Agenda

We are catapulting into the era of AI automation - long in coming and now arriving with a bang. Design as a discipline has barely kept up with the good and bad of our product decisions. We have seen it in the scooters scattered around city centers, blocking pedestrians, or the recent podcast by Ezra Klein on the increase of teenage suicides and mental health closely linked to the increase in social media consumption.

We don’t believe it is solely the Designers’ role to think about the social responsibility or human impact of our product. Yet we do play a role and need to raise our voices if we think about the changes that are upon us.

The challenge we put forth: we - as Design - have drifted along with companies' short-term revenue focus, including processes around agility and automation. Design has adapted to it, but has rarely challenged it.

As we enter this AI future, Pamela and Ricardo will share their thoughts on embracing yet challenging AI with eyes wide open, while adapting to the rapidly changing reality of our day-to-day work.

Learn how the world's largest payment processor designs for products that powers economies and moves money around the world.

For the past five years, Kent has led several data visualisations programs at Google. He currently focuses on creating accessible data experiences that provide value and insights to everyone, regardless of their ability. In this session, Kent will spotlight key lessons learned while building accessible visualisations for Google products like Search, Fitbit, Loon, Quantum AI and Cloud. He will discuss techniques for generating awareness, building a community of experts and making a business case for data accessibility. Kent will share his group's accessibility-first approach to design and how standards can be used to empower teams to create better data experiences.

In a world driven by digital innovation, companies are scrambling to adapt and evolve, propelling digital transformation from a buzzword to an operational imperative. However, 70% of these ambitious projects falter before reaching their full potential. The culprit? Not the cutting-edge technology itself, but the overlooked challenges of organizational culture and behavior.
Join us for an incisive panel discussion that explores the intricate dynamics behind these high-stakes failures. We will dissect the crucial, yet often disregarded, roles that corporate culture, behavioural patterns, and multi-level operational shifts play in the success or derailment of digital transformations.

Join Oriol for an insightful session where he uncovers the effective techniques that have helped him and his teams at Cooltra streamline workflow and maximize productivity. During his talk you'll learn:

· The visual organizational method they've implemented, to effectively prioritize and track progress.

· The tangible benefits of visualizing user stories, including improved communication, collaboration, and overall project success.

· The power of enabling the team: Challenging, pairing, sharing, measuring
and celebrating success.

By the end of this session, you will have the knowledge and tools to implement a visual workflow that empowers your delivery team to consistently meet and exceed project goals.

In this insightful discussion, Mihaela will introduce how Volkswagen Digital Solutions is taking steps towards a successful transition from software delivery to product delivery lifecycle, highlighting the challenges and the innovative tactics to break down traditional silos within the product teams as well as between “the business” and "IT". Learn how the Volkswagen Group established new delivery centers across Europe to foster interdisciplinary product teams, and the hurdles they overcame including stringent security, legal, and compliance boundaries, as well as people adaptation. Mihaela will share hands-on examples of their unique approach to get “the business on board", offering a glimpse into their working models and approaches on engagement and collaboration between the product teams and stakeholders. Discover how they faced resistance and fostered an inclusive process to move towards an efficient product delivery cycle. This talk is an exploration into digital transformation, with practical examples, offering key takeaways for those aiming to break silos and cultivate a collaborative environment within their organisations.

In today's fast-paced technological landscape, seamless collaboration between design and development teams is paramount. This forum delves into the challenges, best practices, and strategies that can enhance the workflow between designers and developers. Engage in thought-provoking discussions, share your experiences, and explore innovative solutions that can bridge the gap between ideation and implementation.

In the realm of enterprise software, it is often difficult to connect with users and clients. In this talk, Fahad explores the challenges of conducting user research at an enterprise level, highlighting the struggle of sourcing users that correlate with the research being conducted. By sharing his insights and experiences, Fahad offers practical strategies for leveraging user research effectively in the enterprise context. You will gain valuable knowledge on how to overcome the obstacles associated with user research in order to inform and enhance your design decisions.

Mike delves into Reed's ongoing and dynamic research program, which serves as the foundation for all product and design initiatives within the organisation. He shares how they enable continuous deep research by democratising user research in product teams and creating a regular cadence. This then allows the centralised UX research team to take on larger, more complex and strategic research initiatives. In this session you’ll learn how they’re:

• Enabling constant research in product teams
• Planning for agile processes
• Demonstrating research value
• Prioritising larger initiatives
• Communicating research for highest impact

Through these strategies, Mike and his teams have successfully created an environment where innovation, based on deep user knowledge, is at the forefront.

Join us for a riveting debate that delves into the merits and challenges of two powerful business strategies: Product-Led Growth and Sales-Led Growth. The session aims to dissect the core attributes of both approaches, their application, and their respective impacts on a company's trajectory. Our panel of industry experts will present arguments for each side, drawing on real-world examples.

