers and design leaders every day and there is one thing that became evident to me: In the current market there is no clarity about the career paths and what would be the right step for them. Choosing your future role requires a clear understanding of your aspirations, motivations, and chances for success. For this reason, Dilara Cumhur Neutze, Kate Syuma, and I will be hosting a session to discuss the nonlinear design careers and how these two incredibly successful design leaders have found their path. Join us for this discussion on November 26th. We will cover: - Embracing Non-Traditional Design Careers - Creating Space for Reflection and Vision - Choosing What's Right for You: IC vs. Manager - The Power of Execution in Achieving Success Sign up and share your questions in the comments! We will cover some of them in the session!

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Mastering the 8-Point Grid System (Real sh*t) Spacing is one of the most underrated aspects of design. Many designers rely on intuition, and while that can work, achieving consistency takes more than guesswork. The Spacing Struggles: --Every product has a unique spacing system. --No strict rules. No shortcuts. This is where the 8-point grid system becomes your best friend. What is the 8-Point Grid System? It’s a simple system for spacing and alignment. ✔️ Divide your layout into a grid. ✔️ Each unit equals 8 pixels or points. ✔️ Use increments like 8, 16, 24, or 32. Why it works: ✔️ Keeps designs cohesive and balanced. ✔️ Ensures consistency across screens. ✔️ Developers will love you for it. How to Use It? Spacing isn’t just technical—it’s about relationships. Think of it as “Spacing Friendship.” Close elements (like headings + descriptions)? ➡️ Best friends. Use 8px. Groups of related content (tags, buttons, images)? ➡️ Friends. Use 16px. Larger sections that need separation? ➡️ Acquaintances. Use 24px or more. This creates a natural visual hierarchy and improves scanning. Dynamic designs often need flexibility. Use a constant (X) based on your smallest element size (usually text). ----For standard spacing, X = font size. Want more breathing room? ➡️ X = 1.25 × font size. Want a compact design? ➡️ X = 0.75 × font size. For example: If your smallest text is 16px: Standard: X = 16px. Hero section: X = 1.25 × 16 = 20px. Consistency is Key👻🛏️ Designs without a clear system often look messy. By limiting options to an 8-point grid, you can: ✔️ Save time. ✔️ Avoid endless tweaks. ✔️ Keep your designs polished. Takeaway Mastering spacing is about creating harmony. ✔️ Stick to the 8-point grid. ✔️ Use “Spacing Friendships.” ✔️ Adjust dynamically with X. ----------------------------------- Your future self (and your developers) will thank you. What’s your go-to spacing tip? Let’s discuss below! 👇 ♻️ Share this to inspire smarter design systems!

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I remember one of these specific PJisms, and design principle of PJ Onori's when we worked together, spending less time on design artifacts. Fast forward to when we started the podcast, I've always wanted to record an episode about our ISMS, and what were some design principles that have followed us along. We'll be dropping some more of these backlog episodes that we recorded over the winter, but have been sitting as b-sides over the next few months! Listen here 🎧 https://lnkd.in/gdZ7qZmm #designsystems #designsystem #podcast #productdesign #designops

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**yells into the void** Advice to designers creating your design portfolios (or presentations) Start with the "actual" designs, discuss how you collaborated with the team, what was your responsibility and how beliefs or user feedback shaped it. Don't just skim over and show design or sketch at the end but discuss what interactions or features you explored, and how you evolved the design to solve the problem given the goals and constraints. aaaand if you want to land people understanding your design skills- start with the magic- share videos, click-throughs and prototypes and what would you do if you had more time? Process? Share enough process to provide context. Have the rest in your back pocket to back it up. (We can't read those post-it notes anyways)

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The second part of my article on the value of explicit design rules is here. In it I dive head first into example in layout, position, ordering padding and margins with examples from various design tools. In the end of this part there's also a treasure trove of links to other insightful people writing on adjacent subjects. Hope you find it interesting and be swayed to try tools that allow for more expressive explicit design rules. https://lnkd.in/dmGpUHU6

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O-M-G. Learn how to craft some seriously refined 3D letters using Affinity in the next Creative Session. Especially for those Designers that have recently downloaded Affinity and still running it through it's paces. You'll pick up essential Affinity illustration skills and tricks in seconds. https://lnkd.in/gYvsrdme #affinity #illustrators #canva

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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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🤝Designing Together: The Power of Trust in Cross-Functional Teams Let’s talk about something often overlooked in the hustle of deadlines, roadmaps, and launches: the human connections that hold our squads together. As product designers, we live at the intersection of user needs, business goals, and technical feasibility. In this space, our product managers and engineers aren’t just “other functions.” They are our partners—the people we rely on to bring ideas to life. Yet, the real challenge is less about tools, processes, or even skillsets, and more about building relationships rooted in honesty, transparency, and trust. Here’s the truth: without these values, even the most brilliant designs can falter. Why? Because product development isn’t a solo act. It’s a collaborative symphony, where alignment, constructive friction, and mutual respect drive success. Honesty: The Foundation Honesty starts with dropping the ego. Be real about what you know, what you don’t, and where you need help. For example, if a design direction feels risky, say so. Likewise, invite your PM and engineers to challenge your assumptions. The best ideas emerge when all perspectives are heard, not when we hold back to avoid discomfort. Transparency: The Glue Transparency isn’t just about sharing updates—it’s about inviting others into the process. Share your messy explorations, involve engineers in user research, and talk openly about constraints. A transparent team is a team that avoids surprises. And when everyone understands the “why” behind decisions, alignment comes naturally. Trust: The Multiplier Trust doesn’t happen overnight—it’s earned through actions. It’s being consistent in your delivery, showing empathy when conflicts arise, and treating criticism as an opportunity rather than an attack. When trust is solid, something powerful happens: debates shift from “proving a point” to “solving a problem.” The Role of Feedback Feedback is where these values are put to the test. Constructive criticism isn’t just about improving a design—it’s about building a better partnership. When a PM critiques your work, they’re helping align it with the strategy. When an engineer pushes back on feasibility, they’re ensuring it’s buildable. Embrace these moments. They’re not threats; they’re gifts. The Big Picture In a squad, the lines between roles blur. Success isn’t about who “owns” the best idea—it’s about delivering the best solution together. When honesty, transparency, and trust become your defaults, your team stops being just a collection of functions. You become a unit, operating with shared purpose and collective accountability. So, product designers: How are you fostering these values in your squads? What’s one thing you’ll do differently this week to strengthen your partnerships? Let’s commit to designing not just great products, but great relationships. That’s where the real magic happens. #Collaboration #ProductDesign #TrustMatters #Teamwork #productdesign

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Product designers take note. The world is changing so quickly. If you're not designing these kinds of experiences, you are creating something that is already obsolete: 👉🏼 AI agents that work for you proactively 24/7, and autonomously complete tasks and workflows on your behalf. 👉🏼 Multi-modal discussions that include voice, text, and visuals all at once. 👉🏼 Tools that combine all your data into a single knowledgebase that empowers AI with extreme understanding and real-time context across multiple channels and touchpoints. ❌ Wrappers around ChatGPT don't count. You'll be cannibalized. ❌ Co-pilots added on to legacy products don't count. That's still old-paradigm, human-first thinking. It needs to be an end-to-end experience (not a point solution!) that solves valuable niche use cases and replaces labour. (The labour budget is way bigger than the software budget!) That's the future of all software. If you're not building the future, find another job that will allow you to. Anyone disagree? I'd love to hear your thoughts.

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