Rosenverse

This video is only accessible to Gold members. Log in or register for a free Gold Trial Account to watch.

Log in Register

Most conference talks are accessible to Gold members, while community videos are generally available to all logged-in members.

Theme One Intro
Gold
Wednesday, November 16, 2022 • Civic Design 2022
Share the love for this talk
Theme One Intro
Speakers: Kara Kane
Link:

Summary

Presented from London, the talk reviews the significant evolution of civic design and government digital services over the past ten years, citing major initiatives like the UK's Government Digital Service (GDS), the U.S. Digital Service, Japan's Digital Agency, and Cyprus's Digital Service Factory. The speaker, a UK civil servant with five years at GDS, shares insights from leadership changes, international collaborations involving over 30 global calls, and the cyclical nature of ideas in government design. Legislative milestones such as the U.S. executive orders on customer experience and service delivery, and European accessibility regulations, are highlighted as crucial enablers. The talk centers on reflecting on past achievements while looking ahead to future challenges, particularly around ethics, power dynamics, and how designers’ roles are evolving. It also calls for preserving valuable lessons from the past, sharing stories openly, and collectively shaping the direction of civic design in the coming decade.

Key Insights

  • Civic design has seen major international milestones in the last decade including launches in the UK, US, Japan, and Cyprus.

  • The Government Digital Service UK was founded 10 years ago and remains a key influence in the field.

  • International collaboration through calls and shared learning plays a critical role in improving government design practices.

  • Design ideas in government tend to be cyclical, often needing leadership or legislative support to gain traction.

  • Key legislation such as the US executive orders and European accessibility regulations have significantly shaped digital government service delivery.

  • The role of civic designers is evolving, particularly concerning power, ethics, and strategic influence.

  • Reflection on career paths and historical work is vital for future success in civic design.

  • The ecosystem of organizations working on civic design in the US has grown notably in recent years.

  • Open sharing of experiences and stories helps carve new paths forward in government design.

  • Leadership changes at high government levels can impact the direction and priorities of digital service initiatives.

Notable Quotes

"Civic design and government design practice have reached many milestones in the past 10 years."

"I’ve worked with international counterparts through 30 calls with designers around the world."

"Design ideas come back around again and again, waiting for leadership or new contexts to take root."

"Legislation like the US executive order on federal customer experience has helped us rebuild trust in government."

"The UK Government Digital Service launched 10 years ago, kicking off a new era in digital public service."

"Ethics and power in design are changing and need to continue evolving over the next decade."

"It’s important to reflect on our work and careers to shape what comes next."

"Openly sharing stories helps us learn from those who came before us and carve new paths."

"The US digital service ecosystem has grown remarkably, showing we’re not alone in this journey."

"High-level leadership changes in government often result in shifts in organizational moods and priorities."

Ask the Rosenbot
Abbey Smalley
Scaling UX Past the Size of Your Team
2024 • Enterprise Experience 2020
Gold
Gretchen Anderson
Scaling the Human Center
2017 • Enterprise Experience 2017
Gold
Mariesa Lenz
What Beekeeping Taught me about Product Teams
2025 • Rosenfeld Community
Megan Blocker
Day 2 Theme Panel
2025 • Advancing Research 2025
Gold
Amy Paris
Delivering Equity: Government Services for All Ages, Languages, Sexual Orientations, and Gender Identities
2021 • Civic Design 2021
Gold
Onur Kocan
Understanding the Strategy for Civic Design in a Complex City: Istanbul
2022 • Civic Design 2022
Gold
Benjamin Wiedmaier
Redefining Toolkits: Unbundling to Create a Perfect Match
2025 • Advancing Research 2025
Gold
Sam Proulx
SUS: A System Unusable for Twenty Percent of the Population
2021 • Civic Design 2021
Gold
Sam Proulx
Prototype Reviews, People With Disabilities, and You
2021 • Civic Design 2021
Gold
Karen Pascoe
Developing Experience Teams and Talent in the Enterprise
2016 • Enterprise UX 2016
Gold
Jess Greco
Claiming your power: Practical tools for amplifying your unique voice
2025 • Advancing Research 2025
Gold
Erika Flowers
Introduction to MURAL for UX
2021 • Design at Scale 2021
Gold
Jemma Ahmed
Theme 2 Intro
2024 • Enterprise Experience 2020
Gold
John Cutler
Prioritization for designers and product managers (1st of 3 seminars)
2024 • Rosenfeld Community
Michael Polivka
Scaling Design through Relationship Maps
2017 • DesignOps Summit 2017
Gold
Miles Orkin
Creativity and Culture
2018 • DesignOps Summit 2018
Gold

More Videos

Doug Powell

"When the whole team is trained in design thinking, they are measurably more aligned, more efficient, and more agile."

Doug Powell

Closing Keynote: Design at Scale

November 8, 2018

Mila Kuznetsova

"Recruiting kids really means recruiting adults as their proxies and gatekeepers."

Mila Kuznetsova Lucy Denton

How Lessons Learned from Our Youngest Users Can Help Us Evolve our Practices

March 9, 2022

Sarah Gallimore

"We created a Wizard of Oz smoke and mirrors prototype—a simple text message thread between a parent and this service—just to get enough buy-in."

Sarah Gallimore

Inspire Progress with Artifacts from the Future

November 18, 2022

Lada Gorlenko

"Simply asking stakeholders what success looks like for them in a project is a powerful way to start meaningful conversations."

Lada Gorlenko Sharbani Dhar Sébastien Malo Rob Mitzel Ivana Ng Michal Anne Rogondino

Theme 1: Discussion

January 8, 2024

Alnie Figueroa

"The hackathon is a low-commitment way to get people creatively engaged and having fun."

Alnie Figueroa

The Future of Design Operations: Transforming Our Craft

September 10, 2025

Landon Barnes

"If you measure an infinite number of customers, every change would be statistically significant, but not every change would be meaningful."

Landon Barnes

Are My Research Findings Actually Meaningful?

March 10, 2022

Emily Eagle

"When you’re talking, it’s easier to learn something new, but if you’re shy and don’t talk, you don’t learn anything."

Emily Eagle

Can't Rewind: Radio and Retail

June 3, 2019

Malini Rao

"We neglected our power users during the responsive, one-size-fits-all strategy, and it really hurt us."

Malini Rao

Lessons Learned from a 4-year Product Re-platforming Journey

June 9, 2021

Asia Hoe

"Building rapport and rituals helped our remote team foster camaraderie and trust."

Asia Hoe

Partnering with Product: A Journey from Junior to Senior Design

November 29, 2023