Sasha Reiss

I’ve hired designers for 14 years, sifted through ~1000s of portfolios, but never read a full case study. Shocking? Maybe. But let's be real: time is a luxury, and hiring managers don't have it in abundance. Here’s what catches their eye and could seal the deal for you. 1. Speed wins: Your portfolio needs to cut to the chase. Show high quality visuals of your work above the fold on your landing page. It shows what you’ve accomplished right off the bat. 2. Make It scan-friendly: Optimize your headers, images, and image captions. A quick scan should tell everything the reader needs to know. If your design fundamentals are solid, your portfolio will reflect that. 3. Long text blocks are your enemy. Remember, hiring managers skim a lot. Ever skimmed through a long read online? Guess what? They do the same thing on your portfolio. ==== BONUS: 3 more pro-tips to really stand out: → Avoid red flags: Clunky navigation, low-res images, or a slow-loading site? That’s a hard pass. Make everything about your portfolio high quality and easy to navigate. - Tailor-made: Adapt your portfolio for the type of work you’re trying to get. Trying to get work as a product designer? Gonna be hard if your portfolio is full of web design and logos. - Be easy to find: Make sure your LinkedIn, resume, and contact info are just a click away. Don't make them hunt for you. TL;DR: Make the hiring manager’s job easy. Don’t give them easy reasons to say “NO”.

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Are there signals that point to product-market fit? As a first time design co-founder of a startup that raised $1.1M in seed funding (during VC winter), four things stand out: 1. Investor signal: does your narrative, problem solving methodology, and platform stack resonate? Does it result in an investment? 2. Customer signal: are you able to onboard more customers, close bigger deals, and get more testimonials? 3. Partner signal: do people want to partner with you? Are you able to form strong alliances with reputable companies and organizations? 4. Hiring signal: do people want to work at your company? How many referrals are you getting? What’s the quality of people that join? Reflecting back when I was more junior — just thinking about prototypes, well-crafted experiences, and user feedback is not enough. Expand your scope and design application to a more strategic and systems thinking layer. Monitor the results of your design initiatives, and change your approach accordingly. At Swarm, where founders and corporate innovators find tech consulting teams in AI, Design, Product, and Software Engineering — I’m happy to share that we’re doing quite well with the four outlined above. There’s a profound level of personal growth to undergo through while building a startup. It definitely takes years to succeed when you’re new. Longer time horizon thinking is definitely required. But I wouldn’t have done it any other way! Aside: I'm incredibly grateful to be partners with Dexter, Manny, and Aaron on this - and our network of successful founders. This makes the journey a lot easier! #founders #startup #design #ux #designfounder #swarm

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In my 20+ year design career, I've never heard a design client say... I'm looking for someone more: • Creative • Strategic • Data-driven • Collaborative • User-centred And yet, if you open 100 design agency websites, you'll see some variation of these 5 descriptors. I noticed this discrepancy a few years ago. So, I started taking notes every time a design client complained about design and design services. The truth is, none of the above ever showed up in my notes. Instead, here are the top 5 concerns: 1. Communication Issues 2. Slow Design Cycles 3. Scope Creep 4. Disagreement on Design Decisions 5. Difficulty Measuring ROI Here's my full summary note: Communication Issues: Founders may feel that designers don't understand the technical limitations of the product or the business needs of the company. This can lead to frustration on both sides, as founders may feel like designers are designing products that can't be built, and designers may feel like founders aren't giving them the freedom they need to be creative. Slow Design Cycles: The design process can be slow, especially for founders who are used to moving quickly. This can be frustrating for founders who need to get products to market quickly. Scope Creep: SaaS products are constantly evolving, and founders may feel like designers are constantly adding new features to the product, rather than focusing on the core features that will drive user adoption. This can lead to products that are bloated and difficult to use. Disagreement on Design Decisions: Founders and designers may not always agree on the best way to design the product. This can lead to disagreements that can slow down the development process. Difficulty Measuring ROI: It can be difficult to measure the return on investment (ROI) of design decisions. This can make it hard for founders to justify the cost of hiring designers. I hope this helps you the next time you pitch your service. #design #ux #productdesign #designservice #copywriting

