Gabe Morazán, CIPP/E

🔥Hot Take for PMs: Please don't hand me a solution to a problem. Instead, focus on detailing the problem and help me understand the why. We will ideate and find a solution together. Next week, in our first episode of ⚫️Bounce, Claire and I continue to unpack the PD + PM working relationship. Buckle up. Subscribe today - links in comments 👇

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My designer has ghosted me. You're in the middle of designing your MVP when suddenly your designer goes radio silent. Vanished, poof! The panic sets in. Time is running out. You're left scrambling to find a replacement. Your project is in limbo. The stress, wasted money, and delays are hurting your business. But you can't let ONE designer ruin your success story. Some Startups get it wrong. They believe it's cheaper to hire one designer. One designer will do the User Interface, User Experience, Animations, Design Strategy, and Graphic Design. No designer can do it all alone. When they ghost you? You have NO team. Be a Savvy Startup. Comment or DM "SAVVY" to schedule a free 1:1 call. #ODD #ODDSprint #startup #startups #startuplife #startupbusiness #startuptips #startupgrind #startuplifestyle #businessstartup #startupsuccess #startupideas #startupadvice #techstartup #startupfounder #startupbusinesses #businessstartups #techstartups #startupcoach #startupsupport #startupidea #startupbusinessess #startupuk #startupslife #startuptech #techstartuplife

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Reflecting on some recent advising sessions, something I don't see talked about as much is how critical it is to have an incredibly strong, unified* Design leadership team in order to build an even stronger design team and product. Why this is so critical 👇 What I’ve seen happen when you DON’T have that unified Design leadership team: 1. Massive gaps in the user experience – Let’s start with the obvious one. When Design leaders are staying neatly in their corners and not communicating, the experience degrades pretty quickly. Especially where the "seams" of their teams/org are. We've all seen (and let's be real…probably have been guilty of at times) the navigation structure that clearly shows the org chart vs. what users actually need. This can happen way too quickly without that unified team. 2. A lack of Design’s ability to influence product direction — The best Design leadership teams work together, pushing each other, to have a unified perspective of what the big things are to tackle in the user experience that leverages the unique expertise of the Design functions, all the way from it being grounded in research, to it having a compelling narrative. When they have that unified perspective and are all consistently sharing that perspective, it is so much easier for cross-functional partners to understand and buy-in on it. 3. Design works against Design — When Design leaders don't have a shared perspective on what is important (both in the user experience and the culture), don't have the right level of visibility into each other's work, or even worse, when they don't have mutual respect for each other, it leads to the leaders (mostly) inadvertently working against the progress of the other leaders/teams vs. together toward a unified vision. 4. A limit to the flexibility and scalability of the Design team – To build great experiences at scale, having the flexibility of shifting people to focus on different parts of the product is critical. When the culture and processes are dramatically, instead of it being exciting for that person to focus on a new space, it is incredibly disorienting, slows everything down, and can quickly lead to burnout. *A note on when I say "unified". I don't mean at all that they agree on everything. In fact, the opposite. They push each other the most, early and often. However, they have shared respect, cultivated by their leader, and shared responsibility around aligning within a timely manner. THEN they support each other in any way they can with hurdles they may each face (e.g. cross-functional buy-in or team-wide communication). ——— Is this interesting? Let me know if you want me to share more on how exactly you can cultivate this strong design leadership team –OR– if you want more personalized advice around this, set up some time with me here: https://lnkd.in/g-vyymtW

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Wow, spot on… Also consider the complexity of a “design system factory” product intended to offer design system stability to the diverse clientele of a consultancy with vastly unique clients, all with critically important needs. I often describe(d) the design tokens and design system as the CENTER of the tech ecosystem, or at minimum on par with the most critical data APIs. Few were ready for what that would cost. Financially, technically and emotionally. #outofwork

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I'd like to share some valuable lessons that have completely transformed the way I approach communications. Plus, I've added some tips for product designers and design partners. 💡Case 1: Answer the Question I thought I knew how to answer questions until I got this feedback: "When an executive asks you a question, start with a clear 'yes' or 'no', or state 'I don't know, but I will get back to you by X date'." While variations exist, the key is to answer the question first. Too much information usually doesn't help - Answer the question, then let them ask probing questions. This advice resonated with me so much that I created a desktop wallpaper to look at it every day. 🤝 Case 2: Manage Meeting Effectively Another tip I learned is how to manage meetings. Based on tips from mentors and coworkers, here are three essential points to remember: 1. Why we are here: Ensure every meeting has a clear purpose. No one has time for irrelevant meetings. 2. What we aim to achieve: Clearly define the meeting's objectives. 3. What decisions we will make: Identify decision-makers and criteria.
 Applying this to design meetings, merely sharing in-progress designs often lacks value. Instead, structure the meeting to: 1. Clearly define the meeting's purpose and type: For example, specify if it’s a review and instruct people on the type of review you need. 2. Clarify the objectives: Are we finalizing designs to send to engineering, or aligning on problem statements with products? 3. Identify decision-makers and criteria for decisions: Then, make a decision. Of course, in both cases, summarize the outcome of the meetings and share it right away. ✨ Case 3: Clarify Expectations At workplaces, confusion and fires happen. Sometimes you're not sure what's going on. You don't want to overpromise or overstep, but you need to know what action is required. When I heard this question "What am I accountable for?" in the middle of a foggy meeting, my brain just cleared. Yes. We need clear ownership and accountability to navigate ambiguous situations. It was a sentence that resonated with me, and I still remember how we were able to move on to the next steps. To build on this, I also advise my partners to communicate their asks clearly. I hear a variety of design requests. Some people articulate their asks with intended outcomes, expectations, and timelines, while others just share desires and disappear. Clarity in your asks is key—it's almost a job requirement. Remember, others can't read your mind. If you believe in your idea, it's important to articulate it clearly. #CommunicationTips #ProductDesign #DesignPartnerships

