The Clientside Podcast

With a diverse career from full-stack dev to design system product owner working for large and small organisations and spell as a freelancer, Dan has straddled the worlds of design and development for most of his working life. Design systems have been a way of bringing these experiences together along with running teams, communication and collaboration.

In this episode we talk about what a Design System is and how it adds value to a website - not just during the build but as the site grows and scales over time. I ask Dan about who should own and lead on the design system and we talk about some of the challenges around building and implementing a design system.

Follow Andrew on Twitter at https://twitter.com/aarmitage or connect on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewarmitage.

Find Dan on Twitter at https://twitter.com/hereinthehive or on the Zero Height blog.

Other links from this episode include:

• Dan Mall - Design Systems Coach 
• Jhey Tompkins, Web Developer at Google 
• Converge - The Design Systems Conference 
• W3C Design Tokens Community Group 
• Figma 
• Figma Design Tokens Plugin 

Andrew talks in this episode to Caroline Joynson, founder of Cheerleader PR, about how to get a business 'PR ready', how to avoid PR overwhelm with the number of print and digital channels, solving copyright conundrums, and the super-savvy way to handle journalists.

Read the full transcript and access the show notes at https://adigital.agency/podcast.

Follow Andrew on Twitter at https://twitter.com/aarmitage or connect on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewarmitage.

Find out more about A Digital at https://adigital.agency

Get a free copy of Andrew's book, Holistic Website Planning at https://gothedistance.website.

Andrew chats to Jasper Hegarty-Ditton, head of digital and data at Leeds University Union, about digital transformation, sustainability, student summer balls and catering for the digital consumers of the future.

Connect with Jasper on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/ja...

Read the full transcript and access the show notes at https://adigital.agency/podcast.

Follow Andrew on Twitter at https://twitter.com/aarmitage or connect on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewarmitage.

Find out more about A Digital at https://adigital.agency

Get a free copy of Andrew's book, Holistic Website Planning at https://gothedistance.website.

In this episode Andrew talks to digital startup expert Katie Nicholson about funding, investment and the vital importance of having clear goals when you approach potential investors. Katie works on a variety of corporate and start-up related projects and recently became co-director of Founded and Startup Grind Isle of Man. Her skills span specialisms including software development, e-gaming and early-stage investment industries.

Connect with Katie on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/katienc/

Read the full transcript and access the show notes at https://adigital.agency/podcast.

Follow Andrew on Twitter at https://twitter.com/aarmitage or connect on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewarmitage.

Find out more about A Digital at https://adigital.agency

Get a free copy of Andrew's book, Holistic Website Planning at https://gothedistance.website.

In this illuminating episode of The Clientside Podcast Andrew chats to Akshay Upadhye, co-founder and COO of spend analytics company Spendkey Limited. Drawing on more than 25 years' experience in technology and consulting, Akshay talks about the role and relevance of data in digital transformation projects, while guiding us on how not to get ourselves drowned in an ocean of unnecessary data. He also reassures us that there's one thing that will always get our creative juices flowing better than AI and ML ever could – and that's collaborating with other real human beings just like ourselves.

Connect with Akshay on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/akshayupadhye

Read the full transcript and access the show notes at https://adigital.agency/podcast.

Follow Andrew on Twitter at https://twitter.com/aarmitage or connect on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewarmitage.

Find out more about A Digital at https://adigital.agency

Get a free copy of Andrew's book, Holistic Website Planning at https://gothedistance.website.

In this episode Andrew talks to Vince Chan, an expert in digital transformation with experience at British Airways, NatWest Bank Investment, Shell Oil Company and Digicel. He proclaims himself a real believer in keeping things as simple as possible, building work cultures in which people can be 100% authentic with one another, and keeping a very close eye on customer sentiment.

Connect with Vince on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/vincentkhchan

Read the full transcript and access the show notes at https://adigital.agency/podcast.

Follow Andrew on Twitter at https://twitter.com/aarmitage or connect on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewarmitage.

Find out more about A Digital at https://adigital.agency

Get a free copy of Andrew's book, Holistic Website Planning at https://gothedistance.website.

In this podcast Andrew chats with Alex Kershaw and Robbie Still. Alex is head of digital transformation at the Royal Society of Wildlife Trusts (RSWT) and Robbie leads digital projects for the Kent Wildlife Trust. Here, they reveal how they coordinate their digital activities across a wide and complex network of organisations, and how – although their work involves everything from spreadsheets to bison collars – their daily drive is to deliver real change and benefits for people and for nature.

The show notes and transcript can be found at https://adigital.agency/podcast/digital-transformation-at-the-wildlife-trusts-with-alice-kershaw

"Tech and change have always been my passion", declares Hospice UK's digital supremo Stephen Thorlby-Coy. In this podcast he talks to A Digital's Andrew Armitage about why he loves using all the skills and experience he's gained over 20 years in the public, and private and third sectors to help transform people’s lives.

Andrew talks to Frank Fenten of Manchester-based dinosaur.co.uk about what user experience means to him and why companies that put a simple customer led mission at the heart of their brand are so successful. Frank believes a marriage of brand and user experience lies at the heart of many of the world's most successful companies.

Andrew speaks to Nic Jones, an e-commerce and online marketing specialist with over 20 years experience, both agency and client side. Over the years he's worked on both large e-commerce design-and-build projects and microsites, as well as SEO, PPC, SEM, and developing mobile apps. In this thought-provoking conversation Andrew and Nic somehow cover everything from pink flamingos to floating heads on computer screens, while delving into the sometimes strained dynamics between agencies and client sides. Nic calls himself a strategic thinker, and gives good tips on how to protect your mental health in a busy working life.