Redlines

"Anyone can cook" is the famous slogan from the Pixar film Ratatouille. But can anyone be an effective UX designer? Is it simply something you learn, or is it something you're born with? In this episode, we interpret that question and draw comparisons between UX design and art. Also, we react to Amazon's new in-home security drone and the newest version of Origami Studio.

Who says you need to hold a senior leadership role in order to steer your product's direction? In this episode, we talk about how to influence change within your company and make big design-led decisions, even when your job title doesn't include the words "manager" or "director". We share our thoughts on how to find allies within your organization, communicate your vision, measure the success of your efforts, and build a reputation for yourself as a leader — regardless of your job title. Also, we react as Twitter gets taken to court and time runs out for TikTok.

Frameworks like Human Centered Design have been around for ages, but are these methodologies still dependable today? Is it even feasible to apply this process to every project we work on in the fast-moving tech industry? We discuss which parts of the system still hold up and how we've applied these mindsets to our own workflows. Also, we react to Intel's new logo and the latest TikTok US ownership drama.

On this very special episode of Redlines, we're lucky to chat with Elena Walton, a UX designer at Rockstar Games. During our interview, Elena shares insights into how the UX design process is different in the gaming industry versus the "move fast" ethos of the tech industry. We discuss how Elena evaluates the success of a game's UI and how she views the scope and timelines of her work in comparison to places she's worked before. We also chat about the evolution of gaming into new form factors, and more diverse representation in the game dev industry and the games these companies create.

Hindsight is 20/20, and over the years we’ve learned a lot from our triumphs and failures as UX designers. In this episode, we share some words of advice that will be particularly useful to newer designers in the field. Our discussion covers a range of topics including the irrelevance of grades in design school, why design is only part of the equation for a successful business, the importance of getting your team aligned on a single plan of execution, and why you shouldn’t be the smartest designer in the room. Also, we react to reports of Slack negatively affecting discourse at the workplace, and the continued saga of TikTok in the US.

A thoughtfully crafted personal brand can help any UX designer stand out from the crowd. But what exactly is a self brand, and how do you create an effective one? In this episode, we talk about the different factors that contribute to your very own brand identity as a designer, why it all matters, and what you can do to start cultivating your online persona. Also, we react to news of Apple hitting a $2 trillion market cap and Zoom video chat functionality coming to Amazon and Google smart home devices.

Co-workers driving you crazy? Haven't gotten a raise in years? No room to grow your career? This week, we discuss all the reasons why you might feel inclined to find a new job — and how you can try to make things better at your current job before deciding to quit. We offer guidance on how to have tough conversations with co-workers, and how to effectively ask your boss for more money. Also, we react to news stories about historic numbers of people moving out of San Francisco, Apple kicking out Fortnite from the App Store, and an intriguing new feature added to Sketch.

The interview process, demystified! We dive deep into what you can expect throughout a typical UX design job interview, including initial conversations, portfolio reviews, and exercises to test your product thinking skills. We offer tips on how to prepare for a presentation, advice for dealing with a take-home design assignment, and we discuss which questions you should be asking to make sure it's the right job for you. Also, we react to new foldable smartphone announcements and the launch of Instagram Reels, a TikTok competitor.

What will the UX design industry look like in 5, 10, or 20 years? Will our roles evolve to new heights, or is the AI uprising going to slowly take away our jobs? This week, we share our bold predictions for the future of UX design, including major changes to our responsibilities, workflows, and tools. Also, we react to news of a potential TikTok acquisition and the continued efforts of pro sports organizations to utilize virtual spectators.

We’ve all been there: we come up with a great, groundbreaking, REVOLUTIONARY design idea. We spend days lovingly crafting it pixel by pixel. We keep it warm at night and give it all the nutrients it needs to grow and prosper. And then, when we finally present our beloved creation to our PM and Engineering partners… it all falls apart. For some reason they just can’t see what we see, and find a dozen different reasons why we shouldn’t build this idea, from budget restrictions to technological limitations. So what do we do then? In this episode we discuss the reasons these misalignments happen, how to negotiate our way around it, and we try to answer the hard question: Maybe it’s design that’s in the wrong?