Rest in Peace Fly-in-fly-out Design
Summary
When global travel shut down, Viamo had a dilemma: how would they meet their users? For almost a decade, Viamo has worked with communities around the globe building products for people with limited access to technology. They operate in over 40 countries and their staff comprises workers based in 19 different time zones. Learn how the Viamo team has become better designers, more equitable practitioners, and better positioned as a company by adopting a “Human Centered Design Approach”, skilling up their in-country teams, and working with a network of local design researchers.
Key Insights
-
•
Embedding local designers in user communities enables more authentic, continuous research and better product outcomes.
-
•
Pandemic restrictions accelerated the shift away from flying-in designers to locating them near users.
-
•
Extractive research treats users as data sources rather than partners, which harms trust and design quality.
-
•
Compensation frameworks for research participants improve ethical standards and engagement.
-
•
Design practices and research methods must be adapted flexibly to local cultural contexts.
-
•
Building sustained relationships with users requires regular follow-up beyond initial research interactions.
-
•
Company-wide human-centered design education fosters shared understanding and deeper community engagement.
-
•
Design work should be continuous and collaborative, not isolated and project-limited, to ensure knowledge retention.
-
•
Maintaining and sharing research documentation enhances organizational memory and resilience.
-
•
Reducing travel for research helps lower an organization's carbon footprint while encouraging closer local engagement.
Notable Quotes
"Go home and find a way to do it where you're from. Don't come here to Thailand."
"When someone gives you their phone number or interview with you, you become a steward of their data."
"Users are not just sources of data; they're partners who bring their experiences and insights."
"If you want your users to trust you, you need to share openly and be transparent about your research."
"We started a human-centered design passport training to empower local staff to engage in research."
"Flying out to meet users and then flying home to design somewhere else is not sustainable or effective."
"Briefcase NGOs show up, collect opinions, don't pay people, and then disappear."
"Nothing is ever finished. Everything is a living document, constantly evolving based on local feedback."
"Building follow-up into your work plans is crucial, so you're engaging users at key decision moments."
"Reducing flights isn't about abolishing travel, but about reducing carbon emissions and building resilience."
Or choose a question:
More Videos
"Celebrate customer-driven successes so the whole organization learns what’s valued and aspires to do the same."
Ross SmithBreaking Barriers with Empathy
June 9, 2017
"We are a B2D company – business to dog – making technology so dogs can speak English to people and each other."
Kevin M. HoffmanTheme 2: Enterprise Team Journey
June 3, 2019
"Leadership doesn’t only mean managing; it can be mentoring, product leadership, or technical influence."
Ian SwinsonDesigning and Driving UX Careers
June 8, 2016
"Testing with real users humanizes the problems and reveals simple fixes like changing one label or color."
Sam ProulxUnderstanding Screen Readers on Mobile: How And Why to Learn from Native Users
October 2, 2023
"The project charter is our best friend for accountability, impact, and timelines."
Briana Thomas Christina RodriguezWhen Design Ops Comes in H.O.T. : A Tale of a Transformed Design Org
September 30, 2021
"Achieving coherency across products leads to less training, fewer support calls, and more users successfully adopting products."
Prerna MakanawalaAchieving Balanced Design Consistency
June 9, 2021
"Our approach eliminates the need for developers to inspect design specs to recreate styling and layouts from scratch."
George Abraham Stefan IvanovDesign Systems To-Go: Reimagining Developer Handoff, and Introducing App Builder (Part 2)
October 1, 2021
"UX design ranked number 13 on LinkedIn’s ’Jobs on the Rise’ list in 2021."
Dana Bishop2022: The Year UX Demonstrates its Business Impact
March 11, 2022
"Managing towards outputs means someone has decided what the solution is going to be and told you to make that thing."
Jeff GothelfWho does what by how much?
November 20, 2025
