What is Design?
Design is not simply being creative. It is not merely snapping one’s fingers together and having a finished product. It is a culmination of observances, understanding, and application of knowledge that is acquired through experiences.
A designer has to be in the correct environment and have the correct opportunity. Forcing a creative person to sit in a cube, 8am-5pm Monday through Friday is not the correct answer all the time. Giving a designer sporadic available minutes throughout the day is doing them and the company that employs them a disservice. A designer should be allowed to work uninterrupted when they feel they need to in order to maximize their output.
That said, the restraints of business are a reality. Designers have to be available when the business needs them.
Sadly, most of the time, design is an afterthought, or something that is trivialized. In fact, it is one of the most important things that should happen to any commercial project. Good design can be the difference between success or failure.
The process I have outlined in my book is not perfect. It likely differs from any other book you will read. However, what it does have is an actual process that can be easily followed by large and small businesses alike to produce a quality product.
One of the key points and messages in my book is that the design process is not just about one person. It’s about everyone in the business understanding that design is a process, and it takes everyone’s understanding and cooperation to perform it correctly, efficiently and productively. One critical person who does not perform their tasks can sink the entire project.
The key points to remember are:
Communicate. Make sure everyone is on the same page, but don’t burden your staff with long, burdensome meetings when they aren’t necessary.
Time. Be realistic with your timelines. Allow for enough time to complete each step along the way.
Responsibility. Understand who is responsible for what, and allow them to do their job. Know when they do and when they don’t need help or your input.
Companies differ in size and responsibilities. Some put the duty of building websites on the shoulders of one person; some have an entire division of people working on a project. Whatever the case is for your team, there are different roles that have to be identified before you start:
A) Owner. Who is the boss and has the final say in decisions?
B) Manager. Who is the person that is in charge of getting things done?
C) Creator. Who is the person that will create the vision of what the product should be?
D) Builder. Who will build the vision the creator comes up with?
E) Stocker. Who will provide the product with what makes it valuable?
F) Tester. Who is the person that will review and call-out things that aren’t correct?
Each of these roles are important. You may find that A and B are the same person in your company, or that D is made up of a whole division of people. Whichever your structure is or needs to be, the same principles in my book apply.
Keep in mind, there is no perfect process. The only bad process is the lack of one. There are always tasks that don’t meet the “formula”. If you only utilize one thing from this book, make sure that it’s to adopt a design-thinking methodology — Empathize, Define, Ideate, Prototype, and Test. That will help you on any project you will ever encounter.
