Introduction

Hi, I'm Nic Bertino. As I helped grow a design team from 18 to over 50, I took a lot of notes as we tried different approaches and faced different challenges. This includes navigating our transition to a remote (and then hybrid) environment during the pandemic. I was most recently Senior Director of User Experience at AppFolio, where our teams took the Inspired dual-track Agile approach to product development.

I've been designing applications and leading teams for a long time. I view leading teams as an exercise in systems thinking: understanding events, patterns, structures, and mental models that drive successful and engaged design teams. In practice, I'm constantly evaluating new rituals, resources, and tools to help design teams be more effective and efficient. This is a collection of my thoughts and experiences on design leadership, focusing on the role of design leadership in the design process.

I do not claim these as my own, and I've drawn influence from many people and sources, which I've tried to acknowledge along the way. I hope this material can help you as others have helped me.

Who is this for?

Design Leaders

Whether you're new to management or a seasoned leader, I hope these resources can help you continue to grow and improve your skills (or those of your team).

Designers

A great way to be self-determining is to understand what your manager (or their manager) uses as their source of truth. For designers, I hope this helps you manage up, introduces new rituals to your team, and ultimately is a tool for better engagement with your work.

Design Allies

Design is hard, and leading design teams is a science. I hope this helps understand the challenges and opportunities of leading a design team.