Situation

The previous design critique process across the department was not reaching its full potential. There was a lack of accountability within the team, and the critique sessions were inconsistent across the department. The need for a more structured and effective approach to design feedback was evident to ensure that all designers benefited from constructive criticism and could enhance their work accordingly.

Tasks

To address these issues I drove an re-evaluation of the overall effectiveness of the ritual to ensure it aligns with the organization's goals and values. I looked to implement increased accountability measures to maintain high standards of craft quality. To ensure scalability I looked to develop a clear framework for the department to easily adopt and integrate into daily operations.

Actions I took

• Redistributed crit groups to align to area vs geos

• Introduced methods to close feedback loops

• Designated “craft leads” in each crit group

• Introduced “design jams”

• “Do, try, consider, like” framework

Results

Enhancing the visibility of related projects can lead to better engagement from senior individual contributors, as they are less likely to require reintroduction to the context. This increased engagement can also result in more actionable feedback for designers to further improve project outcomes.