This document discusses the importance of collaboration across disciplines in content creation and design. It outlines different levels of openness that teams can practice to improve collaboration, including personal openness, active openness, outward openness, and exponential openness. Personal openness involves having an open mindset, while active openness means putting that mindset into action. Outward openness focuses on empathy and understanding user needs. Exponential openness occurs when cross-functional teams work together, creating possibilities greater than any one person could achieve alone. The document advocates for breaking down silos to foster effective collaboration through a culture of openness.
Next-Level Collaboration: the Future of Content and Design | GIANT CONF 2015
1. THE FUTURE OF CONTENT AND DESIGN
Next-Level Collaboration
GIANT CONF 2015 - @REBEKAHCANCINO
2.
3. 1st fully computer-animated ïŹlm
No. 1 ïŹlm of the year in 1995
Nominated for 3 Oscar awards
One lifetime achievement award
$191+M lifetime earnings
And it was all sorts of awesome
9. You donât see the complexity,
all you see is a beautiful story
10. âI realized the most exciting thing I had ever
done was to help create the unique
environment that allowed that ïŹlm to be
made.â
-⯠Ed Catmull, Pixar Co-Founder & CEO
11. âTO PRESERVE THE
OF FORCES NECESSARY
TO CREATE â
Â
confluence
magic.
Â
Edâs new mission?
40. An open mindset and personal belief system
grounded in humility, equality, and respect
for fellow collaborators. This personal lens of
openness defines how you see
everything else.
42. FAUCET FUNNEL
Suspend judgment
Go for quantity
YES, andâŠ
Embrace the unusual
Let go of ego
Accentuate the positive
Think strategically
Align to goals/objectives
Check for feasibility
Avoid default decisions
First faucet, then funnel
43. Know what you donât know,
asking questions creates opportunity
44.
45. âHumility is a critical strength for leaders and
organizations possessing it, and a dangerous
weakness for those lacking it.â
- Dusya Vera Ph.D., Strategic Virtues:
Humility as a Source of Competitive
Advantage
52. Personal openness looks like...
RESPECTING THE SKILLS,
STRENGTHS, AND HUMANITY
OF OUR TEAMMATES.
53. 3 easy ways to practice
1) Include someone you normally wouldnât in your next
project meeting, someone who would add value but that
you donât always agree with or think of first.
2) Suspend judgment when hearing new ideas, build in
time to think freely before narrowing down options as a
team.
3) Next time something comes up that you donât
understand, ask about it (instead of Googling or
pretending that you know).
Â
56. Active openness is putting personal
openness to good use. Itâs when we channel
our open mindset into courage, curiosity,
and concern for the whole outcome.
57. âContent doesnât belong to content. Design
doesnât belong to design. Code doesnât
belong to dev.â
- Nicole Fenton
60. âI THINK ONE THING THAT I
TRY TO BE REALLY
CONSCIOUS OF IS
PROBABLY TONE.â
transcribed from an interview
61. âAND JUST, I DONâT KNOW.
