Head of Design - Rebuilding a design team working on machine learning data analytics
Scaled team from 2 to 5 designers, reduced hiring time by 20%, promoted 1 team member to Staff
My Role
- Head of Design
- Team Leadership
- Product Design
- Design Operations
Timeline
2020-2022
Team
Company size
~120 people
Context
SisuData is a machine learning intelligence tool that analyzes millions of dimensions in cloud-scale data.
Acquired by Snowflake
As Head of Design, I transformed a talented but unstructured 2-person design team into a highly effective, 5-person design organization and navigated significant company challenges. I also ran design for the main surface of the product, Key Driver Analysis.
The Problem
A team with no clear leader limited our ability to deliver cohesive user experiences and support the company's rapid growth.
The team needed to grow and improve their organizational maturity and trust.
Discovery
Meet with the team, product team leads, and cross-functional stakeholders to understand the problems and the context.
Facilitate a design team workshop
Activities:
Discuss what's working, what's not working and what kind of team we want to be
Gather feedback from the Product Team Leads
Activities:
Get input on where design has been successful and where it has not
Gather feedback from the cross-functional stakeholders
Activities:
Align on the needs of the business and where design has been successful and where it has not
Create a plan for improvement with the design team
Activities:
Define the processes and systems to work with our product teams and deliver high quality work
Facilitate a design team workshop
Activities:
Discuss what's working, what's not working and what kind of team we want to be
Gather feedback from the Product Team Leads
Activities:
Get input on where design has been successful and where it has not
Gather feedback from the cross-functional stakeholders
Activities:
Align on the needs of the business and where design has been successful and where it has not
Create a plan for improvement with the design team
Activities:
Define the processes and systems to work with our product teams and deliver high quality work
Discovery Takeaways
The design team had limited ability to impact the product strategy and was not seen as a strategic partner.
Team Issues
No unified design processes or standards
Inconsistent deliverables across different product areas
Little cross-functional collaboration and trust
Limited design reviews and feedback
Organizational Issues
Design had minimal influence on product strategy
Unclear career progression for team members
Inefficient hiring processes that didn't scale
No design system to ensure consistency at scale
Solution
Grow the team, define the processes, and set the vision to scale design impact across the organization.
Orient design to business
Ensure the team always understands how their work supports the business goals and use that to drive decisions.
Define Processes and Systems
Define the processes and systems to help the team deliver high quality work. This includes Design systems, design reviews, and design handoffs.
- 1Figma training course to learn component management and design systems
- 2Start design system weekly meetings with engineering
- 3Facilitate weekly design reviews
Redesign the Hiring Process
I reduced the number of interview rounds while increasing signal, and worked with recruiting to sharpen our outreach.
Career Development Framework
Give the team a clear view of the career progression and how to grow in the organization.
Elevate design's organizational impact
Facilitate cross-functional design reviews that earned trust and made design a strategic partner.
Impact
- Scaled team from 2 to 5 designers, reduced hiring time by 20%, promoted 1 team member to Staff, increased team morale, increased design influence on product strategy, increased cross-functional collaboration requests
Takeaways
Leading a team is about removing roadblocks to empower the team to do their best work. My job is to paint a vision and clear a path so they can do their best work.
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