Designer's Guide to Product Vision, The: Learn to build your strategic influence to shape the future

by Laura Fish, Scott Kiekbusch

Overview

"This book is fantastic. This is a must-read for designers who want to fulfill their potential—treated equally to their peers in technology and business—and ultimately secure a seat at the table with business managers and developers. If you're a designer who thinks getting ahead means you have to go back to school for an MBA, read this book first. Pulling from agile methods in design, Fish and Kiekbusch provide a concrete step-by-step product vision process. The book proves while correcting lack of business acumen is important, vision is the designer's way forward. It's essentially a playbook that sets the stage towards successful product validation—outlining a workflow for any designer who wishes to 'level up' from being a tactical designer to a strategic designer. I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in design leadership."

—Heather Shaw, Professor, Department Chair of Design, Lesley Art + Design

Today, design is a critical business competency, and designers need to play a leadership role. This guide helps you transform yourself into a strategic designer and take your seat at the table where key decisions are made. You'll master a breakthrough process for creating innovative product and service visions and translating them into high-value market offerings.

Defining an effective product vision requires deep discipline and multiple skills. Drawing on their pioneering experience, Laura Fish and Scott Kiekbusch guide you through every step, helping you organize strategy, plan for innovation, and tell a clear story of your customer's future experience.

Once you've defined a strategy-led product vision, make it real. The authors' agile "Visioneering" techniques help you navigate fast-changing product journeys—iteratively and continuously improving experiences while staying aligned with your mission and purpose. With these tools and insights, you can lead business-critical projects today, shape your company's future, and achieve more than you ever thought possible.

Learn How To:

• Move from tactical to strategic designer, and gain a more influential leadership role
• Create strategy-led product visions the organization can rally around and deliver
• Lead the unification of design, engineering, and business to mindfully craft outstanding user experiences
• Go beyond obsolete roadmaps to implement product visions in a world that won't stop changing
• Influence and improve the long-term direction of your business to effect real-world positive change

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780136654322
Publisher:	Pearson Education
Publication date:	08/02/2020
Pages:	288
Product dimensions:	7.35(w) x 9.10(h) x 0.80(d)

About the Author

Laura Fish is a modern designer focusing on strategic product vision that can shape big change for the better. Drawing on fifteen years embedded in digital product programs and user experience teams, she can now speak to hard lessons learned and expertise gained that have led her to redefine her professional purpose and make the changes needed to level herself up. She is now dedicated to helping fellow designers do the same, acting as a visioneering sherpa to guide the journey.

Scott Kiekbusch is a digital product strategist and designer with nearly 20 years of industry experience. Scott has built & led digital product design teams, participated in the design and delivery of websites & applications enjoyed by millions of users, and helped mature the product design practices of several organizations. In his free time he enjoys playing & listening to music, traveling, photography, and periodically posting hot takes on Twitter @adjustafresh. He currently resides with his family in the Indianapolis, IN area.

Table of Contents

• Part I: The Calling
• 1. The State of the Designer
• 2. Re-Design School
• 3. Master Class: First Principles Thinking
• Part II: The Vision
• 4. Getting Started with the A-Team
• 5. Strategy: Connecting the Dots
• 6. Telling the Story of the Future Experience
• Part III: Visioneering
• 7. Setting Your Compass by Your North Star
• 8. Building Your Visioneering Practice
• Afterword: Purpose Driven

Editorial Reviews

"This book is fantastic. This is a must-read for designers who want to fulfill their potential — treated equally to their peers in technology and business — and ultimately secure a seat at the table with business managers and developers. If you're a designer who thinks getting ahead means you have to go back to school for an MBA, read this book first. Pulling from agile methods in design, Fish and Kiekbusch provide a concrete step-by-step product vision process. The book proves while correcting lack of business acumen is important, vision is the designer's way forward. It's essentially a playbook that sets the stage towards successful product validation—outlining a workflow for any designer who wishes to 'level up' from being a tactical designer to a strategic designer. I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in design leadership." — Heather Shaw, Professor, Department Chair of Design, Lesley Art + Design

From the Publisher