THEREâS COOL WAYS TO SAY
THINGS, AND DEFINITELY
WAYS TO SAY THINGS THAT
FEEL ACCUSATORY OR
NEGATIVE.â
transcribed from an interview
62. âI THINK, A LOT OF IN THE
WAY YOU SAY SOMETHING
COULD MAKE SOMEBODY
EVEN RECEPTIVE TO
LISTENING
TO YOU (AND ACTUALLY
HEARING YOU).â
transcribed from an interview
63. âMAYBE A GOOD WAY TO
GET PEOPLE TO LISTEN TO
YOU IS TO TRY TO BRING
FACTS TO THE TABLE.â
transcribed from an interview
64. âIF YOU HAVE DATA TO
BACK UP SOMETHING
YOUâRE TRYING TO TALK
ABOUT, ITâS DEFINITELY
MUCH EASIER TO, I THINK,
GET PEOPLE TO LISTEN TO
YOU.â
transcribed from an interview
65. âEVEN IF I HAVE A HUNCH
ABOUT SOMETHINGâŠâ
transcribed from an interview
66. âIF I CAN HELP PROVE IT,
THEN I FEEL LIKE MY IDEA
IS RECEPTIVE FAR MORE
OFTEN (THAN IF IT JUST
SOUNDED LIKE A
THOUGHT THAT DIDNâT
HAVE MUCH TO IT).â
transcribed from an interview
68. METRICS
PEOPLE
GOALS
Approach value and benefits
Supporting facts and data
Players involved and their role
Business goals and user needs met
Building your business case
IDEA
69. trust
Building a business case for
collaboration builds and
uncovers hidden .potential
@REBEKAHCANCINO
81. Active openness looks like...
@REBEKAHCANCINO
JUST JUMPING IN WHERE WE
CAN HELP AND ADD VALUE (IN
A HUMBLE WAY).
82. Active openness looks like...
@REBEKAHCANCINO
UNDERSTANDING THE WHOLE
EXPERIENCE AND LEARNING
ABOUT OTHER DISCIPLINES.
83. 3 easy ways to practice
1)⯠Talk to (or shadow) people in other disciplines who are
working on the same thing as you. Ask about their
process, challenges, and workflow.
2)⯠Build a business case for collaboration. Find ways to
communicate the value of what your idea will add to
the process. Saved time? Less rework?
3)⯠Read articles from other disciplines that complement
or overlap with your work. Follow a diverse set of
people on Twitter.
Â
@REBEKAHCANCINO
86. Outward openness is an exercise in
empathy. Itâs when we work to understand
the needs of those we are designing for, and
create solutions that are right for their
context.
93. USER + NEED + INSIGHT
An anxious
mother sending
a grad gift
To feel
good
about
her gift
choice
Once she sends
the berries she
worries about if
her niece will
be there to
receive it, will
they spoil?
First, uncover insight
94. We believe that ___________ has ________________
and that ______________may solve this problem by
____________________ and _____________________.
We will know we have succeeded when
___________________and/or ____________________
reaches ___________________.
(USER) (PROBLEM)
(THIS SOLUTION)
(THIS ASPECT) (THAT ASPECT)
(QUANTATIVE MEASURE) (QUALITATIVE MEASURE)
(THIS LEVEL)
@kevinhoffman
97. âSO, IF YOUâRE A DESIGNER,
CHANCES ARE, AND THIS IS AN
ASSUMPTION IâLL MAKE BUT
ITâS PROBABLY TRUEâŠâ
transcribed from an interview
98. âYOU ARE A SOMEWHAT
CONTROLLING PERSON
WHEN IT COMES TO WHAT
YOUâRE CREATING.â
transcribed from an interview
99. âAND I THINK WHAT SETS
YOUR CLIENT UP FOR
SUCCESS, IS FOR WHAT
YOUâRE TRYING TO CONTROL
SO DEEPLYâŠâ
transcribed from an interview
100. âTO ACTUALLY LIKE, TAKE
INTO ACCOUNT THAT EXTRA
VARIABLE (CONTENT),
RIGHT?â
transcribed from an interview
101. âAND ONE OF THE BIGGEST
TESTAMENTS TO THE
SUCCESS OF A SITE ISâŠâ
transcribed from an interview
102. âONCE THE CLIENT PUTS ALL
THEIR CONTENT IN, DOES
THE DESIGN SYSTEM THAT
YOU BUILT STILL FUNCTION
THE WAY YOU INTENDED?â
transcribed from an interview
103. âTHATâS TWO-FOLD, THAT
HAS TO DO WITH:
DID YOU BUILD A SYSTEM
THAT HAS ENOUGH FOR
THEIR NEEDS?â
transcribed from an interview
104. âAND THEN ALSO THEREâS
EDUCATION PART.
DID YOU TEACH THE CLIENT
WHAT TO USE WHERE, AND
WHAT EACH PIECE IS FOR?â
transcribed from an interview
105. âSO, I THINK THE SOONER YOU
OPEN YOURSELF UP TO
NEEDING TO ACCOUNT FOR
THOSE THINGSâŠâ
transcribed from an interview
106. â(RATHER THAN TRYING TO
LIKE, JAM A SQUARE INTO A
CIRCLE COOKIE CUTTER)â
transcribed from an interview
107. âI THINK YOUâLL BE HAPPIER
ONCE YOUR SITEâS
LAUNCHED.â
transcribed from an interview
109. Outward opennessIS AN
EXERCISE IN . ITâS
WHEN WE PUT OUR AGENDA
ASIDE AND DO WHATâS RIGHT
FOR OUR USERS.
