Up on a high-horse

Designers are on a high-horse and we need to get down

We’re in the midst of the rise of design. Finally, as designers we’re getting our day. Companies are flocking to fill roles for UX this, UI that, research those things over there. And that’s great. It’s been a long time coming to have the business world acknowledge and embrace design as an integral and necessary part of their organizations. As designers, we’re often treated as the champions of this new wave.

But, I think we designers need to slow down a minute. With our day in the sun, we’re acting like we are the differentiators, the reason for success, the key to unlocking the future of all things awesome. And while designers certainly have a strong and important influence in making great things happen, we’re not the only ones driving success. We’re not the only differentiators.

There are many unsung heroes that deserve just as much praise and recognition, but maybe we’re too busy basking in our glory that we might be overlooking our peers that make success a possibility. How about those folks in finance? Marketing. Sales. Facilities. Engineering. HR. Administration. You get the picture.

It takes a village. All the disruptive businesses we see succeed because on the exterior appear to have nailed the design part of the equation also have several other critical areas figured out. They are great marketers. They know how to properly price their products. Their teams work amazingly well across different functions. They know how to hire and retain great employees. And while they can learn from us, we can learn from them too. We need to give credit where credit is due.

So perhaps rather than getting off the horse, we should make room for our peers that make our ideas happen, make our businesses successful and help sustain our livelihoods.

Carlos Perez is a product strategy consultant that helps product teams work more effectively across design, development and marketing. Contact him today at carlos@practicalblend.com.