From team-of-one TO TEAM-OF-TEN
growing a design team in a product-driven company
FRANCO PAPESCHI
Experience Design Director
@bobbywatson
THE JOURNEY
Make the of a new team beat
and make it to have an impact
THE JOURNEY
Make the heart of a new team beat
STEP 1
Researcher
Information architect
Interaction designer
Graphic designer
Challenge 1: 

SHARED UNDERSTANDING
Spectrum of User Experience
Oliver Reichenstein - iA inc. (2009)
https://www.flickr.com/photos/formforce/3663684287/sizes/o/
Defining the user experience function: innovation
through organizational design
Jon Innes (2007)http://dl.acm.org/citation.cfm?id=1242445
Our skills
XD
team
Make the heart of a new team beat
Challenge 2: 

SAME-ISH DIRECTION
Where do we put our energies?
Objectives & Key Results (OKRs)
John Doerr
Keyresult
Key
result
Key
result
Keyresult
Key
result
Key
result
Objective
Keyresult
Key
result
reult
Key
result
Key
result
Objective
Key
result
Key
result
Keyresult
Key
result
Objective
Creative workshops
Product
Managers
Experience Designers
Content Editors
Developers
Stakeholders
Challenge 3: 

YOU ARE NOT ALONE
How do we make others aware?
(non-) parallel tracks
Lynn Miller
How do we fit in projects?
How do we fit in projects?
A chance card: get a quick win
Get a quick win 

before someone starts asking:
‘why all this effort to change how
we do things?’
Make the heart of a new team beat
STEP 1
TOOLS
Make the heart of a new team beat
DESIGN
PROCESS
OKRs PRESENTATIONS 

& DEMOS
LISTEN COMPETENCY
MODEL
QUICK
WIN
Make team scale to have an impact
STEP 2
More than one focus
XD
team
Challenge 4: 

DON’T BE A BOTTLENECK
`
The calendar of an ‘helicopter director’
Micro-manager, commence micro-management!
Copyright: Warner Bros. Pictures, LEGO group et al
Ownership + alignment
Project
champions
Project
manager
Changing the team model
From To
Pic or it didn’t happen
Show & tell
meetings
Information
radiators
Consistency checks
Challenge 5: 

NOTHING STAYS QUIET
Tuckman’s model, revisited
David Sherwin
Tuckman’s model, revisited
David Sherwin
Always chat with the team
Challenge 6: 

YOU ARE THE MACHINE, NOW
Measure your impact
(or at least your outcomes)
WIREFRAMES &
DESIGN COMPS
ANALYTICS & BI
EFFECTIVENESS
& SATISFACTION
Find projects that act as best practice
STEP 2
Make team scale to have an impact
TOOLS
PROJECT
MANAGER
SHOW & TELL INFORMATION
RADIATORS
GUIDELINES,
PRINCIPLES
& FRAMEWORKS
CHATS &
1 TO 1
PROJECT
CHAMPIONS
Make team scale to have an impact
CATALOGUE 

OF WINS
ANALYTICS
FOR OUTPUTS
MEASURE
OUTCOMES
SHIP &
ITERATE
what’s my role now?
Design leadership = design
1
Research and explore what makes an
organisation tick, how does it function,
where could magic happen?
2
Prototype and iterate. 

Materials are different: people, conversations,
organisational structures.
Start on one project, then expand.
3
Align and let align.
Make an effort to get your team always 

in sync on projects and updates.
4
Don’t fear the white space

You don’t have to be always present.
Let people in the team lead projects; do one
step back, and leave space for other people 

to grow.
TOOLS
SKILLS
MODEL
DESIGN
PROCESS
OKRs PRESENTATIONS 

& DEMOS
LISTEN
PROJECT
MANAGER
SHOW & TELL INFORMATION
RADIATORS
GUIDELINES,
PRINCIPLES
& FRAMEWORKS
CHATS &
1-2-1
PROJECT
CHAMPIONS
CATALOGUE 

OF WINS
ANALYTICS
FOR OUTPUTS
MEASURE
OUTCOMES
RESOURCE
ALLOCATION
SHIP &
ITERATE
QUICK
WIN
From team-of-one TO TEAM-OF-TEN
growing a design team in a product driven company

From team-of-one to team-of-ten: growing a design team in a product-driven company