How to overcome the challenges of UX design growth? |
Posted: May 6, 2024 |
The technology industry is growing by leaps and bounds, to the point that, in Argentina, there are 15,000 programmers missing . Experience Design rode that wave, thanks to a growth in the UI UX design services maturity of many companies, which, although not absolute, is sufficient to accompany the growth of the market. Today we find ourselves facing a high labor demand that marks a promising future for the discipline, but that also causes the problem of the gap between supply and demand, and consequently, a battle between what is urgent and what is important: The urgent thing: speed The imperative need to go to market quickly, to beat the competition and/or to have the product or service that sustains the business. This requires a “highly productive” team to carry out development and implementation. The important thing: efficiency and quality A team that carries out the development and implementation of the appropriate solution in a timely manner. Without this, it is likely that mediocre results will be obtained or the objective will not be achieved at all. Vicious circle This situation is what is usually called a “vicious circle.” And to begin to break down the problem, I will focus on two aspects that can be useful when thinking about possible solutions: a. El seniority A group of people with the same seniority will be able to solve certain challenges with a similar probability of efficiency and quality. Therefore, seniority is often used as a tool for “alignment” and “categorization” of each person's professional development. In turn, this categorization is used to also align salary compensation. In his article on UX seniority levels , the first thing Santiago Bustelo says is: “Having the same name for the same thing is essential for a mature industry . ” Understanding people's professional performance in a “standardized” way is a key point, and when it does not happen we find ourselves again facing a “gap”. Given the inevitable relationship between seniority and salary, in many cases job offers are made that are out of date with people's knowledge and experience, based on the convenience of each company in order to be able to incorporate personnel at all costs. Therefore, as long as “the urgent” continues to win the battle, the barriers of seniority will continue to be removed unilaterally and conveniently. b. Job opportunities The high labor demand in the IT sector and the lack of people obviously provides great benefits that we cannot deny: There is abundant work. Not only is there work, but since there is more supply than demand, there is the opportunity to choose very tempting offers, and in most cases with extensive advantages for workers (salaries, amenities, flexible hours, more days off, etc.) . By being included in the development process we do not have to “fight for our place.” The design of the experience is understood and valued, therefore also the tasks and people necessary to achieve it (this today sounds like a commodity, but it is a space gained that relatively recently was almost non-existent). The range of roles and specializations opens and evolves. However, as with Seniority, if urgency wins, the disadvantages appear: there is no time for someone to prepare, adapt and grow professionally. That is to say, opportunities are no longer for everyone, but only for those who have experience. It seems illogical that the discipline is booming, and that this is what closes the doors to those who want to get started. Not only do you lose the opportunity to be a trainee or junior: the rest of the people also lose the chance to grow, those who with their greater experience should take on the challenge of accompanying someone in their first steps. And also the chance to have people who contribute new perspectives and feel motivated to propose alternative paths to try to apply their learning, without the prejudices of those who have already tried and defined that this is not the way, is lost. That is to say, quality is once again lost. How to improve To break this vicious circle, I propose my look at three focuses that, I hope, will serve to improve both those who have to make decisions, as well as those who are or want to join the industry, within the broad spectrum of experience design. 1- Training The term UX is relatively recent. It was created by Don Norman in 1993, when he assigned himself the role of “user experience architect” at Apple. And academically speaking, there is no support from decades or centuries of established careers and practice, as is the case in traditional professions. UX design is, for now, a series of knowledge and skills fundamentally validated by work experience. That is why formal training in any related discipline (design, communication or social sciences) is essential, and as a UX leader, I look for collaborators with these bases. I also encourage you to complement and specialize in the field of UX, taking advantage of the quantity and variety of spaces to acquire knowledge of the discipline that are available today, as you will see in this text of a response I gave on LinkedIn in response to the concern of someone who He was looking for his first job: ...I encourage you to continue training and connecting with both companies and the communities and spaces that help the discipline grow. I leave you some personal recommendations: Associations or groups to follow and join: IXDA Bs. As IXDA La Plata IDF Buenos Aires Buenos Aires Service Jam Basic books: (There are thousands, but hey, this is a short list, very subjective and that includes some of the international references that forged the discipline): - The design of everyday things (Donald Norman) - Designing Web usability (Jakob Nielsen) - Don't make me think (Steve Krug) - About Face (Alan Cooper) - Change by Design (Tim Brown) Articles/Blogs: (there are thousands...many good, others not so much, but you have to have the knowledge base to know how to interpret them, I am only going to recommend three) 2- The entry process When starting a work relationship, the key thing is to align expectations. Returning to the topic of seniority, based on a clear and sincere agreement on the role to be played and what is expected from that position, the career plan will be vital to chart the course of professional development. One of my favorite questions when I do interviews is: “why do you want to work with us?” (whether it is a first job or a change of company). And I need to be sure that we are seeing the same thing, that your expectations will be met and that we will continue to be aligned between project needs and professional growth motivations. With this we can work, understanding “where I am” and accompanying “where I want to go”. For this reason, it is essential to get involved in the recruiting process, from analyzing a CV to the moment of entry, sharing observations with recruiters, giving useful feedback to interviewees, creating and evaluating challenges, etc. I seek not only to try to understand the past, present and future of a person in a few minutes (mission impossible, just like the song “a brief description of your person” by the Nos quartet), but also to share my point of view and a little from my experience, giving recommendations regarding how to face a challenge, how to focus, what references to follow, what blogs or books to read, etc. That is, I try to contribute my grain of sand to the organization of your career plan. 3- Job opportunities It is inconceivable that, despite the high demand, there is a lack of space for those without experience. We are absorbed by this issue and we do not see the problem, which can also be the solution. Spaces must be created so that each interested person can be part, show their skills and continue growing. Something I do in interviews is poke around and look for potential in candidates. And when I find it, even if it is not the right profile for the specific opportunity, I try to quickly look for another opportunity. In an interview, a candidate told me while we were reviewing the challenge she had completed: "What I did is a disaster, don't hire me!" The spontaneity with which she said it denoted not only sincerity, but also a lot of maturity. On the one hand, growth was seen due to the critical way in which she analyzed her own work (that is, she already had more elements to evaluate herself, and surely to correct herself if she had a new opportunity). But sincerity, respect for the profession and the position offered to her, and her own understanding of its limitations, were also important. That made me instantly think that even though I wasn't "fit" for that position, I wanted someone like that on my team. Another thing I am looking for is to think about the support that the team can give to someone “newbie”. Many times we decide to hire juniors even if it is not the requirement, because we are committed to developing rapid growth, supported by the support of the leader and the team to give them the support and confidence they need in these initial moments.
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