Becoming a Changemaker by Leading with Design
Summary
Key Insights
-
•
The role of design leaders has evolved from product delivery to shaping organizational culture at scale.
-
•
Changemakers must assess 'ground conditions' like executive support and resources before accepting leadership roles.
-
•
Rushing into change without understanding the organization's history and culture ('coming in too hot') often generates resistance.
-
•
Building a shared vision requires inclusive collaboration where all stakeholders feel heard and represented.
-
•
Prioritization and focus on a few small wins prevent burnout and enable sustainable change.
-
•
Tools like the impact matrix help teams evaluate effort versus impact to choose projects wisely.
-
•
Vision without execution is futile; delivering tangible outcomes with prototyping and milestones is essential.
-
•
Failure is inevitable in change leadership; embracing mistakes with courage leads to growth and innovation.
-
•
Visual communication techniques enhance stakeholder understanding and trust during complex change efforts.
-
•
Changemakers don’t necessarily need formal design training but must adopt design as a mindset and problem-solving strategy.
Notable Quotes
"The best future leaders will embody the qualities and traits of a DEO — design executive officer — creative business leaders at the intersection of design and business."
"Change is fundamentally a design problem and therefore change can be designed."
"Before you accept a mission as a changemaker, ask yourself do you have a clear directive, champion support, and the right resources?"
"Coming in too hot means running into a burning building like a firefighter, ignoring past work, and rushing without listening."
"Nobody wants to be told to do your thing unless it’s clear that it helps their thing. It’s just human nature."
"Don’t boil the ocean. Get small wins before you go for the big change."
"You need maniacal focus to prioritize, but remain flexible as priorities will always change."
"Vision without execution is hallucination. You must make outcomes tangible and measurable."
"Failure sucks and hurts, but if you haven’t failed, you haven’t taken enough risks."
"When you hit the bottom, that’s where creativity flourishes and it’s time to iterate, evolve, and redesign."
Or choose a question:
More Videos
"Transformation is metamorphosis; it's often messy and aims to create systems out of chaos."
Sarah Kinkade Mariana Ortiz-ReyesDesign Management Models in the Face of Transformation
June 8, 2022
"Tops was more than a grocery store; it was a bank, a pharmacy, and a community meeting place."
Kyria Stephens Marlon KernerPower to Heal: Civic Design in the Aftermath of Tragedy
November 17, 2022
"Data quality is multifaceted, subjective, and can't be reduced to simple profiles alone."
David ConradThe Feeling of Data
September 14, 2023
"The tapestry exhibition will be a three-dimensional map co-created with refugees and local school kids to reflect their stories."
Xenia Adjoubei Sean BruceEmpowering Communities Through the Researcher in Residence Program
March 29, 2023
"Future-facing regulatory structures can avoid post-traumatic innovation by anticipating technology’s social impacts."
Bria Alexander Ariel Kennan Charlotte Lee Sarah Brooks Emily Lessard Gordon Ross Joanne DongReflect and Chart Forward
December 10, 2021
"There is always more work to be done than we will ever be able to do, so enabling others to participate is beneficial."
Robert Fabricant Peter Merholz Noam Segal Teresa TorresA Genuine Conversation about the Future of UX Research
March 20, 2024
"A new joiner meeting someone 10 months in who’s still meeting new people shows the scale and complexity of JP Morgan."
Julie Gitlin Esther RaiceDesign as an Agent of Digital Transformation at JPMC
June 9, 2021
"We started analytics at the beginning so we could benchmark and compare old and new site performance."
Mackenzie Cockram Sara Branco Cunha Ian FranklinIntegrating Qualitative and Quantitative Research from Discovery to Live
December 16, 2022
"If something is culturally resonant, it can shortcut to usefulness in a way that doesn’t seem entirely rational."
Neil BarrieWidening the Aperture: The Case for Taking a Broader Lens to the Dialogue between Products and Culture
March 25, 2024
