Jason Peart

The more I talk to hiring managers and senior designers about what they are looking for in designers, the more I back up the theory that portfolios shouldn't be X, Y, Z case studies, but explorations of your obsession with details. I've written up more thoughts on this so I don't spam your LinkedIn feed with an essay https://lnkd.in/e9CxHxzz

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Design Leaders, how can we manage remote teams better? 🤔 I love this clip from my chat with Bob Baxley in the last episode of 'Design Beyond Pixels' 🎙️ Managing remote teams in the US can be challenging and it's an even bigger challenge when it's cross continent and wildly different time zones. In this clip, Bob explains an amazing way to collaborate with his team who do happen to be in a completely different continent. Recording clips at the end of they day explaining what has happened, challenges you have faced and what the plan is for tomorrow has proven to be highly successful in Bob's team. He has also seen a huge improvement in his team's ability to present their work and story tell, two key attributes that all designers need to have! If you want to hear more of Bob's market leading insights into the design world, check out the full episode in comments below!

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Action needed: Each year DesignOps Assembly puts together THE benchmarking report for the DesignOps profession. The survey for the 2024 DesignOps Benchmarking Report is open and we need everyone in within the DesignOps world (including designers who help out with DesignOps) to participate. You’ll help DesignOps, Design, Product, and Business leaders and teams to better understand the landscape of our work. You'll also help everyone in the design industry understand trends, changes, come and the overall health of our industry (including salary info, team sizes, team impact etc..) Please take 10 minutes to fill this out. If you have ever referenced prior reports you know how important it is. 👉 bit.ly/DOA2024Survey 👈 Deadline for responses is July 31. #designops #ops #dpm #designprogrammanagement #design #designoperations #designleadership

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Interesting article on rethinking the role of UX Teams. https://lnkd.in/eN7SQHEm #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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Some nice points in here to also keep in mind when you (finally) get an interview and discuss your project work... What Top Design Leaders Really Look for in a Portfolio via The Interaction Design Foundation #ux #interactiondesign #productdesign #portfolioadvice

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I spoke to 13 Heads of UX/ UI on the forecast for 2025. Last week they said next year is rising in hiring. In London across freelance design + digital: The gradient I have seen this year has been growing. From my data, I predict this to continue into 2025. What 5 reasons are causing this? 1. Vice Presidents are looking for partnerships, this trend is rising = funding. 2. The economy is still uncertain, hence freelance will rise to accommodate. 3. 45% of businesses plan to increase freelance hiring in 2025. 4. Hiring freelancers reduces onboarding expenses by 30-40%. 5. Looking back on past data after 2021, the start of 2022 exploded with roles. Honestly, I feel people want to get back to normality, hence hiring confidently. _________ Are you a Head of UX/ UI Design? Want more insights like the above to hire? Send me a message and I will send you data. _________

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In his latest blog, Service Designer Liam Beattie, talks about the importance of developing in-depth user personas when conducting user-centred research. He also discusses his approach to crafting user personas, exploring how they inform every aspect of the design process and support with visual storytelling. To find out more about identifying user needs and refining user journeys, follow this link: https://lnkd.in/eJ9ej-Rw

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Interesting article with suggestions on powering through Design critique sessions. https://lnkd.in/eDSWrfZ2 #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 #ai #genai 

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🎙️ New Awkward Silences with Head of Insights at Figma, Andrew Hogan, who joins to talk about his research into improving design collaboration ⤵️ Stream wherever you get podcasts (see comments for show link). #uxdesign #userexperience #podcast

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Designers are being exploited. I've become increasingly concerned with the state of design hiring processes since my first redundancy back in 2021, and I fear we've reached breaking point (at least I have). Today, we're talking about design tasks. It's now commonplace for potential employers to ask jobseekers to complete an unpaid "task" during the selection process. These so-called tasks usually require days of work, and often involve creating designs that the company genuinely needs and could potentially use without payment or permission. This leaves designers in an impossible position: should we leave our dignity at the door, comply, and get used (after all, we're #Desperate for work) - or say no and hope the next company, if there is one, has morals? It's also hard to spend limited time on a task, when you know you're up against other designers who may simply spend longer on it and therefore be selected to move forward, based solely on their "effort" rather than skills. The good news is (unless you sign something to the contrary) any work you create for these tasks belongs to you, even if you use their branding. If you have any legal concerns around IP, speak to Carrie Bradley! I've already made several posts documenting tasks I've been asked to produce in full, so if you're interested in seeing just how much we're being asked for, check out my older content. One company I was a huge fan of ghosted me after I completed a week's worth of work for them. I'm now saying no to tasks, full stop. If none of us comply with their unethical practices, they'll be forced to do something radical: judge us based on our portfolios and CVs that have taken years to curate. Wouldn't that be something?

