Tom Scott’s Post

🎨 Hiring Designers by Archetypes: A New Approach to Building Creative Teams 🎨 Finding the right designer isn’t just about skills—it’s about matching archetypes that align with your team’s vision and needs. In my latest blog post, I explore how hiring by designer archetypes can bring balance, innovation, and cohesion to any creative team. Curious about which archetype your team might be missing? Dive in here! 🚀 https://buff.ly/3YMaNS3 #Hiring #DesignTeams #CreativeHiring #UXDesign #TeamBuilding #DesignerArchetypes

Are you a recruiter venturing into hiring Product Designers for the first time? Here are five key things to look for: - Portfolio Quality: Ensure the designer’s portfolio showcases a variety of projects, highlighting their skills, creativity, and problem-solving abilities. - User-Centric Design: Look for a demonstrated understanding of user-centered design principles and how they've been applied in their work. - Collaboration Skills: Product Designers often work closely with cross-functional teams. Check for evidence of effective collaboration in their past roles. - Technical Proficiency: Familiarity with design tools like Sketch, Figma, and Adobe Creative Suite is essential. Evaluate their proficiency in these tools. - Communication Skills: Clear communication is crucial for articulating design decisions and collaborating with stakeholders. Ensure they can effectively convey their ideas. #productdesign #recruitment #sourcing #hiringtips #designhiring #design

Ryan Scott should have all of us thinking. I've been there and I've even done this myself reviewing thousands of portfolios. We often hear about the glamorous side of design: working on exciting projects and creating groundbreaking solutions. But the reality is, many designers are stuck in a system that limits their creativity and potential. This creates an "expectation" of what to expect in a portfolio. We all are looking for that shiny, pixel-perfect example that depicts the "craft" of design. That may not be what happens in the real world. Some very talented designers are simply stuck working with what they have. We're often hampered by constraints, limited resources, and unrealistic expectations. Here's the reality: - We don't get the final say. - Technical debt hinders progress. - Critical user stories are overlooked. - Stakeholders undervalue user research. - Good solutions are undermined by poorly run A/B tests. - Sometimes it's just about the feature, feature, feature. - Tight deadlines force us to compromise on quality. - We're often stuck with a stinky design system. - UX/UI technical debt is simply deprioritized. When designers share their experiences with fellow designers, they're often met with unrealistic expectations. They're judged on their "craft," their process, and their titles, rather than the challenges they've overcome. Even when they overcome these challenges, they may not be recognized or rewarded for their efforts. It's time for a change. When hiring, let's acknowledge the realities of modern product development and assess candidates based on their skills, potential, and resilience. We can't only judge a book by its cover. #design #ux #productdesign #industrychange #designersupport

Some of the best design talent out there is hired through word of mouth. Why? Great designers don’t just bring skills they bring trusted recommendations from their network. A referral often says more than a CV ever could. If you're hiring, don’t underestimate the power of your team's connections. And if you're a designer, never stop building your network. The next opportunity could come from someone you already know. #digitaldesign #digital #hiringindesign #designhiring #productdesign #uxui #servicedesign #deignresearch #experiencedesign

Following article as a continuation of my thoughts regarding hiring (https://lnkd.in/dRgQxQhW)

✨ What’s Really Happening in the Design Job Market? ✨ From all my conversations with designers, founders, and hiring managers, one thing is clear: the most in-demand role right now is the Senior Product Designer, typically with 4-8 years of experience. What Companies Are Really Looking For: Hands-on Mid-Level Product Designers: 👇 --- They want senior full-stack product designers with 4-8 years of experience, and good design craft, tech knowledge and product thinking, who can design and deliver work independently or lead small teams when needed. Low Appetite for junior designers or design Leadership-Only Roles:👇 --- Companies are hesitant to hire juniors because they don’t want to invest heavily in mentorship right now. Similarly, design leaders focused solely on strategy, planning and people (without hands-on involvement) face a tough market since companies want contributors who can balance strategy and design execution. Have you noticed the same trends in your conversations or experiences? I’d love to hear your thoughts - let’s discuss! #DesignHiring #productdesign #design #uxdesign #uidesign #uxui #designers #productdesigners #uxdesigners #designindia #designcommunity #designjobs #beinguser

🤔 definitely some truth here but several of the issues listed can become opportunities to evangelize and increase transparency and productivity throughout the product / research / design / dev process.

💡 Struggling to Scale Your Agency Without Adding to Your Team? We’ve Got You Covered! As a small agency, you’re constantly juggling multiple projects, tight deadlines, and demanding clients. You want to scale, but hiring full-time designers and developers is expensive, time-consuming, and often risky. That’s where we come in. We offer flexible design and development solutions tailored for agencies like yours. Whether you need: ✅ A top-tier designer to craft stunning visuals, ✅ A developer to bring complex ideas to life, or ✅ Both, working together seamlessly— You can hire our experts on a weekly basis. No long-term commitments. No extra overhead. Just the support you need to deliver exceptional results and grow your business. Why choose us? 🔹 Access a diverse talent pool (UI/UX, front-end, back-end, and more) 🔹 Scale up or down as per your project requirements 🔹 Focus on your clients while we handle the execution Ready to take your agency to the next level without the hassle of full-time hiring? 👉 Let’s chat about how we can help! #SmallAgencySupport #ScaleYourAgency #DesignAndDevelopment #AgencyGrowth #FlexibleHiring #RemoteDesigners #RemoteDevelopers #CreativeAgencies #OutsourceSmart #AgencyScalingSolutions

Most in-demand role right now? = Senior Product Designer. Let's look at 6 points why: From speaking to leaders and + Head's of Product Design, + HR, One thing is clear: Senior Product Designer is the go-to choice. 1. Until 2020, the mid-weight/ senior level was the most popular role. Why? Got nearly all the experience of a senior without the high £. 2. Since 2020, and the digital boom, companies need seniors. Why? To hit the ground running with all the experience. 3. In 2024. Companies prefer full-stack product designers, 4-7 years exp., product awareness, beautiful visuals, who work solo, + lead small teams. 4. Junior Product Designers: After 10 years of recruiting, about 9 roles for that level have come in. Since 2020, the roles for juniors are vastly limited. 5. Why? Companies are reluctant to invest in training: With economic uncertainty, this takes time + £. Spending this £ on solid expeirence. 6. Heads of/ Director level: Again limited need. Why? Minimal hands-on work, companies need a mixture of design + strategy output, not just leadership + planning. Seems the Pantone colour of the year is Senior Product Designer. ________ If you are a hiring manager + see this same trend. Drop me a DM, would love to hear your views. ________

I thought this was very insightful - Reposting! If you consider yourself a junior product designer I would just say stop considering yourself that. You don't need a company to hire you or train you on the job since they are clearly very reluctant to do that. You also don't need to wait for them bless you with the senior title. You volunteer, crank out those passion projects, take every UX class you can find and afford and read every book there is on the topic and don't relax until your portfolio looks senior and is senior. Never call yourself a junior since those jobs apparently barely exist according to this post.