Growing in Enterprise Design through Making Connections
Summary
Designers are known for their ability to make connections—to take in a wide variety of diverse data points and find meaning through patterns and associations. As designers in enterprise, we can use this ability to be more effective partners and leaders. In his journey with design at ExxonMobil, Nick Cochran has thrived on finding and making these organizational connections. This talk will highlight how he has used this ability, featuring examples of connections made and some he wished were made sooner. He will also share some practical methods to collect these data points so that more valuable connections can be made.
Key Insights
-
•
Early entrepreneurial experiences, like domain registration, can have long-lasting impacts on career and personal life.
-
•
Large enterprises often operate in silos, causing confusion and lack of transparency that design can help clarify.
-
•
Design’s core ability of sense-making—understanding complexity and acting effectively—is crucial in enterprise environments.
-
•
ExxonMobil grew its design practice from 3 to 100 designers by making strategic connections and embedding design in workflows.
-
•
Investing in design systems like Unity accelerates app development and fosters cross-team collaboration.
-
•
A third of ExxonMobil’s design roles came from internal transitions, enriching teams with enterprise knowledge.
-
•
Meaningful conversations led by curiosity and specific questions can uncover unexpected insights and opportunities.
-
•
Leaders play a key role in facilitating connection opportunities by creating dedicated spaces and communities.
-
•
Inviting non-designers to participate in user research bridges understanding and motivates skill development.
-
•
Sharing insights with context helps others understand relevance and acts as a multiplier for organizational knowledge.
Notable Quotes
"A connection I made at 14 helped me fund college, find my wife, and get my job at ExxonMobil."
"Working in enterprise can feel like chaos with unclear directions and siloed information."
"John Kolko said design is a way of organizing complexity or finding clarity in chaos."
"Sense-making is a motivated, continuous effort to understand connections and act effectively."
"We earned over $100,000 in commission by connecting customer needs to an existing domain registration service."
"It’s not just about being technically good; understanding people’s motivations is key to great app experience."
"There’s a huge opportunity in transitioning people from other disciplines into design roles."
"Treat every conversation as an opportunity to make connections and learn meaningfully."
"Inviting people outside your silo to join projects can lead to better outcomes and personal growth."
"Don’t make the spotlight about yourself; give it back to the people doing great work in your organization."
Or choose a question:
More Videos
"Having a recruitment coordinator who knows all the agencies and best practices is a game changer — a recruitment guru."
Saskia LiebenbergStart Small for Big Impact
May 15, 2019
"Physical remotes have a lower power draw and are often more purpose-driven than phones, which are sources of stress."
Cheryl PlatzDemystifying Multimodal Design: The Design Practice You Didn't Know You're Doing
April 4, 2024
"The squint test helps you see if the right elements are popping on the page without distraction."
Billy CarlsonPro-level UI Tips for Beginners
September 9, 2022
"My job was to ask tons of discovery questions to uncover what my clients really needed, not just what they said they wanted."
Steve ChaparroBringing Into Alignment Brand, Culture and Space
August 13, 2020
"We decided these would be the social norms now, and we just went for it."
Ilana LipsettAnticipating Risk, Regulating Tech: A Playbook for Ethical Technology Governance
December 10, 2021
"Writing my book was just another UX research project synthesizing my career and leading me toward law."
Chelsey GlassonExit Interview #3: Same as It Ever Was: What Leaving Tech Taught Me About Change
December 17, 2025
"Design ops is always swinging wildly between priorities, making partners wonder why invest if you’re always going this way or that."
John Calhoun Rachel PosmanTwo Sides of the DesignOps Coin: Teams Ops and Product Ops
January 8, 2024
"Conflict actually strengthens relationships if we choose to engage with it."
Laura WeissTurn Down the Heat: 3 Ways to Handle Conflict in the Moment
November 20, 2024
"Collaboration with peers and speaker coaches creates better content and stronger relationships beyond the conference."
Louis Rosenfeld Jemma Ahmed Christian Crumlish Uday Gajendar Chris GeisonCoffee with Lou #3: What Makes for a Successful UX Conference Presentation?
May 2, 2024
