The Secret to Better Feedback: A Two-Way Approach By Hannah Baker Dear Reader, Ever been in a feedback session that felt... one-sided? You’re sitting there, listening to a barrage of opinions, and you start wondering—Is this even useful? The truth is, feedback can feel overwhelming when it’s not treated as a dialogue. That's because feedback is a two-way street. It's not just about one person talking and the other listening; it's about exchanging ideas that help both parties grow. The best...
27 days ago • 3 min read
5 Ways to Do Strategic Research by Jeff Humble Dear Reader, You may have done some user research and thought, what does the next level of research project look like? Well, strategy research is a good example. It can help you see how advanced research can look for any project, not just strategy. Here are five activities of strategy research to give you an idea of how you can go beyond user research: 1.) Understanding Market Dynamics Are you fighting the next wave or riding it? Markets...
about 1 month ago • 2 min read
Essential Tools for Better Prioritization By Hannah Baker Dear Reader, Picture this: You’re sitting in a conference room, surrounded by your team. The whiteboard is filled with sticky notes, each representing a different feature idea for your next product release. The room is buzzing with energy, but as the conversation unfolds, you notice a pattern—certain voices dominate the discussion. Popular ideas quickly gain momentum, while quieter team members struggle to have their suggestions heard....
about 2 months ago • 3 min read
Improve Any Strategy With the 4 D's by Jeff Humble Dear Reader, I teach a strategy course for designers, where one of my jobs is giving feedback on strategies. And it is NOT an easy task. After years of evaluating strategies, I've developed four checks that I use to ensure that a strategy is as effective as possible. I think they will give you some insights into strategy design in general. Check your strategy with 4 questions by Jeff Humble Differentiation: Strategy should be about doing...
2 months ago • 2 min read
Figma AI & Your New Design Title by Jeff Humble Dear Reader, Last week, Figma made some big AI announcements that caused quite a controversy. Welcome to the dystopian world of design called: Figma's Big Announcement This year, AI was all over the Config conference with much-needed updates like background removal, AI-generated layer naming, and automated prototyping. However, the real game-changer was the 'Make Design' feature. Imagine being able to generate interfaces from text prompts. Sure,...
3 months ago • 2 min read
Real-Life Lessons in Co-Creation for Designers By Hannah Baker Dear Reader, Have you ever faced the challenge of aligning a diverse team to create a unified vision? It's a common struggle for designers who aim to create products that resonate deeply with their users and business goals. Recently, I embarked on such a journey with the Guild of Working Designers to refresh our community approach. Today, I will provide an in-depth look at our process, challenges, and insights, showcasing how...
4 months ago • 4 min read
What is product discovery? by Jeff Humble Dear Reader, So, there's this secret term that product leadership uses to describe your work behind your back. And today, I want you to be crystal clear on what it is. It's a word they use to describe it when you do extra research to ensure you're designing the best possible idea. It's a phase of work that you might call UX, but they call it something else. They call it "product discovery." What is Product Discovery? The term comes from consultant and...
4 months ago • 2 min read
Why Introverts Struggle with Leadership [2024] By Hannah Baker Dear Reader, I want to revisit the "Why Introverts Struggle with Leadership" newsletter I wrote in 2022. It's been two years, and the insights shared back then are more relevant than ever in 2024. I'll also provide new reflections from our current experiences. Why is this important now? In 2024, designers face new challenges, including the rise of AI and the threat of layoffs during economic downturns. Facilitative leadership is...
5 months ago • 4 min read
Why You Need to "Get" the Business Strategy by Jeff Humble Dear Reader, I ran a strategy workshop for 20 design leaders and managers here in Berlin yesterday. We discussed the 3 levels of strategy. Here's the slide: Ok, here's a quick breakdown of the 3 levels: Corporate Strategy - Most companies don't need a Corporate Strategy. An example would be Alphabet's Corporate Strategy for Google and YouTube. You can probably ignore that one. Business Strategy - The main strategy at most companies....
5 months ago • 2 min read