Summary
Lou Rosenfeld of Rosenfeld Media opens the Design and Product conference by sharing the collaborative and iterative process behind its creation, emphasizing community involvement and preparation with speakers. He introduces key contributors like Lauren Cantor, the conference librarian, and Manuel Herrera, the sketch noter, who help enrich the attendee experience. Lou details practical information about the conference's website, Slack channels, cohorts, and accessibility-focused sponsor sessions by Sam Pru at Fable. Christian Crum, the conference curator and product leadership consultant, follows by explaining the core rationale of the event: addressing the ongoing challenges UX practitioners and product professionals face around defining their roles and working better together. Christian outlines three main conference themes: achieving role alignment and clarity, understanding how strategy and priorities are set and defended, and effectively managing and influencing stakeholders including leadership. He notes the intention to foster open conversations through the conference and the associated Slack community, with the goal of advancing the field and resolving the tensions between design and product roles. The day’s program is designed to present coherent ideas that build on these themes, supported by diverse speakers and interactive experiences.
Key Insights
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The Design and Product conference was developed over many months through iterative collaboration among curators, advisors, speakers, and participants.
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Role ambiguity and collaboration challenges between UX practitioners and product managers remain a primary issue in the industry.
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Conference themes emerged from community user research, capturing real concerns about role clarity, strategy setting, and stakeholder management.
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Achieving mutual respect and clear agreements on roles is foundational before advancing productive design and product teamwork.
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Both UX professionals and product managers can feel sidelined or overruled in prioritizing roadmaps and strategies.
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Successfully influencing non-design or non-product-savvy stakeholders is critical for delivering results.
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Supplemental conference resources such as sketch notes, written notes, and curated resource lists help attendees focus and retain information.
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Virtual cohorts and social activities like Cozy Juicy Reel foster networking and deeper connections among attendees.
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The conference includes highly regarded sponsor sessions, such as Sam Pru’s on accessible online shopping, which are open to the public and often requested for recording.
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The conference aims to create an ongoing conversation and learning community via a Slack channel, extending beyond the event itself.
Notable Quotes
"This is a beautifully aged stew, delicious ideas that have a sum that’s greater than the parts."
"The conversation about design and product collaboration is happening privately inside businesses or from coaches and mentors."
"There is no one size fits all answer, but there’s also not even a common everyday answer to how design and product roles work together."
"If you don’t clarify the roles and who does what, it’s kind of impossible to do anything else."
"Product managers can feel like they have no say about priorities just like UX practitioners do."
"How do you influence bosses who don’t understand design, product, or technology? That’s a key challenge."
"Please come away from this conference with at least one contact, maybe even a friend."
"We want you to put your pencil down and pay attention because you have access to sketch notes, recorded talks, decks, and written notes."
"Sponsor sessions at our conferences are often so good that people ask for recordings — that’s unusual."
"Design and product is more about making sure design is part of product than implying any subordination."
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