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Good reminder. What cultural & process norms do you suggest to help cultivate shared understanding?

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So WHY did the chicken cross the road?🐔 It's a classic question, but the answer in UX design is all about understanding user motivation.   Great user experiences (UX) consider not just what users do, but why they do it. Just like the chicken has a goal (maybe food , maybe safety), understanding user motivations gets you to the heart of their needs 🧡   This lets you design experiences that are truly satisfying and efficient. So next time you're designing, ask yourself: Why would someone use this? What motivates them? By understanding the why behind the what, you can create UX that keeps users happy and coming back for more! 🚀 #UX #DesignThinking #Motivation

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Wow - game UX is tough! Here are three UX lessons I learned from demoing my game, Evoplasm to strangers! Forgive my shameless clickbait title. https://lnkd.in/emE9vNqT

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Over the years I've tried many approaches to design critiques with the teams I've managed. Without fail these 4 simple principles impact the effectiveness of design critiques greater than anything else when established as ground rules. For presenters: ✦ Describe the problem you're solving ✦ State the target audience* ✦ Specify the feedback you're seeking All of the above can be done in less than a minute, either verbally or in written format. For participants: ✦ Ask questions before comments "I think you should go with blue instead of red" is less effective than first asking "Why did you choose red for this?" The additional context that comes from asking questions will lead to more effective feedback. Design critiques are the easiest and most important thing design teams can do to improve design quality. Alone they are not a silver bullet. But they are the foundation for all other improvements to design quality. If you're not holding regular design critiques (usually weekly), this is step 1 for improving design quality. If you're already holding regular design critiques but not doing the 4 principles above well, this is step 1 for improving your design critiques. Better critiques. Better quality. * "Everyone" is rarely acceptable as the target audience. Even if the feature being presented is intended for everyone, 99% of the time there's a specific segment or archetype you're aiming for. #design #critiques #quality

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My fiancée and I recently got a puppy. Let me tell you what it taught me about UX leadership… Jk. I’m looking for a job! Tl;dr — Product & UX Strategist and Leader Portfolio: https://www.schricker.info (reach out for password) Recently rolled up in layoffs. Not fun, but it’s already in the past. I’ve taken products from concept to delivery and commercial viability (a few times); untangled complex user experiences for world class financial organizations; developed new tools and processes that doubled development team output or made a small UX team able to scale; I’ve had the privilege to lead genuinely brilliant people through critical challenges. I don’t care about what I think is cool a quarter as much as I care about understanding your business goals, connecting your value proposition meaningfully to people looking for it, and ensuring that the experience of receiving that value is as seamless and value driven as possible. You want my brain on your projects. I’ve been blessed by the outpouring of support and recommendations! I appreciate it so much! I also want to shout out some incredible professionals that are currently on the market: Ambika Ramasamy is a QA Analyst who excels at developing and executing on strategies to ensure the best products. She automates analysis, leads quality assurance efforts cross-departmentally, and has elevated every project I’ve seen her a part of. My largest recent project wouldn’t have been nearly as good without her leadership and work. Matt Cuellar is a smart, efficient, affable Technical Recruiter. He recruited me to IDX. I ended up not feeling surprised at all when I got to know the company from the inside. Matt had represented the company extremely well — not shying away from struggles but speaking to the strategies the company was taking to address their challenges. He showed thorough understanding of what he was recruiting for and how it fit into the picture. I made the choice of IDX over another opportunity in part because of how well he handled the whole process. Jacob DeBenedetto front end engineer extraordinaire! (Also an award winning game developer? Sign me up. No, literally, I’m buying his next Steam release, no questions!) I only got to work closely with Jacob in the latter half of my time at IDX, but it was awesome! I brought a number of different projects to him and he always showed an enormous aptitude to digest the ask and to spin up a half dozen approaches that could be taken. Excellent with WordPress, Drupal and other CMS’s — Jacob also excels at standing up standalone builds! I’ll move mountains to try to work with him again. I’m grateful to consider all three of these individuals friends. But, if you see other IDXers open to work — know that we had some of the best professionals, just recently poor high-level navigation of the market. If you’re considering one of us for employment, know you’re considering world class talent. Thanks again! Puppies are cute. The end.

