Why your org needs a DesignOps team / Michelle Walter / Episode #151

Service Design Show

How can you enable service designers to deliver their best work? That's coming up in a second but first, imagine this...

A wedding where the bride and groom have to take care of all the logistics on the big day itself. Everything from arranging the tables to welcoming the band. There will be little time and space to focus on why they are truly there. Yeah, that's why we have masters of ceremony and wedding planners. These people do all the heavy lifting so that the couple can own the moment.

Okay, so what does this have to do with design? A lot. Many organizations that hire service design professionals forget (or aren't aware of) that they need support.

And this leads to all kinds of problems. Most notably, designers get frustrated by not being able to live up to their full potential, eventually leaving the organization before they can create any meaningful impact. Fortunately, there's a new field emerging that has acknowledged this problem and is developing strategies to cope with it. This field is known as DesignOps.

In this episode of the Show you'll hear Michelle Walter, the head of DesignOps at ANZ Bank, share how they actively support their internal designers to thrive inside the organization.

You'll learn which business incentive drove ANZ to set up and invest in this new practice. And what it took to get buy-in to grow it beyond its initial stages. Finally, Michelle talks about the two major initiatives that have emerged over the years as the key drivers for success that they are experiencing now.

I'd say that every organization which hires service design professionals needs to hear this conversation. But maybe you should listen to it first and then forward it to the right person ;)

If I got one thing from this chat with Michelle, DesignOps is a deliberate act that requires a lot of careful thought and planning. It's a true expertise and needs to be treated like one.

Enjoy this look under the hood of DesignOps and as always, keep making a positive impact!

--- [ GUIDE ] -—

00:00 Welcome to episode 151
03:00 Who is Michelle
07:00 60 second rapid fire
09:00 Growing nurturing and inspiring
10:00 Where did the journey start
15:00 The initial question
19:00 The hiring wild west
21:00 What has changed
23:45 Building a community
29:15 A deliberate act
32:45 The evolution
37:15 Learning program
41:15 What made this work
49:00 Getting feedback
52:45 Lessons learned
56:00 What's next
58:15 Final thoughts

--- [ LINKS ] ---

• https://www.linkedin.com/in/mbwalter/
• The Art of Gathering (book): https://amzn.to/3GDGBia

--- [ HOW TO EXPLAIN SERVICE DESIGN ] ---

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