Josh Hemsley

BIG news for #UEFN creators! One of the more challenging parts of #FortniteCreative has been getting players into your map. Literally no one enjoys typing in a 12-digit code they found on social media 😅 It’s especially clunky and frustrating for console players, leading to many just giving up. But Epic Games just dropped an insane update: DEEP LINKING! Now, creators can share links that take players straight into their map. No more 12-digit codes to type out on PC and Android, just links! This is huge for creators: - No More Barriers: Sharing your map is now as easy as sending a link. Players can jump right in from social media, Discord, or anywhere else you post. - More Players, Less Hassle: Without the annoying code-typing process, you’ll see way more people actually joining your map. Which means way better CCU, way more engagement. - Marketing Maps Gets Simpler: Sharing on TikTok, Instagram, or your group chats mean deep links make it effortless for players to check out your islands. #UEFN #Fortnite #DeepLinking #GameDev #EasyAccess

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Not sure how I missed this podcast with Lenny Rachitsky but this episode with Katie Dill is amazing. There's a reason it has 47k views on YouTube. Just furthering my claim that the very best of Lenny's podcasts are not about product development or traditional product management. His best episodes are about design and business. "The use of the word beauty in books that have been digitized by Google has decreased,  like pretty dramatically. And it's aligned with this idea of, "Well,  functionality is king. Functionality is what matters." As if people think about  functionality and beauty as like two opposite things. No, they're not two  opposite things. Functionality is important. And actually beauty enhances functionality  because it does make things easier to use, more approachable, more comp elling to use.  And the other piece of it that is not talked about in business as often is just  the importance of how people feel. Things that are more beautiful, increase trust. You see that  we've put painstaking detail into this, and we care about the details of how something works,  and that gives you assurance that we care about other details that you can't see too." —Katie All I have to say is YES.

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Let’s be real: The "DIY, throw it up there, and hope for the best" approach is not cutting it. Design requires intention, strategy, and an understanding of user behavior to make a real impact. 3tone Approach: We regularly conduct usability testing throughout our design process. This helps identify pain points, allowing us to make informed adjustments based on data that will improve user experience. #websitedesign #figmadesigner

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We’re breaking the first rule of startups: ”never do anything for free.” Enter the Spring Labs Design Partnership Program. The average cost of delivering on a design partnership is well north of tens of thousands before the client has spent a penny. The idea behind the design partnership program is simple: If it doesn’t work, you don’t pay. We’ll take on projects where we have a high degree of confidence since we take all of the upfront risks in customization, implementation, and training costs. We’ve taken on around 30% of interested clients. We’re this confident Zanko can help financial institutions deliver: • 70% quicker complaint resolution • 50% more efficient CX teams • 30% less call center contacts

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Really annoyed at Figma's price gouging here. There is no reason other than greed: https://lnkd.in/gfdrEiWH Oh, and I emailed them about it and this line from their reply was particularly poignant: "Additionally the minimum for enterprise is a $5k invoice minimum. 6 enterprise seats or made up with other products." To put that in context... our monthly Adobe bill (for 8 CC, 7 PS, 6 Acrobat licenses) is ~NZ$2k... Amazing how quickly enshittification sets in... #Figma #Design #SoftwareLicensing

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🔊 Design Leadership at Scale has a lot happening in August and beyond. Read on for all the info on Design Leadership at Scale: Operations, plus: ⚡️ Three FREE DLS Lightning Lesson + Team sessions ⚡️ Newly added course dates ⚡️ 20% discount code Design Leadership at Scale: Operations I'm busy putting the final touches on the August course modules, lessons, and projects, but you can expect to dive deep on the following: Module 1: Build and activate high-impact teams Module 2: Define and optimize your operating system Module 3: Identify and address common challenges I'm including many real-world scenarios, and will try to answer pretty much every question you might have during our seven live sessions together. We'll also be joined by special guests with extensive industry experience. If you are still deciding about enrolling in Design Leadership at Scale: Operations, consider joining one of the upcoming free Lightning Lessons or watch my recent Designing your Design Team 30-minute Lightning Lesson to get a better sense for how I teach. And if the August dates don't work with your schedule, I've opened up another cohort October 1-10, 2024. If you have any questions about whether this course will be a good fit for you, let me know, and together we can figure out. Free Lightning Lessons on Maven In August there are three Lightning Lessons from Design Leadership at Scale. All are free to attend. Join live or view the recordings after the session dates. ⚡️ Org Design For Your Design Org – Aug 7, 8-9am PT, with me ⚡️ Team Tactics For Increasing Influence + Impact – Aug 8, 1-1:30pm PT, with Doug Powell ⚡️ How Top Design Leaders Influence At Scale – Aug 16, 2-2:45pm PT, hosted by Rachel Kobetz with Doug Powell, Bob Baxley, and me Grab your spot then spread the word! (links to register in comments) Quick reference: https://bit.ly/4c3UgNA to sign up for the August 19-28 cohort with a 20% discount code https://bit.ly/4cZcf9d to sign up for the October 1-10 cohort with a 20% discount code If your company offers an L&D or education budget, here's a reimbursement template you can leverage https://bit.ly/4fmDhcs

