Crafting Efficient Workflows

Defining Product Design Processes at Nextech AR

Nextech AR

2023

Overview

As the Director of Product Design at Nextech AR, I spearheaded the development and implementation of a streamlined product design process that not only enhanced collaboration with the product management team but also addressed the challenges of scaling design efforts across a small team responsible for multiple products. With limited resources and a high volume of feature requests, it became crucial to establish a process that prioritized impactful features in alignment with the company's roadmap.

This process was designed to serve the entire organization by improving communication, fostering transparency, and ensuring that design efforts were both efficient and strategically aligned with business objectives. By collaborating closely with the COO, product managers, and other key stakeholders, I was able to create a system that enabled the team to focus on delivering high-quality designs that drove user and business success.

This case study explores the processes I envisioned and brought to life, demonstrating how they empowered the organization to prioritize, plan, and execute product design more effectively. These processes also provided a framework for educating new team members, ensuring alignment with design principles, and supporting Nextech AR’s mission to deliver exceptional user experiences.

The Product Design Team: A Shared Service Model
The Nextech Design Team Organization Chart
Product & Feature Delivery Lifecycle Overview
Streamlining the Feature Request Intake Process
Establishing Effective Communication Channels
The Product/UX Design Process Within a Team
Understanding What the Product Design Team Does to Solution
The Value of a Dedicated Product/UX Design Team Brings
Code of Conduct

The Product Design Team as a Shared Service

The Product Design Team at Nextech operated as a shared service, supporting four distinct products across the organization. Our team of six designers worked collaboratively to meet the diverse design needs of the company, with me at the helm.

Product Design Team Organization Chart

To provide clarity on the organization of the Design Team, here is an overview of our structure.

Design Delivery Lifecycle Overview

To optimize resource allocation, I focused on streamlining our feature intake and delivery process. Effective communication between product managers and our design team was important to accelerate the delivery of designs that aligned with product requirements. The Design Delivery Lifecycle can be summarized as follows:

1. Feature Request Intake & Approval

A clearly defined feature request and approval process ensured clear communication between PMs and the design team, resulting in faster delivery of designs that met requirements.

2. Establish Communication Channels

Establishing regular communication channels between PMs and the design team ensured alignment throughout the design process, from initial design to final delivery.

3. Kick-off The Design Process

PMs and the design team collaborated closely to ensure designs met product requirements, sharing work in progress throughout the design process.

4. Design Hand-off & Dev Follow-up

PM worked with the design team to review final designs and schedule hand-off presentations. PMs connected with me to schedule designer feedback reviews on developed features.

This streamlined process allowed us to maintain clear communication and collaboration throughout the product design lifecycle.

Feature Request Intake & Approval

To ensure transparency and a smooth request intake process, I defined four key steps for design requests:

Request

PMs initiated a feature request by contacting me and, completing a feature request form. This completed form aided in helping me identify the appropriate designer for the task, estimate timelines, and ensure a clear understanding of the feature's scope.

Define

I would schedule a call with the PM to clarify high-level requirements, assess technical limitations, and provide high-level UX recommendations if applicable. Once we aligned on the requirements, we proceeded to the next step.

Prioritize & Approve

I would discusses the request with the COO to approve resourcing and see where we could prioritize this feature amongst the four different products based on the company's roadmap and fiscal priorities. This prioritization ensured alignment with the roadmap and scheduling approval from the COO.

Design Kick-off

I relayed the COO's decision to the PM. I would refine and complete detailed UX requirements for the feature, then present the requirements to the PM and Tech lead. Alignment with the tech team would be established, and a kickoff meeting would be scheduled with the assigned designer and developers to initiate the design process.

This structured intake process ensures that design requests are handled efficiently and align with business goals.

