A conversation about priorities — From time to time the Design Dept. team gets together to discuss topics we’ve been thinking about or struggling with. Often these are issues that have come up in our own lives that we’re also hearing others bring up in workshops or coaching sessions. Recently, we’ve been pondering the idea…

A perspective from Ibrahim Hasan, UX Content Designer — Chances are you’ve already read some of Ibrahim’s writing for Design Dept. in articles like No, you should not be your team’s shit umbrella and Performance conversations don’t have to be so miserable. …

Our top picks for design leaders — Learning and development are the bread and butter of what we do at Design Dept. We are, after all, on a mission to become better leaders, designers, and humans. So in the spirit of new beginnings (hello, 2023!) and leveling up, our staff members are sharing their most transformative reading…

People management is not the only way — In under a year, Jon Rundle had gone from being the second design hire on his team to officially managing it. Things were on an upward trajectory. The team was in hyper growth mode, enjoying extra headcount approvals and internal excitement around the work they were shipping. …

A manager’s guide to growth & development — For people leaders, an important part of the job is growing and developing teams, whether that comes in the form of mentorship, coaching, or sponsorship. While these terms can be used interchangeably, it’s important to know the difference because they have varying implications on people’s career trajectories. Having worked with…

From craft leader to business leader — Many creative leaders don’t make it to the executive table because they don’t understand the path. There’s a massive misconception out there that in order to be the VP of [insert creative function here], you have to be a master of that craft — at scale. …

How it hurts you and your team — We’ll cut to the chase with this one: the “shit umbrella” is one of the worst buzzword concepts in the creative management space right now (up there with “feedback is a gift” — hint: it’s not). Not to be confused with the “shit sandwich,” the “shit umbrella” means protecting your…

How to turn them around — There’s certainly no shortage of feedback in design. From crits to formal reviews and brainstorms, you’d think frequency would make us more comfortable giving and receiving feedback. …

A perspective from Courtney Drake, MBA and Design Leader — Many designers find their way into the profession because they love the work — the craft and creativity, but also the user centricity and empathy at the core of what we do. Business leaders value other things more highly: financial performance, product market fit, strategic alignment. It’s easy to look…