DX Perspective: Design Is The Differentiator, Identity Systems, and Prompt Sets Are The New PRDs
How design becomes the differentiator when tech is commoditized, examining Pinterest co-founder Evan Sharp's blueprint for following love over logic, and understanding why prompt sets are the new PRDs
Hi all!
Here’s your weekly dose of DX Perspective, a list of what I’m exploring and thinking about. Feel free to forward this along to friends.
kw picks
TBM 377: Time Allocation ≠ Capacity Allocation by John Cutler – Lately, I’ve been researching the mental models, mechanisms, and reporting practices behind ‘capacity’ allocation. At the day-job I have to figure out how to walk a tightrope between what our customers ask for, and what will ultimately help companies.
The Anti-Silicon Valley Playbook: Evan Sharp on Following Love Over Logic – Pinterest co-founder Evan Sharp on his new company West Co. and trading conventional tech wisdom for a new blueprint for meaningful work.
Why You Need Systems Thinking Now – It’s the best way to anticipate the many secondary effects of change in an interconnected world.
What I'm reading
AI is coming for our design jobs, but it can’t touch taste by Andrea Grigsby – Why taste, not technical skill, is the designer’s future edge.
The Great Office Détente Cracks (But Doesn't Collapse) by Brian Elliot – Media narratives about flexibility's death are greatly exaggerated – here's what's really happening in workplaces across America
In the Costco Era of Software, Design Is the Differentiator – When the Tech Is Commoditized, "Taste" Is Everything
Big Things are Coming. What's next for product design in the era of AI and automation by Stephen Fritz (book preorder) – As we enter the era of AI, today’s market leaders are unaware that they have never been more vulnerable to losing their customers, workforce and market share*.* This is the moment for product design leaders to reset and become the driving force to transform their organizations into leaders in the era of AI.
How to spot a great designer by Tom Scott – Most companies I speak to are struggling to hire great designers. The bar is higher than ever. What’s happening?
Ramp wants the interface of the future to be no interface at all – Everyone hates doing expenses. Diego Zaks, VP of design for fintech unicorn Ramp, tells Fast Company how he’s trying to make the chore disappear.
What I'm watching + listening to
COLLINS Co-founder Leland Maschmeyer challenges our understanding of identity systems – For years, businesses have treated brand identity systems as languages—focused on how they speak. But what if that’s insufficient? What if identity systems aren’t languages at all?
Emerging Tech
Steal These Prompts: 4 AI Workflows to Help You Ship Better Products by Brian Balfour – A common complaint about AI tools is that they spit out slop, but this is mostly user error. If you want a document that looks like a product strategy, ChatGPT will create one in about 10 seconds. A PM who tells their team “build something users want” won’t get good results either. Better input yields better output.
Prompt sets are the new PRDs by Aparna Chennapragada – At Microsoft, our teams have been building M365 Copilot and agents that can come to work for you at work: a Researcher, an Analyst, a Project Manager, and many others are in the works. And as these agents take shape, the question I keep returning to is: what does a “spec” really mean in this new world?
Tools and Resources
My 2 favourite vibe-coding techniques that help when prompts aren't enough – In this article, she introduces ASCII wireframes and the Figma-to-code plugin as key parts of her “vibe coding” process.
My recent articles
Are You Actually Making Progress? How I Rewired My Weekly Reflection to Drive Real Impact
Strategic Design Leadership: Essential Questions for Design Executives
Fueling Innovation: How Design Leaders Drive Product Transformation
Moving Beyond Execution — The Evolution to Strategic Design Leadership
Decoding The Future: The Evolution Of Intelligent Interfaces
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And please give me feedback. Which bullet above is your favorite? What do you want more or less of? Other suggestions? Please let me know.
Have a great weekend.
— Rachel