Product Management & Product Design Communication

One of my primary objectives has been to ensure effective communication and collaboration between product teams and the design team. A clear and structured approach was key to maintaining alignment throughout the product design lifecycle. I initiated a robust set of practices to achieve this goal. They are as follows:

Establish Communication Protocols

In an effort to foster productive teamwork, I actively engaged with our product managers (PMs) to define comprehensive communication protocols that resonated with everyone. These protocols encompassed the frequency of interactions, the choice of communication mediums, and expected response times. By implementing these protocols from the outset, I ensured that all stakeholders, PMs, designers, and team leads, were on the same page, consistently.

Schedule Regular Check-ins

Regular communication channels played a pivotal role in ensuring alignment during the design process. I understood that ongoing dialogue between PMs and the design team was a vital component of our success. From the initial stages of design to final product delivery, these regular check-ins helped us track progress and course-correct as needed. These touch-points allowed for the swift resolution of any emerging issues and the nurturing of a culture of collaboration.

Progress Tracking and Visibility

To maintain visibility and transparency regarding design progress, we continued to rely on Asana as our go-to project management tool. This practice empowered our PMs and leadership team to access and monitor the progress of design projects. This provided everyone with real-time updates, kept them informed, and ensured that no critical details were overlooked. In a world where every detail counts, this proved to be a vital aspect of our collaborative success.

Design Process & Lifecycle: Crafting Impactful Features

At the heart of our design process lay a well-defined lifecycle, which empowered us to create features that truly resonated with our users and drove business success. This process consisted of several key steps that enabled us to allocate design resources efficiently and deliver features that met both user needs and business objectives.

Feature Onboarding

At the outset of each project, our approach included a thorough onboarding process. The Director and the PM were responsible for introducing the designer to the feature. This onboarding involved in-depth education on the feature's requirements, the overarching vision, expectations, check-in schedules, and deliverables. For designers new to the product, it included an orientation to the product itself, encompassing its workings, user types, personas, user goals, pain points, and a deep dive into the problem space.

Research & Discovery

The cornerstone of our design process, research and discovery, played a pivotal role in informing our design decisions. The designer consumed research materials, which could range from data provided by the PM to their own research findings. This stage included the development of information architecture and task flows. Our approach to research encompassed a wide spectrum of methods, including user interviews, surveys, analytics, usability testing, market research, competitive analysis, heuristic evaluations, and more. We left no stone unturned in our quest to gather insights that would drive design decisions.

Wireframing and Prototyping

Once the information architecture and flows are approved, the next stage begins with wireframing, research, critiques, and iterations. Our designers take the lead in creating screens and interactive prototypes, all under my direction. A significant innovation that I introduced is the creation of reusable components, which are then added to our design system libraries. This addition streamlines our workflow and facilitates seamless hand-offs to our development teams.

To ensure that this phase runs smoothly, I instituted weekly scheduled calls with our team to critique work, gather feedback, and engage in iterative processes. This initiative has not only improved our designs but has also promoted open and constructive communication.

Design Reviews & Iterations

During this critical phase, I scheduled semi-final reviews with the product team, ensuring that our designs are on the right track. The designers actively present their work and gather final feedback, making necessary adjustments if required. My role here is not only to facilitate the process but also to ensure that all team members are satisfied with the proposed solution and to strategize and come up with compelling solutions the designers can implement.

Once we reach a consensus, I organize a final hand-off presentation for all developers, PMs, and other stakeholders involved. This step ensures that everyone is on the same page and ready to move forward with the development process.

Hand-offs & Follow ups

In the final stage of this process, we focus on the seamless hand-off of the design to the development team. I schedule a hand-off presentation to provide clarity, answer questions, and transfer the design for development. This step is crucial to guarantee that the development team fully comprehends the design's intricacies and requirements.

To maintain alignment and ensure the accurate implementation of the design, I've taken the initiative to have PMs schedule follow-up sessions with our design team. These sessions offer a chance to share and showcase the developed feature, enabling our designers to review it thoroughly and guarantee that the implementation matches the initial vision.