Is the focus on developing an outstanding product to organically draw customers the best way to go? Or does the traditional, direct approach of pushing sales to drive growth offer more in terms of predictability and control? This debate will explore these questions and more, providing attendees with a comprehensive understanding of these strategies, and ultimately helping them make more informed decisions for their own business growth. Whether you're scaling, an established enterprise, this discussion promises insights that could shape your strategic outlook.

Moderated by Mariné Palamutyan

In this talk you'll get a glimpse of the digital transformation journey Electrolux Group have embarked on. Discover the triumphs, setbacks and key milestones they have experienced along the way and learn about:

• Working systematically: Explore the strategies employed to build mobile apps for multiple brands quickly, consistently and at scale, without fragmenting the user experience.
• Building a dream team: Learn how Alexis structured a multi-disciplinary team of digital product designers, UX researchers and UX writers.
• Transformational impact: Understand the effects of scaling up the company's digital transformation journey on design processes and practices in a hardware manufacturing environment.
• Unlock the secrets to building a thriving digital products department, and transform your own company's traditional practices into digital innovation

The role of the Product Manager is different in almost every organisation. How are teams structured? Is there one Product Manager per development team or does a Product Manager set the objectives for many teams? If you have hundreds of product managers do you have hundreds of product visions? How do Product Managers ensure that work isn't being duplicated across the organisation? Is it mostly project management?

If you are having issues defining the remit of the Product Manager role, or you just want to hear how others are doing it, this is a forum not to be missed.

Join us for an insightful discussion on how AI is transforming the landscape of product development. In this session, the group will discuss the current state of AI in product development, its potential applications, and how it is changing the way businesses innovate. Discover how AI-powered tools are enabling faster and more accurate prototyping, testing, and analysis, and how they are helping companies create more personalized and targeted products. Don't miss out on this opportunity to learn from industry leaders and gain valuable insights on how AI can help take your product development to the next level.

In the ever-evolving landscape of product development, uncertainty often looms large, presenting unique challenges for teams striving to deliver successful outcomes. Drawing on examples and practical insights from how the team at Toast work, Martin delves into the strategies and mindset required to tackle the design-to-build process when faced with limited information. By the end of this talk, attendees will be equipped with practical tools and strategies to confront uncertainty head-on, leading to innovative solutions and successful outcomes.

• Embracing the unknown: Understanding the psychological barriers associated with uncertainty and adopting a mindset that embraces ambiguity as a creative force.
• Designing with limited information: Strategies for developing robust design frameworks that can adapt to evolving requirements and changing landscapes.
• Agile methodologies: Harnessing the power of iterative development and continuous feedback loops to adjust course and optimize product delivery in uncertain environments.
• Risk management: Techniques for identifying and mitigating risks in the face of incomplete information, ensuring smoother project execution.
• Collaboration and communication: Fostering effective cross-functional collaboration and transparent communication channels to align stakeholders and navigate uncertainty collectively.

Roadmaps are a way to communicate a product or organizational strategy in a meaningful way, both inside and outside the organization. However, their effectiveness is not always guaranteed, with ever-changing market conditions, client requests or executive pivots. Teresa will uncover the stories behind both remarkable successes and daunting failures, shedding light on the factors that influenced their outcomes at organizations of all sizes and the critical role of stakeholder buy-in and its impact on roadmap success. Through real-world examples and in-depth analysis, Teresa will navigate through the complexities of roadmaps, empowering you with valuable insights that can shape your own strategic navigation on a path to success.

Is your organization struggling to break silos and embrace customer-centricity? Do you often find your research insights collecting dust in digital folders? Join us to learn how you can systematically share customer insights across your organization to empower teams to make more informed and customer-centric decisions that deliver integrated and delightful experiences.

Join Fergal as he shares how they developed ‘Fin’, a chatbot that actually solves up to 50% of support questions. This session will shed light on the product development process of Fin, the challenges encountered, and the opportunities it brought forth. The talk will encompass Intercom’s experiences and lessons learned from integrating large language models in a live production environment.

Join Steve Collins, CTO of King Games, creators of the globally popular game Candy Crush, as he shares insight into their current journey of embedding Artificial Intelligence into the fabric of their organisation. Steve will navigate through the challenges they have faced, the strategic choices made, and the innovative approaches undertaken. This talk offers a unique chance to gain firsthand knowledge of how a global gaming leader is embracing AI, and how these insights can be leveraged by other organisations seeking to harness the power of technology for their own growth and transformation. Whether you are a technology leader, or industry professional, you will find valuable lessons in this talk on how to successfully marry AI with the daily operations and strategic vision of a company.

