As the design lead, I am the primary point of contact for both the stakeholder and our design team. My role here is to establish good communication between both parties in order to create the desired design. Whenever any issues or new requirements come up, I have to be able to understand them quickly and provide accurate solutions.
As the person who works with the client closely, I also learn their business goals and perspectives to be translated into design tasks for my team.
I do a lot of brainstorming with my client to understand their point of view about how their UX and UI products can support their business. We discussed the features that we will develop in the design and their prioritization so that the design tasks will be well-managed. In this phase, I also pitch the general concept of how the design will look like to the client.
Every project is unique, they have different needs and requirements. As the leader, I define the best approach to handle the project, then align the ideas with the client and the team member so everyone will be on the same page to reach the same goal.
Work efficiency is highly important in this field of work to make sure that the product is created properly and finished within the due time. To accomplish this, I list down all of the tasks that need to be done based on the feature prioritization, and assign them to specific designers. Before I assign a task, I also brief my team and make sure that they understand exactly what needs to be done. The instruction must be clear from the beginning to avoid unnecessary revisions which can potentially take more energy and time.
Besides the task list, I also create the timeline to set the target/estimation time delivery to the client. The design lead needs to make sure deliverables are submitted in a timely manner.
The design lead needs to make sure that the design is delivered to the client at the best quality level. I monitor the progress of the design regularly, evaluate it, and give the design team feedback so that the final product will meet the client’s expectation.
In order to create a user-friendly UX design, I always encourage my team members to switch their mindset on the user’s shoes and feel the design as how the user feels it.
The design lead is the one who is responsible to present the ideas and design to stakeholders. It is important to explain not only the end result of the design but also the reason behind it. I have to be able to explain why this is the best design solution for my client.
During the presentation session, I involve my team members to join and listen to the client’s feedback directly. I also give a chance for my team members to do the presentation by themselves to strengthen their soft skills.
The design lead’s job is not only working on the project with the client, but also to look inside our team. Defining design culture is very important to help us work more effectively and efficiently.
In the agency I am currently working at, I established the design culture that is still applied until now. Design culture is the standard operating procedure of performing the design tasks in order to create a well-documented and standardized output of the design team, ranging from archiving the design files to executing technical skills such as auto-layout on Figma, etc. This culture has made it easier for me as the design lead to monitor the progress and quality of our designs, and for the team members to manage their tasks. Also, because the workflow is clear and the output is standardized, the tasks can be carried out by anyone even when a member is unexpectedly absent.
If all of the team members are able to perform their duties excellently, it will be easier for the team to handle any challenges of the project. Hence, everyone needs to keep improving themselves. This has become one of my duties as the design lead as well: to be the mentor and motivator to help our team members grow.
To develop their technical skills, we usually have a workshop/sharing session at least once per month to explore the usage of specific design tools and to update our skills in using newer, more advanced ones. This is important to improve the efficiency of our work, especially with the rapid advance of technology. For interpersonal skills, our team members are directly involved in a lot of activities such as client presentations, brainstorming with the product manager, etc. This does not only help them to gain their people skills, but also allows them to directly learn the necessary information or feedback for the project.
Besides that, to create a solid team with a strong camaraderie, it is also very important to understand each team member’s personality. For this, we have 1-on-1 sessions for the design lead and each team member to check up their condition and help them with their personal issues.
Lastly, critical evaluations are necessary to improve one’s quality. Therefore, the team members are given an annual evaluation report to appreciate them of the areas they are excelling at and inform them of the areas they need to improve.
Interested in partnering with me? Reach out at mrizqihanafi@gmail.com
UX
UX Design
Design Agency
Design Teams
Design Lead
Directing the UX & UI Design Strategy.My end-to-end design process as the design lead in working on the project for our clients.
Mentoring the Design Team to Grow.Mentoring and evaluating my team members’ performances to help them grow to become better designers.
“Not only is he an excellent designer, but he is also a great friend and mentor. His leadership skills are unparalleled and he always goes above and beyond to support his team members.”
“Rizqi & team is a UI/UX design genius! Their work on our project was flawless, delivering a design that not only looked amazing but also functioned beautifully.”
“Working with them was a pleasure. Their UI/UX design expertise is unmatched, and they were able to take our project to the next level.”
“Rizqi transformed our vision into a user-friendly, visually stunning reality. Their expertise and professionalism were evident from start to finish.”