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Product and design have often had lively debates around the term "MVP"—both what it stands for and its role in product development. I'm a bit old-school here; I prefer "Minimum Viable Product." Viable—as in usable. It might not be pretty, but it gets the job done. Here's why I believe in this approach👇 The single most important thing we can be looking for in the early days of a product is data. Most specifically, customer data. We’re looking for some signal that tells us whether users find the product useful, which parts of it they use, where they get stuck, how often they come back 📈 The quicker we gather this data, the faster we can evolve. Hence, launching something as soon as possible—while we still have plenty of runway to learn and adjust—is critical 🛠️ One piece of wisdom that I lean on again & again came from Jeff Gothelf at Mind The Product in 2015 (https://lnkd.in/gNP8dGw3). Speaking to both product and design teams, Jeff emphasized the need to de-risk product decision making by asking, "What is the least amount of work we need to do to learn the next most important thing?" It's often challenging to decide when your rough first draft is ready for launch. What if customers dislike it? What if it doesn’t add value? Remember, this is the beauty of being nimble and agile—especially in SaaS. We aim for perfection through iteration 🔄 You can't start iterating until you have data. So, ship the smallest measurable thing; launch a Minimum Viable Product and watch closely how your customers interact with it! 🔎 - - - - (MVP sports jersey image generated using ChatGPT 4 & DALL-E 2)

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Another example of how Knapsack helps teams go from design to code quickly and efficiently to deliver real value to the product teams that use your design system. So many folks are focused on documentation being the way to connect design and code (and docs do matter), but having a structured, codified, version controlled way to specifically define how you connect Figma to a coded component is really what helps us deliver value to product teams that use the design system.

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🚨Is your UX killing your sales? Your UX can make or break your tech company. If you have a clunky interface or confusing design… …then you’re driving potential customers away. When that happens, you’re not only losing customers… …but you’re also losing trust, brand loyalty, and, ultimately, sales. 😱 But there’s good news. Improving your UX doesn’t have to be complicated. Here are the 3 things you must do to improve your UX. #1. Do your user research. You must know the problems and desires of your users. What do they like? What do they dislike? Are their needs being met? Rather than focusing on what your product can do… …instead, focus on who is the product for. #2. Keep your design simple. Simplicity means having a visually pleasing layout. Make sure to have white spaces and average-sized fonts. You don’t want to go overboard with your graphics. This will confuse your users and, therefore, make them less likely to take action. #3. When in doubt, ask your users! Successful brands ALWAYS ask for feedback from their customers. This will let you know which areas of your website or app need fixing. Rather than figuring out where to fix your UX… …your customers will pinpoint you in the right direction. Then, you want to continuously tweak and refine your UX. Hope this helps! P.S. I recently created a playbook called “ODD One Out.” This playbook will show you how to develop profitable products and improve your UX. What I’ll share in this playbook is the exact process I follow to give my clients results… …which yielded a whopping 86% success rate! Comment “ODD” below to get your free copy.

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If your performance isn’t measured by how you serve customers and product users then your company is doing it wrong. Performance management should be a lot simpler. Instead, people are rewarded for pleasing their managers and executives which Dr. Edward Deming has said is a recipe for organizational disaster. Which leaves you with a broken system that the antithesis of objectivity. Each day I evaluate my performance by asking one question: “What did I do today to make it easier, less costly, better, safer, more delightful, for people to solve their problems today?” #bealeadernotamanager #changethegame #dobetter

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I wonder what would happen if marketing sites focused on "workflows we enable", "problems we solve", or "core competencies" instead of "features". The mental model of Feature Factories infects entire companies, not just product teams. Value isn't about features. It's about the outcomes they enable you to achieve. Why don't more companies lead with outcomes rather than features? #FeatureFactories #ProductDevelopment #Marketing #Outcomes

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Design and Product folks! Have you used a Digital Adoption Platform for your product? We are looking at (non-custom) solutions to help with app onboarding. I have never been convinced that walk-throughs or onboarding solutions like these produce good results, but I'd like to hear otherwise if you have seen better engagement, better user retention by using one of these solutions. And if you have, what do you recommend?

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This is a great post if youre thinking about swapping from an individual contributor role to management. I think many UXR's feel like the way up is to go to management, but management is not a promotion, its a completely different role. And you need to think about whether that is something you want. It's perfectly acceptable to stick to craft and perfect that further 💛 we need good crafts people as well as we need managers who are passionate about that side of UX.

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“I’d rather ask for forgiveness than permission to conduct user research” “I’m not going to churn out endless wireframe options for someone who isn't the user to make poorly informed decisions” “While your feedback is appreciated, did you ask any customers what they thought?” “That feature sounds fantastic, but did your customers say they needed it?” “Did you know we can prototype and test ideas really quickly without needing to write code these days?” “You want me to benchmark all our competitors? How do we know they’re doing it right?” "What is the cost if we get this wrong? Is it not better to build the right thing?” 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥 These are just a few things I’ve said over the years, it probably feels more relevant now than ever before. Fight the good fight: educate others, challenge the status quo, and cut the red tape. Show your organisation the value of proactive user research. Demonstrating quick wins and actionable insights builds trust and highlights the importance of doing things properly. Your users and your organisation will thank you for it. 🌟

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