DX Perspective: The Great Flattening, Continuous Transformation, and Predicting Human Cognition
Exploring strategies for thriving during the Great Flattening, examining how operations can prepare for continuous transformation, and diving into groundbreaking AI research that can predict behavior.
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
Thriving During The Great Flattening
We’re in the middle of the Great Flattening. Fewer layers, more hands-on leaders, and a push to do more with less. Teams are juggling AI, innovation, and efficiency all at once. It's like asking a race car driver to win the race while saving fuel. How can leaders navigate the competing tensions and still move their teams forward? And how should you adapt your operating system to meet the moment, without jeopardizing future impact?
What I'm reading
The AI conversation we're not having – by SY Partners
What’s missing from today’s conversation around AI.
How Operations Can Prepare for Continuous Transformation
Operations leaders face constant change, shifting realities, and persistent challenges. Success depends on balancing order and chaos, adapting systems, and enabling momentum—knowing there’s never a final state.
Could Should Might Don't [pre-ordered]
An invaluable guide for how to think - and not to think - about the future, from one of the leading futurists of our time.
Design Systems of the Future – Ben Callahan
The bulk of our discussion was focused on all the fun ideas people shared about what a design system of the future might look like. Right out of the gate, ToniAnn and I picked up on a wide variety of answers. Some were very futuristic casting a vision for design systems that are “alive” and able to adjust themselves based on the context of their use. Others simply described a modern design system that actually works to accomplish the goals (efficiency, consistency, accessibility, unity) many of us have for our systems work today.
Emerging Tech
A foundation model to predict and capture human cognition
Establishing a unified theory of cognition has been an important goal in psychology. A first step towards such a theory is to create a computational model that can predict human behaviour in a wide range of settings. Here we introduce Centaur, a computational model that can predict and simulate human behaviour in any experiment expressible in natural language.
Tools and Resources
Portraits Experiment by Google
Meet your AI growth coaches: created with real experts.
Modern Designer AI Newsletter for Designers.
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
🔈 Design Leadership at Scale — Shape The Future of Business
DLS courses are built for design leaders ready to sharpen their strategy, expand their influence, and lead at the highest level. Whether you‘re mapping your next career move, strengthening design operations, or stepping into executive leadership, these programs give you the frameworks and insights to drive real impact.
DLS: Career Strategy (Sept 13–14)
Your career journey deserves intention and strategy. This weekend immersive is designed for design leaders who are ready to map out their path, elevate their impact, and align their leadership trajectory with long-term goals. Whether refining your current role or preparing for new opportunities, you’ll gain actionable frameworks to craft a career that stands out in a competitive market.
DLS: Executive
This advanced course is tailored for senior design leaders—Senior Directors, VPs, SVPs, and CDOs — who are ready to lead at the intersection of design, business strategy, and emerging technology. Dive deep into aligning design with business objectives, fostering product culture transformation, and building scalable operations that support innovation and growth.
DLS: Operations (Sept 16–25)
Scaling a design organization without compromising quality or culture is a challenge every design leader faces. This course equips senior and emerging design operations leaders with the tools to build robust infrastructure, optimize processes, and drive operational excellence. From talent development to systems that support rapid growth, this program is crafted for leaders ready to take their teams to the next level.
DLS: Director+
Built for experienced design leaders ready to step up to executive roles, Director+ focuses on leading in complex, matrixed organizations, scaling your influence, and making high-impact decisions. This course will empower you to lead with clarity and confidence, bridging design with broader business goals to drive value across the organization.
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