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#ihavenoidea
I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT I’M DOING, AND THAT’S OK!One designer’s startup journey as told through Instagram.
#ihavenoidea
How many of you have ever felt under-valued, under-utilized or just plain un-happy with where your career has gone sometime in the past?
#ihavenoideaHackathon where I first met Allen, CEO TrackMaven.
#ihavenoidea
✓ Being the first and only designer
✓ Hiring and building a successful team
✓ Proving the value of design
✓ Continually growing.
Ultimate advocate for napping.
LESSONS LEARNED IN...
#ihavenoidea
@grafxnerd #refreshdc #ihavenoidea
Be prepared to be distracted by trying to read this while I’m talking.
I HAVE NO IDEA HOW TO BE THE ONLY DESIGNER
#ihavenoidea
Why I joined.
Just a designer, her coffee and her beanbag.
#ihavenoidea
Marketing design Responsive design Service design Print Social Tradeshows Interface design Interface layout Voice and tone Usability Ethnography
Project management Prototyping Design culture evangelism User Research User Flow Requirement gathering Copywriting UX process and methodologies Visual design Product design
Going in with a positive attitude, lots of Swedish fish, and a few corgis.
#ihavenoidea
Work/life balance: You can’t be successful if you’re tired or sick.
Some days, I moved my desk outside to enjoy the weather, wine and work.
TWEET THIS
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BEING THE ONLY DESIGNER LESSON #1
Understand your beliefs.
Bring them into focus.
#ihavenoidea
Look how active I am!
Intoxicoders. RIP.
BEING THE ONLY DESIGNER LESSON #2
Be active in the community.
#ihavenoideaWatching the Office while working in the office. Wut?
Know what you need.
BEING THE ONLY DESIGNER LESSON #3
I HAVE NO IDEA HOW TO HIRE
I may have been a bit stressed by the time I was ready to hire.
#ihavenoidea
Know when you need help.
Jon and Fletcher attempting to fix janky blinds. Startup!
HIRING LESSON #1
#ihavenoidea
Start with interns.
Sending off one of my interns, Brooke, who’s now a Product Designer at Aquicore.
HIRING LESSON #2
#ihavenoideaQuiet office mornings.
Figure out what you need to hire for.
HIRING LESSON #3
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Things you want to keep doing.
Things you’re okay letting go of.
#ihavenoidea
Things you want to keep doing.
Things you’re okay letting go of.
aren’t any good at
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Illustration + graphic design
front-end development
Blake and Wade equals three!
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Let go.
Tug’o’war with Maven!
HIRING LESSON #4
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Look beyond technical skills.
Optimism in new hires helps.
HIRING LESSON #5
#ihavenoidea
The best people for a startup environment are those that excel at just doing what is
needed without being asked.
TWEET THIS
#ihavenoidea
Process and structure.
I read a lot.
HIRING LESSON #6
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Where do I find these people?
Ladies and gentlemen.. TrackMaven Design.
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Put yourself out there.
Helping judge American University’s design show.
HIRING LESSON #7
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Speaking. Writing. Hosting.
Our first ever District UX book club!
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Stay connected to talented people.
Talented people apparently like coffee?
HIRING LESSON #8
I HAVE NO IDEA HOW TO MANAGE A TEAM
Rebecca, Product Designer, exploring new concepts at Drink + Think.
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Keys to creating a successful design team
One of my first days at TrackMaven.
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The schedule matters.
A typical week for me.
MANAGING LESSON #1
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Help them dream.
Blake exploring ways to visually convey our message.
MANAGING LESSON #2
#ihavenoideaPhone for you, Maven.
Help them improve their communication skills.
MANAGING LESSON #3
#ihavenoidea
Effective communication begins with clear expectations and consistent follow through.
Branded, down to the pillows.
TWEET THIS
#ihavenoideaWorkshopping a new feature with our CEO and one of our engineers.
Ask. Don’t tell.
MANAGING LESSON #4
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“This is wrong because…”
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“What do you think needs to be changed?”
#ihavenoideaOur templates for growing within the team.
Help them grow.