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👋 Hi friends! I'm on the lookout for 1️⃣ new product design contract this year—do you know anyone who could use my expertise? 💃 Over the last couple years, I've had the pleasure of working with some incredible organizations. Here’s a glimpse into what I’ve accomplished: 🍎 ED TECH 📝 ✅ Collaborated with product owners, account managers, and engineers to set a strategic design direction for multi-product integration following mergers between several EdTech companies. ✅ Worked with the team to determine what the new platform would incorporate from the existing platforms, what cross-over functionality we would implement, and what functionality would come from existing external platforms. ✅ Established a Figma-based design system, ensuring consistent UI across the responsive web app, speeding up design and development. ✅ Continuously improved the platform post-launch to enhance features and add value. 🎶 ENTERTAINMENT 🎙 ✅ Partnered with the Design System team, product managers, and feature designers to develop components and templates for web and tablet apps, and provided consultation on mobile components and variables for a full product relaunch. ✅ Worked within cross-functional teams that included marketing, sales, product, design, and engineering. ✅ Collaborated with marketing teams to design email campaigns focused on product education, new releases, and recommended content. ✅ Assisted executive leadership with design materials and motion UI prototypes for special events and executive media presentations. 💜 NONPROFIT 👯‍♀️ ✅ Relaunched site on new platform, reorganized content and layout. ✅ Optimized site for SEO and localization. ✅ Provided ongoing maintenance including updating content, products, and special events. ✅ Maintained and expanded brand standards for marketing. ✅ Increased website visits by 120% from 2022 to 2023 and so far 47% from 2023 to 2024. ✅ Increased online sales revenue by 170% from 2023 to 2023 and so far 148% from 2023 to 2024. I’m looking to add about 10-15 hours per week to my schedule—not seeking a full-time contract. If you know a someone at an agency/enterprise/startup/organization in need of a lead/senior product designer who can hit the ground running, deliver immediate value, and get the job done right the first time, please connect us! 💫 And if you’ve enjoyed working with me and are willing to share this with your networks, I’d really appreciate it! Thanks, y'all! 💜

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I just came across a post by Taylor Palmer about designing at a young startup that resonated. He recommends coming in as a partner and not a critic to startup design, which is something I wish I would’ve done differently my first month at Nectar. On my first day in office as the first official design hire at Nectar, I told our CEO that I wanted to redo our logo and branding. I internally cringe so hard at that now 😂. I didn’t have an understanding, as a partner, of why that logo was valuable to Nectar. I just saw, as a critic, what was wrong about it. It was presumptuous, even if the feedback was valid. Like Taylor said, “someone thought the existing designs were good enough at the time.” Nectar was successful with those designs I criticized my first day—in my interviews, in fact—and I wouldn’t have this fantastic job without them. After a year of working at Nectar and coming to understand our company, our voice, our value—after building that trust and social capital—I could then come to the team and say, “Now would be a great time to change the logo, and here’s why.” As designers at young startups, we’re there to build and renovate where needed together, not to tear down what they’ve made work so far. “Ultimately, as a startup designer, I introduce design expertise to the company—sometimes for the first time. I need to serve the company's mission, not pull it off course into unnecessary overhauls.” Changing the logo two years ago would have been one of those unnecessary overhauls. Nectar needed design energy elsewhere, like in building a design system to increase consistency and quality across our platform. I’m grateful to Trevor Larson and Nate Tingey for getting the product as far as they did before I arrived. The functionality they designed has stayed almost the same, which speaks to how well they know their clients and their value proposition. I’m grateful I get to keep carrying the torch until an even better designer comes along and questions, “Why did she design it this way?” Check out Taylor’s full post here

