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Design Org Dimensions

The Hidden Architecture that Lets Design Thrive

Welcome to Design Org Dimensions, a kind of living digital book, incorporating not just writing, but the actual tools and references Peter Merholz has created in his work shaping design organizations.

This material builds on Org Design for Design Orgs, still the canonical book for building in-house design teams. Since that time, Peter has continued his efforts on organization design, developing numerous tools, approaches, and practices for creating effective and impactful design organizations.

To work it takes to prepare these resources for public consumption is significant, so Design Org Dimensions is a subscription product. Support independent creators!

This book will continually evolve as Peter both adds to it and updates older material. Below is the current table of contents. Any linked item has been written (though some of them will be updated). Subscribers will be notified as articles are written or re-written, ensuring you're kept up-to-date.

TITLE STATUS

Dimension 1: Definition

Understanding Design As a Function of the FirmLive
The 1215 Qualities of Effective Design OrganizationsPlanned
UX/Design Org Health AssessmentLive
Crafting a Team CharterLive (to be updated)

Dimension 2: Structure

The Shape of Design Orgs
1: Introduction to the Emerging Shape of Design OrgsLive
2: Design Systems and Structural IntegrityLive
3: Creative and Strategic Leadership in Design OrgsLive
Considerations When Structuring Your Design OrgPlanned
The Evolution of a Design Org
Stages 1-5Live
Stage 6: Invest in AmplificationPlanned
Stage 7: A World Unto ItselfPlanned
Organizing Leadership
The Makeup of a Design Leadership TeamLive (to be updated)
The Most Important Role in Your Design Org: Team LeadLive

Dimension 3: People

Flexible and Robust Career Frameworks
Supporting professional developmentPlanned
From Ladder to Trellis: Flexible UX Career ArchitecturesLive
Skill taxonomy, Skill rubricsPlanned
Defining practicesPlanned
Levels FrameworkPlanned
The Snagajob Design Levels Framework (old, but still a decent place to start)Live
Effective Recruiting and Hiring Process
Job profile and job descriptionPlanned
Solicit and screen candidatesPlanned
Recruiting process and interview guidesLive
Design Exercises are Bad Interviewing PracticeLive

Dimension 4: Quality

What is "good design," anyway? It's crucial for orgs to define qualityLive
Industry Standards
Usability heuristics and UX metricsPlanned
Accessibility guidelinesPlanned
Company-Specific
Brand CharacteristicsPlanned
Experience PrinciplesPlanned
Business and Product MetricsPlanned
Connecting Design to what the Business Values (aka "ROI for Design")Planned
Exemplars of Quality WorkPlanned
Tools and Methods
Design SystemPlanned
Quality HeuristicsPlanned
Critique PracticesLive

Dimension 5: Design Management

Design Leadership
Design Leadership is Change ManagementPlanned
The Leadership CeilingLive
Articulate Your AgendaPlanned
Craft Your Leadership PlanLive
Evolving your organization's design maturityPlanned
Running the Design Org
Plans and PlanningPlanned
Develop a Meeting ArchitecturePlanned
Performance ManagementPlanned
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Dimension 1: Definition

Lay the foundation for your Design organization: it's role, it's purpose, and its performance.

Dimension 2: Structure

How is the Design Org structured? Centralized, decentralized, hybrid? Organized by subfunction, product, stage in the journey?

Dimension 3: People

The happier and more engaged people are, the better the work they'll do. Here, we focus on the People Dimension of design orgs, including how they grow in their careers, and thoughtful and intentional recruiting approaches.

Dimension 4: Quality

At the end of the day, all a design org has to stand by is the quality of the work it produces. Most orgs, though, lack quality standards, instead relying on experience and taste, which can vary widely. In this dimension, we explore ways to rigorously define quality standards.

Dimension 5: Design Management

With all the elements in place, there is the work of actually running the design org. In the Design Management dimension, will explore strategies and tactics for doing so successfully.