Let's talk UX #1 with Steve Buzz Pearce, Global Design Director at Skyscanner Let's Talk UX

TIMESTAMPS



03:38

• cracking the viral coefficient at Skype

• integrating with Windows, Mac, and others

• design systems/GUI kits

• Skype was bought and sold three times, ending up at Microsoft



11:27

• the value of a design system: build once, use often

• Skyscanner's first design system was called "living styles"

• control of experiments and partner brands' themes



14:33

• innovation/differentiation in the travel sites space

• business goals geared towards optimization and conversion

• frequent experimentation, multivariate tests



17:48

• arguing against pressure messaging

• culture at Skyscanner: do the right thing for the customer

• doing the right thing for the customer builds trust in the longterm



20:55

• building design teams that believe in the design principles

• evangelizing user testing

• emotional components that show you understand the customer

• prototypes, concept cards, North Star metric



28:05

• defining what not to do

• design leadership vs. business goals

• leading from the front as a role model (do as I do), delegating

• each squad needs an understanding of who leads what



33:07

• inspiring from the front, leading from the back

• servant leadership

• the three As framework: accountability, autonomy, alignment



36:21

• fixed design processes vs. creative freedom

• processes provide predictability but not a proxy for success

• double diamond process, processes define types of feedback

• directive vs. prescriptive feedback



42:06

• managing multicultural design teams

• challenge of different cultures, languages, design nuances

• the accountability ladder



45:31

• incremental design changes vs. reimagining the entire experience

• building the thing that kills you before someone else does

• weighing operational risk, operational parameters



50:46 (Q&A)

• Can you build a culture from the bottom up by influencing directors to take it seriously?

• Do you have a specific process to feed customer insight back to the business?

• How does Skyscanner use qualitative and quantitative research data?

• How did you go about understanding how users make choices about flights?

• How did what you learnt from them affect your team's design choices?

• Favorite resources?

• Why is Steve called Buzz?

• Any final advice for aspiring design leaders?



RESOURCES



• https://backpack.github.io

• https://uxliveconference.com

• https://www.testingtime.com/en/blog/double-diamond-process/

• https://www.amazon.com/Leading-Questions-Leaders-Solutions-Knowing/dp/1118658132

• https://www.cultureamp.com

• https://www.framer.com/prototyping/

• https://www.atlassian.com/team-playbook

• https://www.blinkist.com

• https://www.amazon.com/Good-Great-Some-Companies-Others-ebook/dp/B0058DRUV6

• https://www.amazon.com/Deep-Work-Focused-Success-Distracted/dp/1455586692

• https://www.amazon.com/Make-Time-Focus-Matters-Every-ebook/dp/B078QSCM3V

• https://www.amazon.com/Making-Manager-What-Everyone-Looks/dp/0735219567



SOCIAL MEDIA



https://twitter.com/stevebuzzpearce