Design Leadership 2019

Strategists describe to make.  Designers make to describe. 

How do you design for a future so ambiguous that all things we take for granted turn out to be assumptions? What if cars drive themselves and people need insuring? How do you ensure a home in a world where we are climate change nomads? What if homes were printed not built..? ​

One burning Design question rises to the top from the thousands I’ve heard while working in the Silicon Valley Tech industry for over two decades: Where is our power? It was endlessly echoed during meetings, conferences, and discussions from the beginning to the end of my own UX career.
 

Design Systems are the next logical step in UX evolution. We went from descriptive style guides to well-tested and functional components. This speeds up development cycles and enables a more consistent user experience with one product or a whole product range.

Appropriate for a Designer or Design Manager aspiring to be a Leader or an experienced Design Leader.  The 5i model incorporates 5 elements important to Leading in a Design context; Inspiring Others, Being Instrumental & Instructional, Having Influence and Obtaining Impact. 

Product thinking has become the latest force fueling digital innovation. It’s all about customer-centricity, embracing uncertainty, experimentation, being agile and lean. What does this mean for traditional managers who have to lead and support teams doing all of this?

ING Australia was the first true digital challenger bank in the Australian market. Launched in 1999 and growing rapidly – how do we continually challenge ourselves to stay ahead of the fast-growing fintech landscape?

Design is an investment with significant potential return. With a focus on digital design, you'll see case studies from Australia and the world that delivered a big return. You'll also learn methods for making a successful business case and connecting great design to real business outcomes.

Our world would be a better place—economically, politically, socially, environmentally—if people at every level of every organisation took a more collaborative and inclusive approach to what they do. The people who set strategies in organisations are often responding to political and financial agendas. 

Most people don’t like conflict, disagreement or giving negative feedback. As a result, we (managers or design leaders included) often try to ignore issues for as long as possible. 

I've recently moved into a lead design role from being a practitioner. That means that now I've dialled back my individual contributor role (it still exists though!) and am managing people for the first time. 

What does it mean for industry (and society) when giant consulting and technology companies like Accenture, IBM, Deloitte, and Infosys embed design thinking techniques into the mainstream of servicing clients? Does this signal the democratisation of design, or will it remain firmly within the purview of “true" designers? 

The Leadership Forum will be facilitated by Mags Hanley and Iain Barker as they navigate through the issues facing design leaders at all levels, from career development to team dynamics, fostering creativity, collaboration, cooperation and stakeholder engagement; making the case for Design, and making an impact. The Forum gives the opportunity to talk openly about design leadership topics and provide a 'round table discussion' feel with places strictly limited.