Design for Organisation
Photo by Nastuh Abootalebi on Unsplash
I firmly believe that design should have a seat at the table. It should be included in boardroom discussions and executive decisions. More than a tool, "design has become a powerful mindset" (-Oen Hammonds) that can make a significant impact on people's lives. It has grown and evolved into a discipline (or a way of life, even) that creates solutions for problems even in realms that, as Tim Brown says, "seemed very far away from the commonly held view of design." Design, by nature, puts the user at the centre and deep dives into humans' needs, psyche, and behaviour.
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Design is starting to change the conversation by bringing thought leadership into organisations one solution at a time. The workforce is continuously changing and evolving, and we are seeing HR and People Management teams reskilling to adapt data & analytics, ai, and design thinking, to name a few. This shows that a collaboration between HR and design has great potential in creating employee-centric experiences to make one's lifespan in the organisation memorable, measurable, and meaningful.
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"​Design thinking takes aim at the heart of unnecessary workplace complexity by putting the employee experience first—helping to improve productivity by designing solutions that are at once compelling, enjoyable, and simple." - Deloitte
Design thinking places the “customer” in the center of the design and has been instrumental in creating the kinds of easy, digital experiences that people expect in their daily lives for everything from ordering products to paying bills to connecting with friends on social media. Just as numerous consumer-facing processes and interactions have been retooled and simplified to provide a more satisfying customer experience, HR can begin to shift its approaches as well.
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The idea is to move from a process-driven mindset to a mindset that always begins with the experience for the HR customer— who could be a candidate, employee, contingent worker, or even alumni. So, for example, instead of thinking in process terms, “What do we need new-hires to do on their first day?” HR thinks in experience terms: “What do we want a new employee’s first day to be like?”
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- Deloitte, Reimagine and craft the employee experience: Design thinking in action
Image from NASA on Unsplash
More than a collaboration, Design for Organisation is an advocacy I want to stand behind. While many are starting to recognise the importance of design in creating a strategic advantage for their firm, I believe there is still a long road ahead. Design for Organisation focuses on employee experience and embodies the philosophy that employees are the company's first customers. It puts the employees at the heart of creating solutions and meaningful experiences across areas of Culture, Environment, and Technology, throughout an employee's journey and lifespan in the company.
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It is challenging to list down the specific outputs that designing for organisations entails because of the vastness of possibilities it can unlock. But to give you an idea, it may include presentation templates, digitised forms, automation of filing and documentation, internal campaign branding, office dress-up, team process and workflow, planning for culture days, well-being programs, promotional and corporate materials, onboarding kits, employee career and journey maps, and, quite possibly, other solutions that have not yet been discovered.
Toolkits and Downloadables
About me
My background in design started with below the line materials and has now grown and evolved into exploring the framework of behavioural design and employee experience. I have worked on a wide range of branding work for clients— from events, brand identities, internal campaigns, tourism campaigns, to advocacies and movements. I have worked with notable companies such as Ayala Corporation, Pepsico, Spark! Philippines in collaboration with the Austrian Embassy and the Office of the Vice President, LBC Express, Rex Publishing, and the Philippines' Department of Tourism. While in Havas Ortega, I worked with our Special Projects Manager, Junior Designer, and Creative Director to create and brand our employee well-being program called TALK, which was later on adopted by our regional offices. Our team supported the admin and finance departments for on-going needs such as digitised finance forms, IDs, signage, communications templates, and other internal requirements.
- Sugar Perez Alcain