Introduction to Collaborative DesignOps using Cubyts
Summary
We will cover some of the key principles and guidelines of collaborative DesignOps and share experiences of setting up design operations using a tech platform. You will know more about how to: Define a design process and convert it into a design roadmap. Share design goals and measure impact. Manage design processes and activities. Get started with curated set of tools, templates and best practices.
Key Insights
-
•
Design functions are rapidly growing but lack operational cohesion, causing scaling difficulties.
-
•
Traditional devops tools are task-centric and don't cater well to design workflows, creating integration challenges.
-
•
Four stakeholder groups in design ops have distinct needs: leaders, Ops managers, product managers, and design producers.
-
•
Design leaders want predictable roadmaps and strong team health metrics to manage delivery.
-
•
Design Ops managers aim to standardize processes and reuse organizational knowledge across teams.
-
•
Product managers seek transparency and accountability in design timelines and resource utilization.
-
•
Design producers prioritize creative autonomy but need automated reporting and feedback mechanisms.
-
•
A customizable design process library (e.g., Lean UX, Double Diamond) supports flexible workflow adaptation.
-
•
Centralized document repositories with rich search capabilities enable better knowledge reuse and context retrieval.
-
•
Integration with Jira and Slack allows two-way syncing of design activities and keeps teams aligned without disrupting favorite tools.
Notable Quotes
"The glue that binds strategy, execution, and measurement is missing in rapidly growing design functions."
"Traditional devops tools are more task and issue-centric, but designers think in processes and workflows."
"Design managers need predictable roadmaps and healthy teams to meet project goals and timelines."
"Product managers often see design work as a black box and want transparency and accountability."
"Design producers love their creative tools and want reporting to be automated, not manual."
"You can define your own design process, whether it’s Lean UX, Double Diamond, or something custom."
"All documents—PDFs, audio, video, Figma, Mural—live in a central repository searchable by project context."
"We support Google HEART metrics to show design impact aligned with business goals."
"Our Jira integration will be two-way so you can link design activities to epics, user stories, or tasks."
"We don’t want anyone to change their favorite tools; we build plugins to share wireframes or prototypes directly."
Or choose a question:
More Videos
"No one knows how to cook with the new ingredients of technology yet, and that’s why we face ambiguity and uncertainty."
Greg PetroffEverything is About to Change: Software as Material
June 8, 2016
"An org chart is about formal reporting; a relationship map is about networking and collaboration across silos."
Michael PolivkaScaling Design through Relationship Maps
November 7, 2017
"We don’t just want to hand over the data as a black box; we want to provide contextual information to preserve knowledge."
Bryce Benton[Demo] AI-powered UX enhancement: Aligning GitHub documentation with USWDS at Austin Public Library
June 4, 2024
"Launching and shipping things is a big deal and shows real impact beyond metrics."
Dave Hoffer Joanne WeaverUX Job Search AMA #2 with Joanne Weaver and Dave Hoffer
April 3, 2025
"People don’t want a quarter inch drill, they want a quarter inch hole."
Jim KalbachJobs To Be Done
February 25, 2021
"These tools aren’t about adding bureaucracy but enabling teams to perform at their best under pressure."
Bassel Deeb Will OsbornDo More With Less: Equip and Lead Design Orgs Through Adversity
October 2, 2023
"When done well, convergence means research isn’t a department, it’s a shared system of knowledge or a collective understanding that aligns teams."
Sean McKayCoexisting with non-researchers: Practical strategies for a democratized research future
March 11, 2025
"Helping your team face the data honestly and then diving into customer conversations helps uncover what went wrong."
Alissa BriggsHow to Coach Enterprise Experimentation
May 14, 2015
"Use tech checks before sessions to put participants at ease and build rapport early."
Amanda Kaleta-Kott Lea Martin, PhDThe Joys and Dilemmas of Conducting UX Research with Older Adults
March 11, 2022
