Leadership Values
My Design Leadership style is ‘People’ first.
Focusing on team’s growth and building the right culture in the team has helped me in building great solutions.
3 Principles that I have been following :
1.Striving for people’s growth
To scale a design team successfully, it is essential to mentor and cultivate high-performing designers within the team who possess the ability to lead, envision, and mentor others.
As I transitioned from an individual contributor (IC) to a manager over the past decade, I observed myself increasingly dedicating time to co-piloting the careers of my team members. This involved guiding them to identify and acknowledge the achievements of their fellow team members, demonstrating care and empathy towards my team, delivering impartial feedback, and fostering an inclusive environment that embraces diverse skill sets and backgrounds.
2.Driving user centric design approach
Another crucial step towards the effective operation of a design team is the establishment and promotion of a mature UCDesign process framework within the team and among peer teams. This framework serves as a guiding reference for all designers at the beginning of a project, providing them with a clear understanding of their role and expectations.
Additionally, it proves to be a valuable resource for new hires, enabling them to familiarize themselves with the organization's design process through self-study. Moreover, it is essential for peer teams to align themselves with the UCD process. This alignment allows them to actively participate in activities where their perspectives can contribute to shaping the final solution.
3.Inculcating shared product ownership
When I began my career as a designer in early 2006, the ownership of projects would often shift between different departments. This led to blind spots and a lack of transparency in the final solution. However, as teams started embracing agile methodologies and collaborative approaches, I realized the importance of having all three pillars of the product team - designers, product managers, and engineers - share ownership of the product being developed.
This not only facilitates the creation of a comprehensive solution but also streamlines the overall product/feature release process. To foster successful collaboration among these pillars, I have consistently demonstrated this principle through my career.