Process

My process is interconnected with underlying values and design principles that I apply in work and life. To provide better context I will clarify my values and principles first.

Values

Flexibility

Being able to adapt to circumstances is essential when working in a team setting. Professionals from different fields have different ideas on how to best approach and solve the problem. Products have technical limitations, there are things that can be changed easily and things that are hard to change. Teams have limited time for delivery. In this context, flexibility means working together to find a way to solve a problem that is ideal for the organization in specific circumstances. Incremental progress is fine. My way or high way approach leads to conflicts and not achieving goals.

Resiliency

Fail fast. Learn fast. Iterate. Do your best honest work. Use all knowledge and resources that are available in the organization. If things turn out not to be working ideally for the customer, receive the feedback and iterate. Product design mistakes are reversible. We are not rocket scientists. Do not feel bad for making mistakes. Win or learn.

Principles

Invisibility

Design is at its very best when it is invisible. When people are able to focus on the activity that they are doing, not the UI which they are using to accomplish the activity. Bad design is easy to spot. Good design is not.

Visibility

Different types of customers need different kinds of visibility into the product and its features. Some people need visibility into everything, they want to optimize things and need to understand how the system is working. Most people want just to accomplish their current tasks and want convenience, they want tools to be available when they need them. In some cases, you need to provide both, visibility into everything and tools which are convenient.

Consistency and standards (Jakob's law)

Users spend most of the time not using your product. They expect your stuff to work as other stuff that they are using. That's why the patterns and standards win. The most common patterns that people experience across most products will become the most accessible, predictable, and easier to use.

Start small, add structure as needed

Design with the end goal in mind. Have a plan on how to evolve a feature and how it is going to connect with other features. Define the minimum amount of value that can be delivered to customers. Break design down into chunks that reflect value. Deliver and learn. Update master plan when needed.