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Yesterday, I had the pleasure of chatting with Nesrine Changuel, PhD about the often-overlooked yet vital role of delight in tech products. Too often, this concept is dismissed as mere eye candy—a superficial layer tacked onto the core functionality of an app or website. But if we look closer, creating an emotional connection with users and customers might just be the key to true success. Borrowing her brilliant neologism, it’s not about B2C or B2B anymore—it’s all about B2H: Business-to-Humans. There’s so much more to explore on this topic! #emotionaldesign #delight #whatpeoplelove

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Before BRICX, I gave a whiteboarding interview at a massive company for a Sr. Product Design role. My interviewer said that it was one of the best whiteboarding sessions he has conducted. Sadly, most new designers don’t understand the goal of a whiteboarding round. I see this problem routinely when I’m hiring for new designers at Bricx. A whiteboarding round is where you & the interviewer will brainstorm about a problem trying to find a solution. I know it sounds absurd but the goal of the interviewer is actually not to see the solution, but your thought process. I’ll give you an example. You’re presented with the problem: Design a kayak rental service Firstly, ALWAYS start with ‘why’. Why are we designing this? What are we trying to accomplish? Secondly, talk about the user. What are our user personas? What are their demographics? What are their psychographics? What are their behaviors? Next, talk about things like constraints, taking assumptions, business goals, KPIs, existing research, etc. The more you clarify your thoughts & create constraints, the more specific your solution will be. The WORST thing you can do is dive right into the solution after hearing the problem. It absolutely ruins the purpose of the round. Think. Be creative & talk as much as possible with the interviewer. When you’re working as a product designer, you will be working on problems you haven’t ever worked on before. With this interview, you have to show your thought process towards tackling new problem statements. Would love to hear your thoughts on your whiteboarding session as an interviewer or interviewee :)

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👋 Hi friends! I'm on the lookout for 1️⃣ new product design contract this year—do you know anyone who could use my expertise? 💃 Over the last couple years, I've had the pleasure of working with some incredible organizations. Here’s a glimpse into what I’ve accomplished: 🍎 ED TECH 📝 ✅ Collaborated with product owners, account managers, and engineers to set a strategic design direction for multi-product integration following mergers between several EdTech companies. ✅ Worked with the team to determine what the new platform would incorporate from the existing platforms, what cross-over functionality we would implement, and what functionality would come from existing external platforms. ✅ Established a Figma-based design system, ensuring consistent UI across the responsive web app, speeding up design and development. ✅ Continuously improved the platform post-launch to enhance features and add value. 🎶 ENTERTAINMENT 🎙 ✅ Partnered with the Design System team, product managers, and feature designers to develop components and templates for web and tablet apps, and provided consultation on mobile components and variables for a full product relaunch. ✅ Worked within cross-functional teams that included marketing, sales, product, design, and engineering. ✅ Collaborated with marketing teams to design email campaigns focused on product education, new releases, and recommended content. ✅ Assisted executive leadership with design materials and motion UI prototypes for special events and executive media presentations. 💜 NONPROFIT 👯‍♀️ ✅ Relaunched site on new platform, reorganized content and layout. ✅ Optimized site for SEO and localization. ✅ Provided ongoing maintenance including updating content, products, and special events. ✅ Maintained and expanded brand standards for marketing. ✅ Increased website visits by 120% from 2022 to 2023 and so far 47% from 2023 to 2024. ✅ Increased online sales revenue by 170% from 2023 to 2023 and so far 148% from 2023 to 2024. I’m looking to add about 10-15 hours per week to my schedule—not seeking a full-time contract. If you know a someone at an agency/enterprise/startup/organization in need of a lead/senior product designer who can hit the ground running, deliver immediate value, and get the job done right the first time, please connect us! 💫 And if you’ve enjoyed working with me and are willing to share this with your networks, I’d really appreciate it! Thanks, y'all! 💜

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My thoughts on Figma Slides: Each of the major tech companies have their own slideshow software and they all excel at different things: Google Slides is good for quick and dirty decks with lots of collaboration, Apple Keynote is brilliant for animation and rich presentation, and Microsoft PowerPoint is included with Office and the industry standard. Figma Slides (which I will call “Flides” so as not to confuse with Google’s Slides and to honor Mihika Kapoor's original artistic intent) is the first *design-focused* presentation tool. Adobe has no serious players in the game (although some companies use InDesign?) and Canva is about on par with Google Slides, leaving a vacuum in the design-heavy slideshow tool space. Auto Layout, Embeds, and Interactive Polls are so obvious in retrospect it’s a miracle the other tools haven’t implemented them already. It seems the killer app for Flides is the same as Figma: great design tools, interactivity, collaboration, and the promise of fast-paced feature shipping if they stay as dedicated to it as their other sub-tool, #FigJam. The main issue I see is that it’s too easy to fall back on normal Figma if you don’t want to pay for Flides. Most of the people who wanted to use Figma for their decks already were — just less efficiently. I could take or leave the generative stuff, I guess you have to have an AI story for every launch if you want to be taken seriously now. Also, no export to PPT makes this DOA for most business use cases as any non-designer just wants a PowerPoint. Maybe that will change over time, but there are decades of momentum behind PowerPoint A few other thoughts: - The text tone adjuster reminds me of Apple’s GarageBand Drummer interface and I think it’s going to define tone adjustment going forward. It’s a very nice piece of interface. - Slides started as a hackathon project — showing how a group of creative people will always find a way to get a good ROI on play!

