As I was running frantically, six months had already passed. I thought I would definitely take the time to look back in the first and second half of the year, but due to various overlapping schedules, I was pushed back by a month. No matter how late it is, I record a semi-annual review with the mindset that it is better than not doing it at all.
A perspective that digs into the essence
I feel like I've grown faster than ever. An inflection point in growth thus far comes to mind. When I first encountered digital web services when I knew nothing, I learned about design that interacts with users, and my perspective on design was completely changed. Afterwards, while working at an IT startup, I was able to learn what a product means from a business perspective and what and how product designers should design. At this time, my perspective on how to create sustainable change through design changed.
After going through the user experience perspective and the business perspective, this year, I think I learned a perspective on the essence. Immediately after taking over as leader, I focused on the growth of my team members and struggled to think and implement various methods to lead to the team's performance. As the team grew step by step, creating an environment and culture where the design team could create impact, our greed continued to grow. I began to think about how to go beyond functionally performing the tasks requested within the organization and solve problems with products regardless of field. What should I do to provide an experience that customers can never go back to and to change the market? What should our team do? Are we really committed to finding the right problems and solving them to high standards? I constantly wondered what questions I should ask to create change.
I confess that until now, I tried to find the best answer within the external environment and the limitations placed on me. But what was really important was the customer's problem to be solved, not the conditions that were met. Fortunately, I had trustworthy colleagues who were genuinely trying to create products for customers and change the market, so I was able to try various things.
Truly customer-centric
At the end of the question about the essence, it was the customer. There are countless definitions of design and designer, and various development methodologies and design principles. Depending on the context and nature of the problem, design principles will vary. But it occurred to me that the value that will never change forever is the customer.
Everyone says that customers are important. But what efforts are we really making to understand our customers? I looked back on what I had done to understand my customers. To my shame, I did not feel like I had done enough to understand my customers and deliver better value compared to my desired goal. I think starting to think of everything as a customer made us behave in a completely different way. We have pledged that everything we do as a company must be directed toward our customers. Every time I work on a project, I am reminded that the completeness of the product experience or key project indicators are not our ultimate goal, but rather how the customer's experience changes after the project is completed. It was a time when we thought about what to do to be truly customer-centered, not just a slogan.
We believe that understanding customers and solving their biggest inconveniences is the fastest way to create business impact and change the world. Imagine what the best customer experience is, decide what experience customers need right now because you can't do everything, and create business impact by executing it and delivering it to customers faster than anyone else. We work hard to create that kind of product experience. Although it is difficult, I think I will spend the remaining time this year thinking about the true meaning of customer focus.
action for change
In addition to worrying about my customers, I also think about design, a theme that will never change. The ultimate goal is to create a design language that anyone can understand. To achieve this goal, I took on several challenges this year. I continued to write design articles, met many designers with distinct personalities, and participated in small online classes and presentations. Although it was difficult to meet people and I hated giving presentations, it was an enjoyable experience to step out of my comfort zone, challenge myself for a purpose, and create accomplishments.
But I can't be satisfied. Although I made small achievements through various activities, I look back on what I achieved toward my big goal. It made me reconsider what it takes to really make a difference. Everything would be problem definition. What is the biggest problem in creating a design language now? What is the best way to solve that problem? Can you break down a difficult problem into easier problems? How does a design language work? Can design become an understandable skill? Can designers create the desired results with design skills? Can designers prove their worth?
To understand how a design language works, communicating with people who actually see and use it will be essential. As a player in the business, I believe that designing the product yourself and communicating directly with people will give you the most information. During this process, we cannot help but think about the correlation between business, service, product, and design. Useful design skills that can be implemented immediately in a business context are now shared so quickly that no one knows about them. Now I'm curious about the next step in the design. At a time when service composition and design are almost integrated, what better value can design give people? What design principles should we discuss in this day and age? Is it a designer who plans? Or should we do ethical design?
To create a better design ecosystem, we think about realistic ways to grow the circle of knowledge called design. I feel like I've been doing whatever I want so far, but I still don't know what to do right now. Fortunately, the enthusiasm doesn't seem to have died down. In the second half of the year, I will have to think about new activities that can really make a difference. It could be creating something or meeting respectable people.