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There's nothing more invigorating than to convene with and cultivate our design community. I had that honor by speaking on strategic foresight at the recent UXDX conference in New York a few weeks ago. First, a big thank you to the incredibly supportive UXDX team—Rory Madden, Catherine Madden, and Palina Viarbitskaya. Thank you for letting me bring some fresh thinking to our design community. Now more than ever, Designers need to expand their "T" even more. Fluency in designing futures is critical in this time of "perma-crisis" marked by perpetual war, lingering pandemics, environmental degradation, and profound human alienation. The future will be designed either consciously or by simply downloading past patterns. Design has a unique contribution to make to this field. We can create form out of the intangible and create harmony out of chaos. We can bring awareness to the hidden actors in a complex system and bring courage to the inevitable politics of preferred futures. Maybe I believe too deeply in the promise of conscious collaboration and creativity, but I hope I'm not alone. Let's make tomorrow desirable. Big shout-out to the fabulous UXDX community for your support. What an event with some incredible speakers such as Joe Meersman, Mamuna Oladipo, MBA, Jehad Affoneh, Chris Avore and many more. Thanks again for the opportunity!

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In case anyone is listening… UX basic tips/101 from a recent ticket buying experience Would you proceed if you got this warning? You should feel good during a user experience. You may never know what upsets a user about the experience until you ask and/or see them walk through it. Like spelling mistakes, sometimes you may be blind to the paper-cuts an experience creates. Minor paper cuts could be the difference from making a sale or losing one. Don’t make users feel bad. Do I seem over 100? ➕Follow for more! Names and places have been obscured 😊 #ux #uxbasics #uxtips #uxr #userresearch

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On double dipping: AKA Figma's shame Hey Figma. I remember it wasn't too long ago that you were the fresh faced favorite. You brought simple, elegant, quick design and prototyping within reach for even small consulting organizations. You were affordable and open. We were on your side and excited to see were you would go. Now you've defeated the competition. You've nestled into your comfortable and ever more complex corner of functionality and new billing models. Your flavor is a little less sweet for us every day. Your billing model is double dipping. We wind up paying for full seats for client collaborators who are already filling paid seats with their employers. It's hard for us to expense these costs and it seems your price is going up every day. Curious where you think this will lead. We've watched our other former partners (who started at the same place as you - e.g. iRise, inVision, Sketch, etc. etc.) pull the same sort of stuff. I see it as the beginning of the end. When you're focus is more on billing seats for your enterprise customers, and less on long term value and fairness for the design partners who introduced you to enterpise, you have to ask if you haven't lost your way. I know we all love profits but the creative professions are about more than money. This industry was built by folks who love design and want to keep it agile, open and collaborative. Making collaboration something that only enterprise can afford is like killing the roots of a tree and expecting it to keep growing new leaves. I hope this message comes across and you start thinking of a better way to work with the small, highly innovative and talented people that were your big advocates before you were a big brand. We'll be here for the long haul. Will you? cheers! Brian #Figma # Figjam #collaboration #design #designtools #uxdesign #designprototyping

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Join me and my guest, Sarah Doody, for Episode 137 of the #DesignThinking 101 #Podcast: Designing Your Career + UX for Small Business. Listen to it here: https://bit.ly/45lUCgN #CareerPlanning #UX #UserExperience

