When we design together - Sabrina Mach, Ammara Gafoor and James Emmott From three distinct perspectives, this talk will contend that design is an activity undertaken by everyone in a software development team. It occurs throughout the process of delivery — not only at the beginning or the end — and it is a powerful instrument for learning about and adapting to the problems our work seeks to solve, which is a shared responsibility. Making the best use of our multidisciplinary expertise in the activity of design requires forms of collaboration that are too often disrupted by the role-based silos that keep us separated and weaken the valuable contribution our diverse approaches could make to our collective efforts. If you care about accelerating time to market, improving customer experience, or building happy and productive teams, you will want to know why and how it matters that we believe ‘design is in everything that we do’.

1. ©ThoughtWorks 2020
WHEN WE DESIGN TOGETHER
The power of collaboration
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2. 2© ThoughtWorks 2020
Experience Designer (XD)
Sabrina Mach
Developer (Dev)
James Emmott
Business Analyst (BA)
Ammara Gafoor
This talk is brought to you by....
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3. 3© ThoughtWorks 2020
WHAT IS DESIGN ?
Is it the responsibility of one person with the job title?
Is it about drawing or making things look pretty?
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4. Everyone designs
who devises courses of action
aimed at changing existing situations
into preferred ones.
©ThoughtWorks 2020 Commercial in Confidence
Herb Simon (1968) Recipient of the 1978 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economics.
Pioneer of several scientific domains such as artificial intelligence, and many more.
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5. 5© ThoughtWorks 2020
Why good design is important
Good design is good for business
80% of buyer will pay more
for a better customer experience. (Walker. Customers 2020: A Progress Report)
For every £1 invested in design, businesses can expect
over £4 increase in net operating profit. (The Value of Design Factfinder. 2007.)
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6. How to create
good design Technology
Feasibility
Business
Viability
Good design that creates
impact happens here.
People
Desirability &
Usability
Start here
What do people need / desire?
Do they understand how to use it?
What can be
financially viable?
What can be
technically feasible?
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7. Who designs
for whom
Not a complete list of roles
Technology
Feasibility
Business
Viability
People
Desirability &
Usability
Business Analyst Developer
Experience Designer
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8. Who designs
for whom
Not a complete list of roles
Technology
Feasibility
Business
Viability
People
Desirability &
Usability
Experience Designer
Business Analyst Developer
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9. Who designs
for whom
Not a complete list of roles
Technology
Feasibility
Business
Viability
People
Desirability &
Usability
Business Analyst Developer
Experience Designer
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10. Good design happens
when we design together.
Technology
Feasibility
Business
Viability
People
Desirability &
Usability
Experience Designer
Business Analyst
Developer
QA
Infra Dev
SMEs
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11. POLL
Which questions
do you find
yourself asking? Technology
Feasibility
Business
Viability
People
Desirability &
Usability
What do people need / desire?
Do they understand how to use it?
What can be
financially viable?
What can be
technically feasible?
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12. SOUNDS EXCITING?
Let’s look at an example.
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Problem statement: Improve the quality of elevators
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CROWDED
DIFFICULT TO USE
CLAUSTROBHOPIC
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CLAUSTROPHOBIA
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Reframing the problem
is the key to good design!
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25. Design is about tackling complexity.
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27. ‘Most people make the mistake of
thinking design is what it looks like.
People think it’s this veneer — that
the designers are handed this box
and told, “Make it look good!”
…
— Steve Jobs
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28. …
That’s not what we think design is.
It’s not just
what it looks like
and feels like.
Design is how it works.’
— Steve Jobs
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29. ‘That’s fundamentally what design is
about. Taking things apart so you can
put them back together.’
— Rich Hickey
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31. ‘The most fundamental problem
in computer science […] is
problem decomposition:
how to take a complex problem
and divide it up into pieces
that can be solved independently.
Problem decomposition
is the central design task
that programmers face every day.’
— John Ousterhout
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32. ‘Design skill is what separates great
programmers from average ones.’
— John Ousterhout
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35. ‘Most people are rewarded in school for
solving problems. When was the last time
your child — or you — were rewarded
for finding a problem?’
(‘We’ve got enough problems already!’)
— Alan Kay
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36. ‘Point of view is worth 80 IQ points.’
— Alan Kay
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We are all
designers
Frame right
problem
Tackle
complexity
& make
cognitive leaps

38. How to become smarter in our team
An applied example.
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39. 39© ThoughtWorks 2020
Design Studio
1) Frame the challenge, and note
constraints and assumptions.
2) Individually, draw 8 ideas in 8
minutes. Then share.
3) Individually, go deeper into one
idea in 5 minutes. Then share.
4) Pin on on the wall and dot vote.
5) Together, create one idea in 10
minutes.
One of the many methods you can
use to get different perspectives to
collaborate together.
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40. Pharma Industry

41. BEFORE
Problem = We have too
much data. We need to
understand it
Solution = Visualising the
data will help us
understand it
Focus = 90% on building a
visualisation solution
'Build a dashboard!'
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42. Design Studio
DATA PRODUCED
HERE
CAN ALSO BE
USED HERE

43. AFTER
Problem = Has someone done this
test before?
Solution = How can I find a relevant
test result and understand that?
Focus =
50% on finding test results
50% on building a visualisation
solution
Design studio surfaced hidden
assumptions
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BEFORE
Problem = We have too
much data. We need to
understand it
Solution = Visualising the
data will help us
understand it
Focus = 90% on building a
visualisation solution
'Build a dashboard!'

44. Good design happens
when we design together.

45. 45© ThoughtWorks 2020
Good design is
everybody's
responsibility.
#HonourYourResponsibility
Lead by
Experience Designer
supported by XD & Dev & other
subject matter experts
Lead by Developer
supported by XD & BA &
other subject matter experts
Lead by
Business Analyst
supported by XD & Dev &
other subject matter experts
Technology
Feasibility
Business
Viability
People
Desirability &
Usability
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46. 30% Faster Time to Market
15% Accelerated Adoption
COLLABORATION MAKES US FASTER
Collaborative multidisciplinary teams create products that have...
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47. THE ASK
Connect
Reach out to other roles. Find out about the perspective,
knowledge and experience they bring to your team.
Amplify
Show your support to the different perspectives in your team. Use
your voice to make theirs stronger and increase their impact.
Collaborate
Work together to understand and define the problem, then ideate
many different possible solutions before converging on one.
PAIRING: BA + UX + DEV = DESIGN TIME.
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48. 48© ThoughtWorks 2020
Experience Designer (XD)
Sabrina Mach
Developer (Dev)
James Emmott
Business Analyst (BA)
Ammara Gafoor
THANK YOU!
What are your questions for us?
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