We will delve into the age-old debate about whether it is more beneficial to become a generalist, having a broad knowledge base in numerous areas, or a specialist, focusing in-depth on a particular aspect of software development.
The debate will be centered around four key questions:

1. Companies need speed - which is more efficient?
2. Which is more effective?
3. Is it easier to become an expert or learn base level in multiple areas?
4. Is it safer for your career to be a generalist versus specialist

In today's fast-paced and competitive business landscape, innovation is often regarded as the key driver for success. Companies invest significant resources in developing groundbreaking products and services driven by the promise of revolutionizing their industries. However, without successful adoption, even the most innovative ideas can fall flat. Join Rhiannon as she explores the way she and her team bridge the gap between innovation and adoption, and discover how effective product marketing management can drive business success

Product delivery outcomes have become increasingly difficult to achieve in today's complex world. Despite better tools and frameworks, the features delivered often fail to match user expectations. The issue is broader than just releasing on time; we also deliver less due to increased complexity. In short, the stakes for turning designs into products are higher than ever, and getting the design to development workflow right the first time can make or break your business.

Join Russ Drury, Senior Director of Customer Success at Zeplin, and learn why the solution lies in foundational product delivery practises and following the design delivery principles. You'll walk away with tips gleaned from thousands of global organisations like Cloudera, Boots, and Unilever, which you can apply today to:

• accelerate product delivery outcomes
• simplify the transition from design to development
• improve design system usage and product performance
• and reduce fragmentation in your code base

Culture eats strategy for breakfast! But what exactly is a company's culture, how does it influence how you get things done and how do you go about influencing the company culture to enable better product development?

Join this forum to discuss different culture types and the techniques that people use to influence change.

Having more work than available people is a common problem in all companies. Democratising research is a way of helping product teams to do their own research so that research teams can help improve the overall quantity of research being performed. But it is not a free lunch - there are problems with democratising research as well. This debate will decide how teams should approach this subject going forward.

Moderated by Emma Roberts

In this captivating talk, Ryan shares his career journey, reflecting on key milestones that have shaped his professional trajectory. Ryan will share his entrepreneurial journey en route and will shed light on the challenges of navigating his way back into the design field after his entrepreneurial venture.
He highlights how these milestones have enabled him to make remarkable transformations for his team at Priceline; evolving from being one of the least engaged across the company to the most engaged for two consecutive years. By the end of his talk, Ryan leaves the audience with a fresh perspective on managing career transitions, emphasizing the importance of embracing new opportunities, leveraging past experiences, and maintaining adaptability

When designing complex systems, it's easy to become overwhelmed by the magnitude of the task and feel uncertain about the best approach.
Yet, the difficulty of designing a system that takes users on a seamless and meaningful journey might be similar to that of writing a story that takes an audience on a beautiful and memorable voyage.
In this talk, Raphael will introduce an unconventional approach to crafting complex experiences, drawing inspiration from the art of storytelling.
To illustrate this approach, he will share insights from two multi-year projects he's led: A sophisticated mass-data interpretation system for geoscientists, and an acclaimed musical which has won accolades for its innovative storytelling.
Join Raphael as he explores the parallels between designing complex systems and crafting compelling narratives. Discover how adopting a story-driven approach can unlock new possibilities and lead to remarkable outcomes in the realm of user experience design.

While product owners and user experience designers are usually knee-deep in solving customer-centric problems, the engineering teams that are tasked with building the solutions are too often getting second-hand information with a lifeless set of requirements. Most engineers are highly customer-focused. They are constantly trying to get into the heads of the end-users to design effective solutions. This Forum discusses how engineers can get a better understanding of the customer’s needs, and how to be better equipped to fully understand the problem they are solving.

The goal of this interactive forum on working environments is to delve into the various factors that influence employee productivity, satisfaction, and overall well-being in the workplace. Participants in this session will explore different aspects of working environments, such as physical setup, culture, flexibility, and technology, and discuss their impact on employee performance and organizational success. The goal of the debate is to analyse and compare the pros and cons of different working environments and identify strategies to create an optimal environment that fosters productivity, engagement, and employee satisfaction.

As organizations grow, designers often find themselves accidentally thrust into senior positions, becoming unintentional leaders. This is a unique and challenging situation - one that involves a swift transition from focusing on individual tasks and responsibilities to managing a team and making key decisions.

Anderson's talk will delve into the uncharted territory of design leadership, especially when it happens unintentionally. He'll explore the various dimensions of leadership, including the importance of understanding the psychology of leadership, the nuances of giving and receiving feedback, evaluating performance, making hiring decisions, and the delicate art of letting someone go.

He'll provide strategies to navigate this transition smoothly, making you a more confident and effective leader. Whether you are an experienced design leader or a designer anticipating future growth, this talk will empower you with the knowledge and skills needed to thrive in a leadership role.

In just 25 minutes, you'll hear from five passionate speakers, each presenting for just five minutes. This is knowledge-sharing at its most dynamic and distilled.
From unearthing emerging trends to diving into a transformative idea, our speakers will deliver a potent dose of wisdom in a bite-sized package. But don't let the brevity fool you – these quickfire talks are designed to challenge assumptions, ignite your curiosity, and spark conversations that go far beyond the event.