Writing

Notes & essays.

Thinking out loud about design systems, strategy, and resilient organisations.

Sep 16, 2022

Systems and operations in the design profession

Design systems and operations enhance collaboration in modern design, creating frameworks that balance structure with creativity to solve complex problems across organizations.

#design systems#designops#design operations

Systems and operations in the design profession

Jul 19, 2022

Designing for the last earth

Design must evolve beyond business efficiency to embrace community knowledge and reimagine practice for a planet in crisis, focusing on stewardship rather than growth in our final shared home.

#responsible design#holistic design#ethical design

Using Midjourney AI to generate some art for this article with the title as a prompt

Jan 28, 2022

Five important responsibilities of leading effective design teams

Exploring five key design leadership responsibilities: being the connecting force between teams, advocating for change with executives, structuring designer career paths, creating psychological safety across the organization, and staying engaged with actual design work to remain connected with your team.

#Design Leadership#Design Operations#Managing people

Aug 31, 2020

Design through transitions

How the pandemic revealed flaws in our "normalcy", arguing for holistic design that balances profit with social and environmental impact. Here I am advocating for design that is accountable, strategic, inclusive, and intentionally focused on creating positive change rather than mindless consumerism.

#Holistic Design#Transition Design#Responsible Design

Anonymous author – Hong Kong reading in Chinese “We can’t return to normal because the normal we had was precisely the problem”

Dec 13, 2019

The purpose of work is to do work with purpose

Challenging readers to consider the deeper purpose of both individuals and companies beyond profit maximization. Here I am arguing that corporate purpose should transcend shareholder returns, suggesting "shared value" as a sustainable alternative that balances business competitiveness with social and environmental benefits while positioning designers as key contributors to this needed transformation.

#Purpose#Value of Design#Holistic Design

A photo of a person crafting something with their hands

Mar 17, 2019

Towards a holistic design approach

This article explores how design's value in business goes beyond being just a function or partner. I argue that to truly understand design's impact, companies must view it holistically across three levels: craft, operations, and strategy, rather than reducing it to deliverables or isolating it in organizational silos.

#Design Doing#Design Operations#DesignOps#Design Strategy#Design Leadership#Holistic Design

Nov 12, 2018

Building successful design systems with well integrated research

This comprehensive guide emphasizes the critical yet often overlooked role of research in creating successful design systems. I argue that design systems are products requiring dedicated teams, clear decision-making processes, and ongoing research to avoid failure.

#Design Systems#Research#Design Patters#Data informed

A decorative graphic with a lot of different graphics, boxes and design patterns

Mar 30, 2018

Creating a true open platform for designers

Imagining a universal design ecosystem where designers can work across different tools using a shared file format with version control, similar to how developers choose text editors while collaborating on the same codebase, to focus on creativity rather than being limited by tool-specific constraints.

#Design Tools#Design Craft#Open Source

Jan 29, 2018

Why are we building a design systems conference?

This article explains the need for DSCONF, a conference focused on design systems, back in 2018. It highlights how design systems unite designers, developers, and businesses while improving consistency and reducing costs across digital products.

#Design Systems#Design Conference

A banner for the Design System Conference that we organized in 2018 in Helsinki

Jan 03, 2018

Becoming a superstar level designer

This guide offers practical advice for designers: continuously learn, embrace criticism, fail forward, give back to the community, question assumptions, understand code basics, use data wisely, and document everything to improve your craft and create meaningful design work.

#Good Design

Apr 27, 2017

The “Everybody is a designer” kind of article

Addressing the debate over "everyone is a designer" with nuance, arguing that while non-designers can contribute design thinking, professional designers possess specialized skills (research, prototyping, testing) that require significant commitment.

#Design

Jan 22, 2017

Top 2017 trends influenced by design

Design took center stage in 2016, influencing major 2017 trends including VR/AR, artificial intelligence, minimalist web design, and connected technologies in cities, homes, and cars.

#Design Trends

Oct 27, 2016

3 undeniable skills for UX designers

Sharing three essential skills: whiteboarding for collaborative design thinking, matchmaking through interpersonal skills and facilitation, and documenting processes to track work and revisit design decisions for future projects.

#Design Skills

Feb 24, 2016

Data-informed design in practice

Combining Human-Centered Design with Data-Driven Design creates a powerful "Data-informed User Experience" approach that balances analytics with empathy, resulting in more meaningful products based on both metrics and human needs.

#Data Informed Design#Good Design

Nov 05, 2015

Why UX is becoming a thing

Online spaces have transformed from 90s-era ugly pages into intuitive experiences, with UX design continuously evolving through mobile's influence and content-focused approaches. Better human-computer interaction and data-driven design create meaningful digital experiences that users actually enjoy.

#Design Trends#User Experience Design