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📣 Hey friends! After a year and a half, 3 rounds of fundraising and building out the design practice at MotherDuck I'm ready for new opportunities! I joined as the Head of Design and the first hire back in fall 2022, and helped shape what design means for the company. I hope you can feel the 'ducking' awesomeness through the product and brand. Now, I'm looking to explore head of design or staff roles in early to growth stage companies and even larger organizations. Can't wait to connect with compassionate founders seeking a design leader versed in UI, UX, IXD, UXR. But first, let me share some startup lessons I've learned over the last 14 years: 1. 🗺️ Have a clear vision A clear vision, articulated and illustrated through design, is a powerful tool. It's the magic that unites your team and customers, helping them SEE where you're going. Design leaders, in sync with the CEO and CPO, can bridge the gap between user expectations and their dream come true. 2. 💎 Quality matters when it matters With limited resources, small teams need to be strategic. A design leader should understand when to focus on the details or backlog them. Foster a culture of experimentation and user feedback. Remember, even as an SME, you might have bias. Listen to your users carefully. 3. 🌟 Lean into your super powers Knowing your strengths and weaknesses is key. If you have the right team, rely on their technical abilities instead of trying to be an expert at everything. It’s tough when you're small, but encourage adaptability and ownership. 4. 📂 Get organized Small messes grow into big ones, which turn into big expenses. Establish clear processes for documentation, meetings, note taking practices and sharing information. Standardize things at the company level and stay organized to scale efficiently. 5. 🤗 Lead with compassion Trust is hard won and easily lost. Leaders who put their ego aside and lead with compassion create a more open culture. Deep relationships, compassion, and a willingness to take a hit for your team will reap rewards in the long run. 6. 🙋 Know your users Get to know your customers and users. Invest time and money in foundational research around their needs and use cases. Share insights and find themes. Eventually, you might have a research function to do this at scale. Until then, let your users lead the way. You'll be amazed at what you learn. 7. 🥳 Have fun If you’re not, you’re not in the right place, find the team that will make you happy, healthy and hoping for more. If you’re constantly stressed, losing sleep, or finding yourself in the hospital for stress induced blood clots then you need to get out. Find partners that get your craft, respect it’s value and hold you up. Life is short, love those around you and make the world a better place. If you’re a compassionate founder with a goal to make amazing things with amazing people let’s design a better world together. https://raphaelhyde.com/

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Craft is work done with intuitive expertise - learned deeply by conscious practice through mentorship. Craft is expensive. The mimicry and pattern replication of AI will upend digital craft much like the Industrial Revolution did for physical craftspeople (only faster). It will likely be CFOs who crush craft like origami as they optimize balance sheets. If you love your craft, find a complex niche whose business model is based on value creation not eyeball acquisition. Government especially needs you.

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🎨 Attention Design Leaders in Transition! 🎨 Recently, several design leaders have reached out to me seeking coaching but found 1-to-1 sessions hard to justify while between jobs. This sparked an idea: why not offer small group coaching sessions tailored specifically for design leaders on the job hunt? These sessions would provide: - Affordable Expertise: Access to high-quality coaching without the full cost of individual sessions. - Community Support: Connect with peers in similar situations, sharing insights and encouragement. - Focused Growth: Develop your leadership skills and prepare for your next opportunity. I'd love to hear your thoughts! Would you be interested in joining a group like this? #DesignLeadership #GroupCoaching #CareerTransition #ProfessionalDevelopment #JobHunt #DesignCommunity

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The simple shift from weakness-based product strategy to strengths-based can be a game changer for the trajectory of your product.

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I'm super excited about the diverse and global cohort that is coming together for my Design Leadership at Scale Director+ online course coming up June 10-20, 2024! If you are an established design leader positioning yourself for future executive roles, this course is made for you. If you are a design, product, or marketing executive overseeing promising design leaders, please forward this message and encourage them to apply. 📣 📣 📣 I'm also thrilled to offer a limited number of 50% off scholarships for the June cohort. Scholarships are awarded based on financial need, and we prioritize applicants who are in an unplanned career transition based on a recent layoff or job separation. The central focus of this intensive 2-week course is on helping leaders to navigate the challenging transition from managing functional teams to driving enterprise-wide impact. Content will include: • Identifying your core leadership qualities and superpowers • Mapping your organization and understanding key cross-functional relationships • Learning the signals of mature design organizations • Measuring and articulating the value of design to your business • Increasing your impact and influence across the enterprise This all comes together in a learning experience that blends pre-recorded video lectures, group discussions, reading assignments, hands-on projects, and collaborative small group working sessions. We will also spend time with some of the top executive design leaders in the industry. Registration is open now! Learn more and apply here: https://lnkd.in/gCbCF2xd #design #designleadership #designmanagement #designatscale #designcareers #skillbuilding

