FEATURE
Design thinking is ready for version 2.0
According to McKinsey, Design Thinking failed because feasibility and viability fell behind desirability. Done right, a team of designers, industry experts, data analysts and executives can accomplish a lot in a short time: build user empathy, brainstorm ideas, develop prototypes and scenarios, then test them with people and with data models, all in the space of a few days.
That's how it should have been done anyway...
mckinsey.com
The latest challenge facing C-suite leadership? Closing the design gap
The world of design is having ever more influence on business. Leveraging its power adds an entirely new dynamic to the leadership team.
Hello Chief Design Officer!
ampproject.org
Remove the word 'design' and the first thing you notice is that the alternative words help clarify things
Designers, how would you describe what you do without the word "design"?
The author has been testing it with art, design and architecture students; many "graphic designers" are graphic artists while others are corporate branding agents, which are two different things. Many "design thinkers" behave like neoliberal business consultants, while many "urban designers" and planners do the same.
Me? User Experience Strategist? Digital Experience Architect? Usability Guru?
If you need to cheat, here are a couple of generators: UX Job Title Generator and Design Titles
dezeen.com
Why does Jeff Bezos’s rocket look like that? An inquiry
Glad to know I wasn't alone in wondering why Bezos' rocket looked like a body part! Especially after Branson's looked so... elegant. Here are a few tweets and memes.
“They went through a lot of iterations coming up with the perfect shape to give them the most volume, the best windows, and [a design that] wouldn’t kill anyone onboard,” said the astrophysicist Scott Manley.
Tech feasibility and safety obviously left desirability in the dust!
theguardian.com
VISUAL
The best Olympic logos of all time, according to design experts
As the Olympics kick off today, take a look back at some of the favorite logos by design experts.
Hint: It's not this / last year's logo, neither is there one from the past 3 decades...
fastcompany.com
Interactive infographic visualizing your life expectancy
Based on your date of birth and country of birth this interactive infographic visualizes how much longer you get to live.
No one knows how long they have to live, but this is a sobering look at life expectancy related to your current age....
coruscantconsulting.co.uk
UX
10 Usability Heuristics Applied to Virtual Reality
Just as design processes can be applied to new platforms and technologies, here's a look at how Nielsen's heuristics can be applied to Virtual Reality experiences.
nngroup.com
INCLUSIVE
Infographic: 50 Cognitive Biases in the Modern World
As humans we have biases, which often make us less inclusive.
Here's a chart of 50 cognitive biases - awareness is the first step to addressing them!
visualcapitalist.com
Book Sponsor
Habits of Success
Look for my chapter about the Habits of Success from the world of Design in this WSJ & USA Today Bestseller!
amazon.com
TOOLS
New toolkit aims to help teams create responsible human-AI experiences
Microsoft has released the Human-AI eXperience (HAX) Toolkit, a set of practical tools to help teams strategically create and responsibly implement best practices when creating artificial intelligence technologies that interact with people.
The toolkit currently consists of four components designed to assist teams throughout the user design process from planning to testing.
microsoft.com
INSPIRATION
Street Artist Transforms Ordinary Landscapes Into Playful Cast of Characters
Something less morbid... A designerly habit is being observant and being able to see the art of the possible...
Tom Bob’s clever street art is all about finding the possibilities in a place—be it a manhole cover, pipes, or an array of hoses hanging on a wall. Each of these mundane elements has the makings of something spectacular. Tom Bob reveals their inner potential and, thanks to him, we finally see them for what they are: a pizza, a worm, and a swashbuckling pirate.
mymodernmet.com
UNTIL NEXT TIME
I hope you enjoyed this issue, and the articles about Design Thinking, Leadership, Design Titles with a twist, and space rocket design, Olympic logos, cognitive bias and a visualization of your life expectancy...
If you think someone would benefit from Being Designerly, please forward it to them.
I'm looking for feedback, of the brutally honest kind, so this can improve over time. You can reach me at lycerejo (at) gmail.com - thank you!