The collaborative creator: Climate, mindset, and mastery.

Content + Design. It's a winning combination when it works. So how can we help these collaborations run smoothly and get the best from each other?

In this talk I share my experience as a designer working closely with content, discussing strategies for effective collaboration. What are the foundations of great collaborative practice, and how can content and design work together effectively?

1. The collaborative creator Climate, mindset, and mastery. Tom Prior / #CoDes Autumn Edition / 15.10.19 Image credit: https://dribbble.com/shots/3669420-Funfetti-Pattern
2. Value & impact Environment & mindset Content & design
3. Content Design + Image credit: https://www.rijksmuseum.nl/en/collection/SK-A-4886
5. RSA Digital • Simplifying legalese • Removing the burden of understanding • Power of shared tools
7. Virgin Holidays • Our strategic crossover • Brand voice and UX • Presenting together
9. Pitchup.com • Pair research • A lean content approach • Content in context
10. Writers do more than ‘put words on a page’. Designers do more than ‘make things look pretty’. Great digital experiences rely on the bond between language and design. “ ” Amy Leak Writer and Designer: A content-first love story
11. The benefits More effective at delivering value More employable More enjoyable to work with
12. Collaboration and communication are under-valued and under-cultivated in many organisations. We call them ‘soft skills’, which underplays how important and — and how difficult — they are. “ ” Lauren Pope Art and copy: bridging the gap between design and content
13. Content Design Marketing CRO SEO Engineering CX Product Biz dev Image credits: Photos by John Westrock and Denys Nevozhai on Unsplash
14. Becoming collaborative
15. Think of a time.. Image credit: https://www.rijksmuseum.nl/en/collection/RP-P-1937-224
16. Environment Mindset Image credits: Photos by Dylan Nolte and Alex Holyoake on Unsplash
17. Psychological safety Image credit: Photo by Vinicius Henrique on Unsplash
18. The foundation of high-performing teams Google re:Work https://rework.withgoogle.com/blog/five-keys-to-a-successful-google-team/
19. Psychological safety is a belief that one will not be punished or humiliated for speaking up with ideas, questions, concerns or mistakes. “ ”Amy Edmondson Harvard Business School Professor https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LhoLuui9gX8
20. Simply put, it's an interpersonal environment where people believe their voice is welcome. “ ” Amy Edmondson Harvard Business School Professor https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LhoLuui9gX8
21. Amy Edmondson’s Psychological Safety Be curious We are working to learn Acknowledge your fallibility
22. Measure • Are mistakes held against us? • Is it easy to raise difficult issues and problems? • Are people rejected from participation because they have an alternative viewpoint? • It is safe to take a risk on this team? • It is difficult to ask other members of this team for help? Image credit: Photo by Patricia Serna on Unsplash
23. Lead by example.
24. Model behaviour • Seek out alternative viewpoints • Advocate other disciplines • Ask questions, especially naive ones • Listen actively for answers • Invite feedback on your work and approach • Be candid, and constructive
25. https://www.radicalcandor.com/
26. The art of critique
27. https://clearleft.com/posts/critique-your-shortcut-to-better-designs
28. Dogma
29. Dogmatism is counterproductive and dangerous, but it can provide temporary, artificial certainty and illusory comfort in unpredictable times. “ ” Don Ambrose Ph.D Professor of graduate education at Rider University https://www.amazon.co.uk/Dogmatic-Creativity-Higher-Level-Educational-Psychology/dp/0415894603
30. Value & impact Environment & mindset Content & design
31. Demystify our job titles
32. Run a premortem Image credit: Photo by Elena Koycheva on Unsplash
33. Research together Image credit: Photo by Nicolas Weldingh on Unsplash
36. Deliverables for direction Image credit: Photo by Stock Photography on Unsplash
37. Page tables https://uxplanet.org/when-user-needs-get-lost-in-feedback-b1236bffac19
38. Priority guides https://alistapart.com/article/priority-guides-a-content-first-alternative-to-wireframes/
41. Share your tools
42. https://www.figma.com/
43. Share your tools. https://www.figma.com/c/plugin/735770583268406934/Google-Sheets-Sync
44. Present together Image credit: Photo by Daniil Kuželev on Unsplash
45. Space for deep work Image credit: Photo by Mark Asthoff on Unsplash
46. Practice. Patience. Image credit: Photo by Justine de Gennes on Unsplash
47. Thank you @tomprior thomasprior.co.uk tompriordesign@gmail.com Special thanks to Rachel McConnell, Peter Winchester, Lorraine Heller, and Claire Fellows for their help in putting together this talk. Image credit: https://dribbble.com/shots/3669420-Funfetti-Pattern