MANAGING LESSON #5
#ihavenoideaMaven, pouting.
It’s not all about you anymore.
MANAGING LESSON #6
#ihavenoideaSharing a Corona-rita with Blake and Wade at Circles 2014.
Celebrate.MANAGING LESSON #7
I HAVE NO IDEA HOW TO PROVE DESIGN’S VALUE
Taking good photos of the mascot is obviously a value of design.
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Move from production shop to Center of Excellence.
Hanging out at the screen-printing studio.
PROVE VALUE LESSON #1
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Help them see design as an investment.
2015 team planning.
PROVE VALUE LESSON #2
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88% of online consumers are less likely to return to a site after a bad experiencehttps://econsultancy.com/blog/10936-site-speed-case-studies-tips-and-tools-for-improving-your-conversion-rate
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While the S&P grew 75 percent from 2003 to 2013, [the] Design-Centric Index grew an astonishing 299 percent.http://c.ymcdn.com/sites/www.dmi.org/resource/resmgr/pdf_files/TheRealValueOfDesign.pdf
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John Maeda’s DesignInTech Report — http://www.slideshare.net/kleinerperkins/design-in-tech-report-2015/
#ihavenoidea
Show them you care.
Emily cares so much, she risked her life to pose with a 12x4 sign.
PROVE VALUE LESSON #3
#ihavenoidea
Keep up with process, but don’t lock yourself down.
We have processes, but we also deviate from those processes.
PROVE VALUE LESSON #4
#ihavenoidea
IDEACUSTOMER VALIDATION
PROBLEM VALIDATION
BUILD ANALYZEIDEATE
PROTOTYPE
TEST
ENHANCE
RESEARCH
What? Why? Why not? What if? How? Sketches Mockups Narratives Notes
Stakeholder interviews Ecosystem map Competitive audit Content audit Task analysis User surveys User interviews Personas
Value proposition Key product indicators User stories User experience map Taxonomies Sitemap
Product flow Layout Visual style Sound and motion Sketches Wireframes Style guide Usability tests Interaction patterns
Moodboards Style tiles Mockups Prototypes
Content Prototypes Working product Functional code Presentational code Pattern library
Working product Feedback system Marketing campaign
Usage statistics User feedback Competitive threat Metrics analysis Heuristic analysis Accessibility analysis Improvement plan
Focus groups Quantitative surveys Usability tests Card sorting A/B testing Eye tracking
#ihavenoidea
Multiple owners Requesting party Design
IDEA or
NEEDBRIEF KICKOFF
Rinse + Repeat
IMPLEMENTATIONSIGN OFF
Web
POST MORTEM
RESEARCH +
DISCOVERYREVIEW
#ihavenoidea
Invite them inside.
Actively involving other teams in our research.
PROVE VALUE LESSON #5
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Keep it weird.
Yep.
PROVE VALUE LESSON #6
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Don’t be nice.
Being cute helps you get away with not being nice.
PROVE VALUE LESSON #7
#ihavenoidea
Your job is going to change. A lot.
Emily, Blake, Marcus and myself post-Spark 2015 - our annual user conf.
PROVE VALUE LESSON #8
I HAVE NO IDEA BE MY OWN BOSS
Guys. My dress had corgis on it.
#ihavenoidea
Know why you’re doing it.
Old desk view.
BEING MY OWN BOSS LESSON #1
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Focus on one key project at a time.
In the AV booth at Spark 2015.
BEING MY OWN BOSS LESSON #2
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Meet with other bosses.
Our CMO playing hovering art director.
BEING MY OWN BOSS LESSON #3
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Keep learning.
We do Friday lunch and learns to share knowledge across the team.
BEING MY OWN BOSS LESSON #4
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Harvard Business Review how to business
99U creative leadership, growth, process
UIE’s All You Can Learn Library
$23/mo for videos on UX strategy, process, etc
#ihavenoidea
Mike Monteiro the business of design
Jared Spool the value of UX
Julie Zhuo designing and building products
Cap Watkins building + growing
design teams
Peter Merholz bridging design +
product strategically
John Maeda strategic value of design
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Thanks.
