crafting collaboration
DESCRIPTION
Many design and development processes are created with the purpose of communicating how stuff gets done without deep consideration of what will make the work better. And that's a problem. In a digital space of increasingly complex problems, real innovation requires a focus on integrating disciplines in the right place and the right time. And craft, by extension, is no longer just about the deep knowledge and skill one brings to a discipline, like interaction design or coding, but about how our work is influenced by voices and perspectives beyond our area of expertise. Having conditions that facilitate the potential for those sublime encounters where something great is decided or learned or invented will not only enhance our craft but take the design to a better place. But how do we get there? This talk will reflect on the challenges of supporting collaboration and craft in a business context as well as some ideas about how to bring about change.TRANSCRIPT
1Ready to Inspire / December 2012
CRAFTINGCOLLABORATION
Cindy Chastain@cchastain
InspireConference 2012Leiden, Netherlands
Ready to Inspire / December 2012 2
WHO I AM
sketch artist, cinematographer, screenwriter, furniture maker, teacher, experience designer, mother, strategist, piano player, business consultant
3Ready to Inspire / December 2012
sket
ch a
rtist
cinem
atog
raph
er
scre
enwrit
er
furn
iture
mak
er
teac
her
expe
rienc
e de
signe
r
mot
her
stra
tegi
st
pian
o pl
ayer
busin
ess
cons
ulta
nt0
2000
4000
6000
8000
10000
A BETTER REPRESENTATION OF WHO I AM
4Ready to Inspire / December 2012
sket
ch a
rtist
cinem
atog
raph
er
scre
enwrit
er
furn
iture
mak
er
teac
her
expe
rienc
e de
signe
r
mot
her
stra
tegi
st
pian
o pl
ayer
busin
ess
cons
ulta
nt0
2000
4000
6000
8000
10000
AREAS OF EXPERTISE (E.G. SOLID CRAFT)
5Ready to Inspire / December 2012
What does “craft” mean, anyway?
6Ready to Inspire / December 2012
The thoughtful and consistent application of mastered practices.
Ready to Inspire / December 2012 7
HOW TO GET IT
practice (lots of it)
guidance
Ready to Inspire / December 2012 8
HOW TO KNOW WHEN YOU HAVE IT
• You've internalized an approach
• Decisions are well-judged and come quickly
• The work is of a consistent high quality
• You can teach it to someone else
9Ready to Inspire / December 2012
How many of you have mastered your craft?
Ready to Inspire / December 2012 10
idea
Ready to Inspire / December 2012 11
idea
launchv2
Ready to Inspire / December 2012 12
idea
Ready to Inspire / December 2012 13
idea
Ready to Inspire / December 2012 14
idea
launch
Ready to Inspire / December 2012 15
idea
launchv2
Ready to Inspire / December 2012 16
stuff around intangiblesand constant iteration
Ready to Inspire / December 2012 17
Ready to Inspire / December 2012 18
InformationArchitect
Strategist Interaction/visual designer
Developer
19Ready to Inspire / December 2012
ARRIVING AT
Website!
AN END PRODUCT
20Ready to Inspire / December 2012
event
BUT HERE’SWHERE WE ARE NOW
21Ready to Inspire / December 2012
intangiblecomplexalways changing
Ready to Inspire / December 2012 22
WEBSITES ARE NOT SHOES
Ready to Inspire / December 2012 23
In a digital space, craft is not just about mastering a practice or a set of skills; it’s also about how we think and how we collaborate.
24Ready to Inspire / December 2012
Tip #1: Start being craft-ful in your thinking
Ready to Inspire / December 2012 25
Your craft is clearly a product of your thinking.
Ready to Inspire / December 2012 26
Ready to Inspire / December 2012 27
Ready to Inspire / December 2012 28
uncritical/divergent
critical/convergent
Ready to Inspire / December 2012 29
What I’ve noticed
30Ready to Inspire / December 2012
KEY
• Find ways to move between uncritical/divergent and critical/convergent modes.
• Always ask yourself if you’re iterating enough.
• Don’t be a hammer looking for a nail.
TAKEAWAYS
31Ready to Inspire / December 2012
Tip #2: Look beyond your discipline
Ready to Inspire / December 2012 32
You are no longer your own best resource.
Ready to Inspire / December 2012 33
InformationArchitect
Strategist Interaction/visual designer
Developer
Ready to Inspire / December 2012 34
InformationArchitect
Strategist Interaction/visual designer
Developer
Ready to Inspire / December 2012 35
InformationArchitect
Strategist Interaction/visual designer
Developer
Ready to Inspire / December 2012 36
InformationArchitect
Strategist Interaction/visual designer
Developer
Ready to Inspire / December 2012 37
38Ready to Inspire / December 2012
KEY
• Know when to step forward, know when to step back.
• Integrate others into your process.
• Proactively seek input from others outside of your discipline.
• Trust the ability of others to create with you.
TAKEAWAYS
39Ready to Inspire / December 2012
Tip #3: Give in toconstant learning
Ready to Inspire / December 2012 40
Iteration and constant learning are like the carpenter’s plane of a digital product.
Ready to Inspire / December 2012 41
42Ready to Inspire / December 2012
DESIGN & BUILD & ITERATE MEASURE & REFINE
EXPERIENCE STRATEGY DESIGN TECHNOLOGY ANALYTICS
DISCOVER & PLAN
DESIGN PROCESS
Learning Learning Learning Learning
43Ready to Inspire / December 2012
DESIGN & BUILD & ITERATE MEASURE & REFINE
EXPERIENCE STRATEGY DESIGN TECHNOLOGY ANALYTICS
DISCOVER & PLAN
DESIGN PROCESS
What is it? How does it work?
How do webuild it?
How is itperforming?
44Ready to Inspire / December 2012
THE DESIGN SPRINT
SKETCH/ WIRERAME
PROTOTYPE
OR DEVELOP
TEST
REFINE
PREPARE & CONCEPT
45Ready to Inspire / December 2012
MUTIPLE DESIGN SPRINTS
Sprint 1 Sprint 2 Sprint 3 Sprint 4
New learning New learning New learning New learning
46Ready to Inspire / December 2012
OVERLAPPING DESIGN & DEV SPRINTS
Sprint 1 Sprint 2 Sprint 3 Sprint 4
UX
Dev
47Ready to Inspire / December 2012
KEY
• Go deep (in a reasonable time)
• Shift your mental model of process from linear to iterative.
• Be flexible and adapt to new inputs along the way.
• Be prepared to change up your approach as technology changes.
TAKEAWAYS
48Ready to Inspire / December 2012
Tip #4: Find ways to incite change
Ready to Inspire / December 2012 49
Preserving craft requires setting up the right conditions.
Ready to Inspire / December 2012 50
ORGANIZATIONAL ROADBLOCKS
• Non-agile project management approaches
• Budgets that count resource hours
• Space that doesn’t facilitate communication and collaboration
• Management that doesn’t encourage learning
• Siloed team structures
51Ready to Inspire / December 2012
Ready to Inspire / December 2012 52
Open design reviews
Ready to Inspire / December 2012 53
Integrated, cross-pollinated team structures
Ready to Inspire / December 2012 54
Flow time
55Ready to Inspire / December 2012
KEY
• Rethink your team structure
• Create a culture of creativity
• Give people time to work
• Be flexible enough to change when it’s needed
TAKEAWAYS
56Ready to Inspire / December 2012
The thoughtful and consistent application of mastered, yet evolving practices in collaboration with other disciplines.
A NEW DEFINITION OF CRAFT