This entire feature design process reflects a continuous cycle of collaboration and improvement, a framework I've developed to guarantee the delivery of impactful features that meet user needs and drive our business's success.

Demystifying the Product Design Journey

In my pursuit of a shared understanding of the product and UX design process, I embarked on a mission to educate our leaders and product managers comprehensively. This segment of the presentation served as an enlightening primer on what encompasses the intricate world of product design and, more importantly, how we meticulously address challenges.

This educational endeavor not only shed light on the intricacies of our profession but also reinforces the pivotal role of design in problem-solving. Through this enlightenment, our leaders and product managers became equipped to embrace our shared vision of enhancing user experiences and driving business success.

Research & Strategy

In the first phase, we focus on Research & Strategy. Here, I've emphasized the significance of research and strategy in the design process. We've moved beyond guesswork by adopting a data-driven approach and centring our design around user needs and business objectives. By doing so, we create digital products and features that are not only effective but also genuinely enjoyable to use. My role as the director involves guiding this crucial phase to ensure our designs are purposeful and intentional. Research & Strategy can involve the following:

Heuristic Analysis
User Research & Persona Creation
Competitor Research
Journey Mapping
Information Architecture Activities
User Flows

Ideation & Prototyping

The Ideation & Prototyping phase, the following critical step, plays an essential role in our product design process. By fostering an environment of creativity and innovation, we bring forth ideas and concepts that align with both user requirements and business goals. This approach not only saves time and resources during development but also guarantees a positive user experience. As a director, I've been instrumental in promoting this phase's importance, ensuring that our designs are not only effective but also efficient. This phase includes the following:

Idea Generation & Prioritization
Low & High Fidelity Wireframes
Interaction Design
Usability Testing

Visual Design

Visual design is a cornerstone of product design. It encapsulates the visual elements of a product or service, including its aesthetics, branding, color schemes, typography, imagery, and more. As we emphasize, it aims to create a visually appealing and engaging user experience that effectively communicates our brand's values and message to our target audience. I've taken the lead in ensuring that our visual design aligns with our overall product vision. Visual Design can involve the following:

Brand Identity & Guidelines
Visual Accessibility
Design Systems
Graphics & Animation

Communicating the ROI of Prioritizing UX Design

In this final segment, I highlight the substantial returns that come with prioritizing UX design, reinforcing the invaluable role of our dedicated UX team. According to compelling research and industry insights:

Forrester Research reveals that companies emphasizing UX design can experience a remarkable 10x increase in ROI, where every dollar invested in UX design yields between $10 and $100 in revenue.
A survey by the Nielsen Norman Group demonstrates an astounding average ROI of 9,900% for UX design implementation, equating to a return of $100 for every $1 invested.
The Design Management Institute's report showcases the remarkable performance of design-driven companies, outperforming the S&P 500 index by an impressive 228% over a 10-year period.
Insights from a survey conducted by InVision unveil the substantial advantages of design prioritization. Companies that place design at the forefront are 2.5 times more likely to achieve high-performance status compared to those that do not.

By emphasizing these statistics and industry findings, we underscore the immense potential that our dedicated UX team brings to Nextech. As a director, I've championed the integration of these principles into our design philosophy, and the results are tangible.

Establishing an Effective Code of Conduct

It's crucial to underscore the importance of establishing a code of conduct to guide the interactions between the design team and other departments. This code ensures that feedback is delivered constructively, encouraging an atmosphere of collaboration and mutual growth. It's paramount that all teams recognize the vital role that effective communication and respectful critique play in our ongoing journey to enhance user experiences and drive business success.

In crafting this code of conduct, my role as a director is to facilitate an environment where innovative ideas and meaningful feedback are not only welcomed but celebrated, creating a collaborative and harmonious space for all our teams to thrive.

Thank you!

As we wrap up this case study, I want to thank you for joining me on this journey through the world of product and UX design processes. I would love to hear from you about your successes in workflow management or any feedback you may have.