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I'm still thinking about Dovetail's AI release from last month... ...because I think it's one of the best examples we have of the power of agentic UX. It's not that any one feature is supremely valuable. Imagine if Dovetail had just shipped one of these features, like suggested highlights 🥱. That would have been a snooze. (This is how most companies are approaching AI UX right now.) Instead, Dovetail looked at each step of the user journey and figured out how an AI agent could pull cognitive weight 💪 from end to end. 💪 ✨ Magic Transcribe ✨ Magic Summarize ✨ Magic Highlight ✨ Magic Cluster ✨ Magic Search Yes, it makes implementation more complicated. But we know the power of a holistically designed experience: the whole becomes greater than the sum of its parts. Together, these features transform the UX from a solo SaaS endeavor into a partner-based journey. Dovetail's features are still early-stage (they acknowledge the quirks), but it gives us a vision for the future of agentic UX. And boy, do we need a collective intuition for what that looks like. Two other predictions about the agentic future of UX: 1️⃣ I don't think an AI agent has to autonomously take actions on the user's behalf to be defined as an "AI agent." Every experiences will blend autonomous actions and passive support...based on the user's comfort and difficulty of the task. 2️⃣ I don’t think it matters if the AI agent is labeled as an “agent” or if it exists as a collection of unbranded agentic features. (As long as agentic workflows are supporting throughout the user's journey.) ----- Follow Empathy & AI for more ✨ Research, Design, Humanity in the AI era. ✨ ----- #innovation #userexperience #ai #artificialintelligence #genai #humancenteredai

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Joining a startup is scary. Joining as the first of your discipline is scarier. Joining as the first leader / head of your discipline is scary and risky. Which is why I want to help designers and design leaders figure out whether the jump makes sense, and if so, how to do it. I have ideas but hearing from folks actually struggling with this decision would be way more helpful. If you are considering the switch, I'd love to learn what you would want to learn most. https://lnkd.in/g56-K6RJ

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Design Systems folks — when was the last time you shipped something that really felt impactful? Design Systems is in a quandary right now: somehow both a necessary part of building UI, and recognized as "not delivering value." DS teams were heavily impacted by layoffs, and as Noelle Lansford said in her great article recently (link in thread): > The teams I spoke with emphasized that there was a significant deficit between what the design system team advertised and what was delivered. However, perhaps the more concerning point they made was: Even if all of the success criteria was met, when it came to downsizing, the design system appeared redundant at best. Yikes. How can we know design systems are a powerful tool for delivering consistency, velocity, and efficiency, and also know that we’re not delivering on that promise? And forget "impact as business value" for a second — doesn’t it just feel good when someone uses your work and turns to you and says, wow, that made my work so much easier, thank you. The reality for a lot of DS practitioners is more like grinding for weeks on a component that maybe one team half-heartedly used – incorrectly? Or writing thousands of words of documentation that nobody looks at. I don't think we're "not shipping impactful work" because we're collectively bad at our jobs, or because design systems don't actually help teams move faster. I think we're focused on the wrong things.

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On this week's episode of What is Wrong with Hiring, I chat with Senior Product Design Manager and generous UX community contributor Mitchell Clements! Mitch shares how he created an attentive, fair, and effective hiring process to scale his 26-person (and counting!) design team at nCino, Inc. UX hiring managers and job seekers will appreciate Mitch's reflections on: - Lessons learned on screening and interviewing candidates in a crowded market, from entry level to advanced practitioners - The necessity of implementing a career architecture framework and standardized assessment rubrics to streamline the process and set expectations - The importance of empathy, communication, transparency, and respect in creating a high quality candidate experience - What Mitch looks for when hiring senior designers/IC’s and design managers - Why portfolios should NOT be a requirement for applications! - How posting on LinkedIn can help hiring managers attract design candidates - Optimistic predictions for a resurgence of UX hiring… sometime down the road Listen here or wherever you get your podcasts.

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✨Re: Design hiring ✨ Every week I get about 40 inbound for Design opportunities and internships. I also know founders who are hiring and could use the connections. 🚀 Thinking of launching something soon to help solve(!) this. Meanwhile, DMs open.

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