Everyone’s a good manager when their team is functioning perfectly. But what do you do when your team screws up? Liam Nugent tells how to face reality when work goes poorly, and shares practical steps to get your team back on track.
Topic: Business
When you are your own client, who are you going to make fun of at the bar? The designer as entrepreneur. In defense of client services. Accessibility and the law. Web 2.0 is a fresh-faced starlet on the intertwingled longtail to the disruptive experience of tomorrow. Cheaper over better: why web clients settle for less. It ain’t easy getting green: why are freelancers the last to be paid? Revenue and other models.
The Never-Ending Job of Selling Design Systems
You didn’t start your web career to be a politician or salesperson. But if you want to work on design systems, you have no choice. Ben Callahan shows you how to convince executives to fund the initial design system push and KEEP funding it.
Resilient Management, An Excerpt
Great managers ensure their teams are successful and that team members grow in their careers. In this excerpt from her new book, Resilient Management, Lara Hogan discusses how to do this by mentoring, coaching, and sponsoring them.
Designing for Conversions
Quantifying the success of creative work may not be easy for designers and developers, but for many clients, it’s a necessity. Through tools like A/B testing and conversion rates, formerly nebulous qualities like user satisfaction can take on clear measures of success. Developer Brandon Gregory provides an overview of these and other tools, and discusses the benefits of designing for conversions, which allows products to reach their targets and serve the right people.
The Right Way to Select Technology, An Excerpt
Using the same methods UX designers use to build great products can actually improve the process of selecting technology for the enterprise. Tony Byrne and Jarrod Gingras help you capture requirements that don’t suck in this excerpt of Chapter 4 of their new book, The Right Way to Select Technology, available now from Rosenfeld Media.
Considering Open Source Licenses
Open source projects promise to speed your product delivery with virtually no cost. But different licenses for projects can impact your own work in significant ways. Phillip Ikuvbogie wants to help you learn the differences between popular open source licenses and how you can incorporate open source projects effectively.
Conducting the Technical Interview
Hiring for technical roles can be unnerving. Does your interview plan cover the vital questions? Have you clearly defined the role? Will you recognize the right candidate? Brandon Gregory shares experiences and tips to help you make the right hiring decision.
Widen Out: Using Your Blog to Attract New Clients
A weblog’s ability to attract client work is one of its most overlooked benefits. JustReachOut’s Dmitry Dragilev shares some simple ideas on how to create content that generates real interest in our work.
Long-Term Design: Rewriting the Design Sales Pitch
Hyping the latest, greatest, flashiest design options may be fun and attention-grabbing, but it doesn’t always serve your bottom line. Author Jarrod Drysdale says instead of constantly pitching new products to new customers, consider standing behind your original great designs and pitch ongoing support and design evolution to your existing clients.
Guerrilla Innovation
If you don’t work at a place like Google or 3M—companies celebrated for rewarding innovation—don’t despair. You can still push new ideas through, see them gain traction, and watch your company evolve for the better. You just need to be smart about your tactics. Janice Gervais has some advice on how to practice effective guerrilla innovation.