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Sorry to break it to you, but you’re NOT a product designer (or industrial designer for that matter). Read on to see what you actually are, or at least what you should aspire to become. 🎙️ 𝐓𝐨𝐝𝐚𝐲’𝐬 𝐠𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐨𝐧 The Design Journeys Podcast 𝐢𝐬 William Gordon, 𝐕𝐏 𝐨𝐟 𝐃𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐧 𝐚𝐭 BlendJet®. 🎙️ Amongst other things, we discussed why product designers should embrace story telling and how relationship building can propel your career. William’s design journey has taken him from designing sanitary ware at Kohler Co., FMCG at SC Johnson to leading design at BlendJet®. Our conversation goes beyond design—it’s about the 𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩𝐬 in building a successful career. We talk about: 🔗 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐧𝐞𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐦𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐚 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐧𝐞𝐭𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤, even in difficult times. Your journey is shaped by more than just the projects you take on; it’s deeply influenced by the connections you nurture along the way. William also shares some memorable experiences from his time at SC Johnson and CamelBak, including a funny and revealing story about how Herb Kohler, the CEO of Kohler, would test toilet seats. 🚽 Key takeaways from this episode include: ✔️ Handling challenging work environments  ✔️ Storytelling’s role in design  ✔️ Understanding how design impacts people and society Whether you're just starting out or have many years of experience, this episode provides valuable insights that can help you grow both personally and professionally. 🎧 𝐋𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐧 𝐧𝐨𝐰 on all major podcasting platforms including Spotify, Apple, Google Play, and Amazon Music.

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Personas - a guaranteed way to generate a lively discussion in the UX world. In her latest post for #ResearchOps - Why do Personas underdeliver to design teams? - Irith Williams goes beyond the initial love/hate response to understand their uses, misuses and misunderstandings of Design Personas. "The first task for a design practitioner is to understand what makes a Design Persona work, and what makes a Design Persona fail. This is key to recognising the ‘threats’ to a Persona’s reliability." https://lnkd.in/eS4RtPTJ • Not a member of ResearchOps Community Slack? Learn more: https://lnkd.in/gRj9tvct • Want to write an article for ResearchOps? Submit ideas and drafts: https://lnkd.in/gmzthmCg #UX #UXResearch #Democratization #Training #Operations #ProductDevelopment #ProductManagement

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When you fit together thousands of jigsaw pieces, the seams are visible. Our job was to make it seamless.    A client needed to edit thousands of content pieces to fit their new app format. Without a solid content strategy, it risked looking like a jigsaw puzzle – jagged edges included.     But with a helping hand, the content migration was fully optimized. Sharp. Smooth. With no seam, join or edge in sight.      Read more on how they got their ‘appily ever after here 👉  https://lnkd.in/evgrurFD   #UX #ContentStrategy #DigitalTransformation #UserExperience 

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Designers struggling with NDA's? Wanting to get in the room for that interview but companies want to 'see' the work first? This is for you. I've long had an opinion on this topic, but the power of our Design:Unfiltered series is all about getting perspectives and insights from some of the world's best. Here Dave breaks down tactful and tangible ways Designers facing NDA challenges can overcome. If you're a Designer seeking new work but feeling challenged and limited by the hiring process of 'showing your work' - You have Options! You have ways and means and you are not at a disadvantage over any other designer! In saying that, cannot wait to go live with another stream tomorrow where no doubt we'll be dropping more nuggets of gold! #designunfiltered #designrecruiting #designtips #portfoliotips #designhiring