@REBEKAHCANCINO
empathy
110. Outward openness looks like...
@REBEKAHCANCINO
BALANCING BUSINESS GOALS
WITH USER NEEDS.
111. Outward openness looks like...
@REBEKAHCANCINO
DOING USER RESEARCH AS A
TEAM (AND ACTUALLY TALKING
TO REAL USERS, TOO).
112. Outward openness looks like...
@REBEKAHCANCINO
CONSIDERING THE NEEDS OF
INTERNAL TEAMS AND
SETTING THEM UP FOR
LONG-TERM SUCCESS.
113. Outward openness looks like...
@REBEKAHCANCINO
KILLING YOUR DARLINGS
IN SERVICE OF THE
GREATER GOOD.
114. 3 easy ways to practice
1)⯠Do research as a team. Try walking through the userâs
context with an empathy map before discussing
solutions.
2)⯠Talk to the people youâre making things for to discover
latent needs (internal users count, too). Consider
inviting your users to co-design with you.
3)⯠Take your best idea off the table. Let go of
preconceived ideas of what will work best, work out a
user-centered solution with your team.
@REBEKAHCANCINO
117. Exponential openness happens when cross-
discipline teams come together to co-create
something greater than any one person could
on their own. This is where the benefits of
collaboration increase rapidly.
119. âFOR THE VIRGIN PROJECT
THERE WERE TWO LEAD
DESIGNERS.â
transcribed from an interview
120. âME, WITH MY BACKGROUND
IN GRAPHIC DESIGN.
AND THIS OTHER GUY, FELIPE
MEMORIA, WHOSE
BACKGROUND WAS IN SORT
OF MORE TRADITIONAL UX.â
transcribed from an interview
121. âAND SO, WE STARTED
DOING THE CONCEPT WORK
TOGETHER.â
transcribed from an interview
130. ALL THE DIFFERENT
PEOPLE WHO
UNDERSTAND ALL THE
DIFFERENT PARTS OF
WHATâS GOING TO MAKE
A PROJECT SUCCESSFUL.
131. DESIGN AND DEVS
UX PEEPS
CONTENT STRATEGISTS
STAKEHOLDERS (USERS, TOO)
PRODUCT MANAGERS
CREATIVE DIRECTORS
and more!
Â
132. âPart of why weâre actually able to undertake
such a big process so successfully is that we
didnât have a wall that we tossed things back
and forth over. It was really very tight feedback
loops. Very collaborative.â
- Dean Cookson, VP CIO Virgin America
133. BUSINESS GOALS AND OBJECTIVES
Prioritized, measurable goals, objectives and
sub-objectives.
USER TASKS
Real, researched and prioritized user tasks.
Before designing together, you need:
134. Then you could, for example...
1)Define user information needs
and tasks
141. Exponential openness looks like...
@REBEKAHCANCINO
DOING THE WORK TOGETHER,
INSTEAD OF JUST TALKING
ABOUT THE WORK.
142. 3 ways to encourage exponential openness
@REBEKAHCANCINO
1)⯠Design a meeting differently. Start with goals in mind,
try group work and games to elicit the outcomes you
need.
2)⯠Get executives involved. Find out who the final
decision makers are and invite them to the design
process early. (Clearly communicate the benefit of
them being there.)
3)⯠Team up, and donât make decisions in a vacuum. Join
forces with your stakeholders, teammates, and users.
145. A CULTURE OF
SETS THE STAGE FOR
SUCCESSFUL
AND .
openness
collaboration
co-creation
@REBEKAHCANCINO
146. 1)⯠PERSONAL OPENNESS: be humble
2)⯠ACTIVE OPENNESS: just jump in
3)⯠OUTWARD OPENNESS: start with heart
4)⯠EXPONENTIAL OPENNESS: join forces
Ways to champion openness
@REBEKAHCANCINO