Articulating Design Decisions

Communicate with Stakeholders, Keep Your Sanity, and Deliver the Best User Experience

By: Tom Greever

Narrated by: Ric Chetter

Talking to people about your designs might seem like a basic skill, but it can be difficult to do well. In many cases, how you communicate with stakeholders, clients, and other non-designers may be more important than the designs themselves. Because if you can't get their support, your work will never see the light of day - no matter how good it is.

This practical guide focuses on principles, tactics, and actionable methods for presenting your designs. Whether you design apps, websites, or products, you'll learn how to get support from people who have influence over the project with the goal of creating the best user experience.

Walk through the process of preparing and presenting your designs.

Understand stakeholder perspectives and learn how to empathize with them.

Cultivate both implicit and explicit listening skills.

Learn tactics and strategies for expressing the most effective response to feedback.

Create the right documentation for your decisions to avoid repeated conversations.

Discover why the way you follow through is just as important as the meeting itself.

©2020 Tom Greever (P)2021 Upfront Books

Helpful for Both Executives & Designers

I plan to listen to this book again, as it provided helpful hints for managing stakeholder relationships in the workplace.

UX Strategy Meets Humans

Tom Greever provides a clear roadmap of how to advocate for UX. IMO, this is for those of us navigating the crossroads of UX and business - that is, for every single person working in a UX role.

He reminds us that stakeholders are not roadblocks, but people. We can use our empathy and other UX skills to design an ongoing, constructive and mutually beneficial experience (relationship!) that shows them the value of our work in terms that are meaningful to them.

I can imagine some personalities feeling that certain example suggestions don’t feel like “them” - don’t get caught up in that. Just think about how *you* show appreciation to people, and maybe communicate how you show appreciation to people, and then make an effort to show people that you do appreciate them - even if what you’re currently appreciating is more of a hope or bid for the future. People pick up on and rise to your expectations, so make them positive.

A design must read

All ux designer should read/listen to this book. Really useful content, wish I had had read this years ago!

Impactful guidance on improving communication

Articulating Design Decisions" by Thom Greever is a crucial resource for anyone aiming to boost their workplace communication skills. The book provides practical and accessible advice, particularly in transformative parts such as "Check Your Ego at the Door" and "Lead with Yes." These sections deliver profound insights and, through applying Thom’s advice, I feel like my communication is getting better. The noticeable improvements in how I convey ideas and interact show the effectiveness of the techniques presented. This book is essential for those dedicated to mastering communication. I eagerly await more of Thom's work in this field.

This Book is INCREDIBLE

I couldn’t express my gratitude towards the writer of this book. I always thought that my work process was hard, people were tricky and even sometimes felt discouraged to design. The discouragement came from all the feedbacks literally everyone on the was giving about my designs and I was OVERWHELMED. This book taught me how to better communicate with people and understand their true needs.
Thank you Audible for making this incredible book available for the listeners!

Simply the best communication coaching book!

If there was as book that captured best communication practices in design, this is it.

Amazing

I was taking notes in every minute! This books is one of the best in design

A must for any UX Designer!

I've already left a review on Amazon (I purchased the paperback prior to purchasing the audiobook), but for the audiophiles out there, I just wanted to say that this book is a true goldmine of information. First of all, kudos to the narrator, Ric Chetter. He navigates the material with a natural grace--it was as though the author, himself, was reading it to me. And regarding the material, if you've ever struggled with articulating your ideas in a meeting or defending your design decisions, then this book is most definitely for you. After completing the paperback, I decided to buy the audiobook, as well, and I listen to it regularly while I work. I feel as though I latch onto something new each time, and my confidence in my job has increased measurably as a result. My coworkers are more attentive to my comments and more receptive to my ideas, all because I've learned not only how to better communicate them, but also how to better read my team members. A must-have book, indeed.

Very helpful and full of gems

Definitely gonna keep listening to this over and over again ! This will help me on my current and future roles

Highly Informative!!

Articulating Design Decisions was one of the best books on design that I’ve read so far! Not only did it give me insight on what it will be like when I start working for a tech company it also informed me what I really need to focus on that a bootcamp doesn’t cover! I see now why this book is so highly recommend to all designers! It also helps with handling real life situations which I appreciated and will incorporate in my daily life! Thank you Tom Greever for writing such a compelling book!