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Interesting take from Scott Jenson, the first member of the System Software Human Interface group at Apple in the late 80s, working on System 7 operative system in the period of Jobs absence: "The one thing I'd add is that the zeitgeist has shifted and many of the UX problems feel 'sorted', i.e. there are only so many ways you can do a restaurant app. In the early heady days of mobile, we'd argue for hours if the menu should be on the right or the left. That just feels like an issue people are willing to just accept as sorted. I'd argue this is a false sense of completeness. Just because we have mature design systems doesn't mean we understand the user and most importantly, what they need before and after they interact with our product. We're constantly being told to 'work with the business' which implies doing EXACTLY this flow. Of course, start with this flow to engage, but do whatever you can to expand that flow and add additional research/testing/insights as you can. When I was in London at Symbian, we called this "sneaking drugs in their tea". If done right, the team will learn it's important. It's a shame we have to be so sneaky about it, but in the end, it's one way to build credibility and influence."

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How a UX audit unlocks a new perspective↓ We're so close to our products daily that our ability to spot problems others experience becomes challenging. This is why speaking with users is so important, but recruiting quality users and setting up calls to then analyse feedback is time-consuming and sometimes lacklustre, especially if you hit a streak of no-shows :( A UX audit is a condensed, value-packed, easy-to-digest boost that can save you time and reveal a new perspective. Here’s what a good UX audit covers: → Your Landing page - how well does your site explain what your app does and how the user can benefit from it. → Design continuity - does your App Store listing match the design direction of your website, or is there a disconnect? Is the value clear and easily understood? → Account creation - how quickly can you get the user set up and reach an 'aha moment' inside your app? (tip: the sooner the better) → Activating users - Is it clear what to do next? The user is in your app; what action must they take that is likely to incentivise further interaction? → Retention - Okay, the user did something in your app, but are they coming back to do it again? Is it clear to them that they should? What type of action leads the user to become a retained user, and are you optimising your onboarding to guide users into this action? (If you take anything away, it’s this point above.) A great audit can help you answer these questions and more. For a limited time, I’m opening up and offering free UX audits for teams that want to level up. A few friends in the product space can vouch for these types of audits. They’re a great boost for product teams. This is what you can expect to get: → Answers to all the above → List of quick wins → Friction point breakdown → First impression report → Holistic design review Sound good? Grab a free audit here: ↓ www.shapeshyft.co.uk

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On #BraveUX this week - a special bonus episode! Nitzan Shaer speaks candidly about the future of UX research 💡, why simulated audiences are a step beyond synthetic 🦾, and how UX professionals can leverage them effectively 💪. Highlights include: ⭐ What’s the vision you’re building towards with WEVO? ⭐ How can simulated audiences help accelerate innovation? ⭐ What does the near future hold for UX research with AI advancements? ⭐ Could simulated research eventually surpass human research in accuracy? ⭐ How would you define the difference between synthetic and simulated research? Plus much more! - - - - - 📺 Watch the episode here - https://lnkd.in/gu4NbCkZ Subscribe and listen to Brave UX on... 🎧 Apple Podcasts - https://apple.co/3rzixVc 🎧 Spotify - https://spoti.fi/3q47pPA 🎧 iHeart Radio - https://lnkd.in/g5X5zs_i 🎧 TuneIn + Alexa - https://bit.ly/3jAVkz7 🎧 Stitcher - https://bit.ly/3ezPSw0 - - - - - Who is Nitzan Shaer? Nitzan is the CEO and co-founder of WEVO, a user research platform that leverages AI to deliver reliable insights to designers, marketers, and product managers—in a fraction of the time that traditional research requires 😳. Before co-founding WEVO, Nitzan was the co-founder and managing partner of High Start Group, an innovation consulting firm dedicated to helping companies create and launch breakthrough products 🚀. He also led product management, partner relationships, and defined Skype’s strategy for mobile phones as head of the Mobile Phones and Product Group 📱, where the challenges of working with customers across 150+ countries sparked his vision for WEVO. Complementing his hands-on experience in building and scaling products, Nitzan holds an MBA from Harvard Business School 🏫 and a Bachelor of Science in Engineering from Technion, Israel’s Institute of Technology. An active contributor to the broader product and business community, Nitzan has shared his insights on stages such as The Product Podcast, Product-Led Summit New York, and at Harvard Business School 🎙️. - - - - - Don’t forget to check out the show notes on YouTube for quick-access to interview chapters, as well as where to find Nitzan. #UX #AI #UXAI #UXR #UXResearch #UserResearch #MarketResearch #AIResearch #UXAItools

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