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I think we’ve just found ourselves in a new sweet spot in Product Design. And it was completely intentional. Because we’re not asked for executional humans anymore. We’re asked for Product Designers who want to build braver, bolder experiences. Like, the ones that really really work, but also really really blow your mind. And I think a big part of that is down to the new businesses we’re partnering with. Founders that genuinely give a shit about beautiful design. ECD’s that understand that one hire won’t solve the bigger business problem. CPO’s that have full control and buy in from the C-level. This is becoming a very, very exciting time to be in Product and Experience Design. Wow, lets go 🚀 

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shower thought: by 2025 product designers and devs will be co-creating in tools that feel like Figma and an IDE had a baby—turbocharged with AI coding faster launches, tighter feedback loops, and way less time lost in handoffs. PDs, it’s time to start picking up some dev basics. DEVs, your backend and architecture skills are about to be more valuable than ever

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Do you want consistency between designers and front-end developers? Use of design tokens. When everyone uses the same terms, it simplifies things for both teams. Here's Google's introduction to design tokens and how you can implement them: https://lnkd.in/gpWMwqVz

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📣 Designers, you might be surprised at how easy it is to EARN MORE with a few smart moves! In today’s episode (112) of Design Business Freedom podcast, I’m sharing 10 powerful steps to help you reclaim your PROFITS and PEACE. Here’s a hint: one simple step (with just a little commitment) could make a huge difference in your design business. Sometimes, it’s those unnoticed expenses that add up over time, quietly draining your profits🗑️. When you commit to these 10 steps, you’ll see an uptick in your bottom line and be ready to welcome bigger projects and better clients. And the best part is you can do them ALL in ONE DAY! You’ve got this, and I’ve got you. Always. Catch this episode wherever you find podcasts, and start making these quick, impactful changes today. Your business deserves it! 🔗 https://lnkd.in/gYEXnxW2 . . . #designerentrepreneur #interiordesignerlife #interiordesignfirm #boostyourprofits

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I’m noodling on a new thing—The Imperfect Designer. It’s a space for designers and creatives to talk about the messy side of the journey: burnout, perfectionism, self-doubt, and finding balance in both career and life. 🧘 I’ll be sharing my personal thoughts, ideas, and inspiration for navigating a career that embraces imperfection. Why not follow along and see where it goes? 🚀 This is for everyday creatives—whether you're in product design, UX, another creative field or just trying to figure out how to balance life with your work. #Design #healthandwellness #Creativity #SelfCare #WorkLifeBalance #Creatives #personaldevelopment

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🚨What’s the best way to understand a designer’s intent? ✔️If you’re not sitting next to the designer in question, then design documentation tools are the next best thing. ✔️They provide highly valuable information to your whole team, but context is key. That’s why we believe these critical snippets of information should be included alongside the designs in Figma, where the designs are taking form and the intent is clear. ✔️With FigMayo you do the work once in Figma and then we automatically pull it through to your documentation. #Figma #UI #UX #Designer #Designtips

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Oh, I cannot ignore this post without saying something about it! Yes, I have only four years of experience as a UX designer. Yes, I am not a design system expert. Yes, I am not a UX design wunderkind. However, what I've learned while building Guidesight - how to actually build a product and not just design pretty screens, how to transform design into front-end development, integrate with back-end systems, and connect to databases (AWS IAM, Cognito, DynamoDB, etc.), collaborating with developers, testing with UX leaders, and be a problem solver, is something I would never have learned in a regular UX job. I recently said to someone that the past six months have felt like a full-time design, coding, marketing, and sales bootcamp. The challenges life has thrown at me over the past six months have taught me lessons I’m convinced I wouldn’t have learned in many years as a FAANG designer. If Guidesight were to fail tomorrow, I would still have a huge smile on my face. I wouldn’t regret anything; I still won gold (pun intended!) in terms of how much I’ve learned.

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Great talk! A few key points that stuck out to me: - let the problem space actually guide the solution instead of looking for inspiration and unintentionally copying existing patterns. - The power of suggestive questions in helping to guide search functionality should be used intentionally. - Use multiple small models to break down information in different forms to end up creating more unique, personalized fine tuned answers. - "If I can show a machine how to do something, I can then teach it to do that task for me."

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