Category: Uncategorized

  • Holistic Design That Drives Business: Key Takeaways from the Target Design Meet

    Holistic Design That Drives Business: Key Takeaways from the Target Design Meet

    As a design leader, sharing insights from significant events like the Target Design Meet can provide valuable knowledge and inspiration to the broader design community. The recent Target Design Meet, themed “Holistic Design that Drives Business,” offered a wealth of information on achieving design excellence through inclusive design, retail marketing, and brand building at scale. Here are the detailed takeaways from this insightful event:

    1. Tarzhay: The Magic of Target

    Speaker: Prashant Chandrashekar, Director of CGI/3D

    Key Insights: Prashant took the audience on a journey through the history of Target, highlighting the brand’s evolution and the immense value it has brought to the world. He emphasized how Target has consistently used innovative design and CGI/3D techniques to create a unique and engaging brand identity. These efforts have not only enhanced the visual appeal of Target but also strengthened its connection with customers.

    Takeaway: Understanding the historical context and the strategic use of design can significantly contribute to building a brand that resonates with people on a deeper level.

    2. Crafting Branding at Target

    Speaker: Swetha Mohare, Creative Director at Brand Design Lab, Target

    Key Insights: Swetha provided an in-depth look at the meticulous branding strategies employed at Target. She discussed how a cohesive brand identity is crafted through careful design choices and consistent messaging. By focusing on the details that matter to customers, Target has managed to create memorable experiences that drive brand loyalty.

    Takeaway: Cohesive branding is crucial for creating lasting customer relationships. Every design element should work together to tell a consistent and compelling brand story.

    3. Panel Discussion: In Pursuit of Design Excellence

    Host: Rakesh Mishra, SVP Marketing and Digital, Target

    Panelists:

    • Dr. Geetha Narayanan, Founder Director, Srishti Institute of Art, Design and Technology
    • Anushka Saini, Founder & Creative Director, Thought Over Design
    • Susan Mathen, Co-founder and Strategy Director, Hue & Why

    Key Insights: The panel discussion explored various dimensions of design excellence, focusing on innovation, sustainability, and cross-disciplinary collaboration. Each panelist shared their unique perspective on what it takes to achieve excellence in design and how thoughtful, innovative approaches can solve complex problems and drive business success.

    Takeaway: Design excellence is a multifaceted goal that requires innovation, sustainability, and collaboration across different disciplines. Engaging with diverse perspectives can lead to richer, more effective design solutions.

    4. Inclusive Design at Target

    Speaker: Sneha Stephen, Creative Leader – Retail Marketing

    Key Insights: Sneha highlighted the importance of inclusive design in creating shopping experiences that are accessible and equitable for all customers. She shared strategies for integrating inclusivity into Target’s retail marketing efforts, ensuring that all customers feel valued and represented.

    Takeaway: Inclusive design is not just a moral imperative but also a business strategy that can lead to broader market appeal and increased customer loyalty. Designing with inclusivity in mind ensures that all users have a positive experience.

    5. Brands at Scale

    Key Insights: This session focused on the challenges and strategies for building and maintaining brand consistency across diverse markets and platforms. It highlighted the importance of scalable design systems in achieving global brand recognition.

    Takeaway: Scaling a brand requires consistent design systems that can be adapted to various markets without losing the core brand identity. This consistency helps in building a recognizable and trusted brand worldwide.

    6. Driving Relevancy for Retail Media

    Key Insights: The discussion centered on how retail media can be leveraged to enhance customer engagement and drive sales. It emphasized the role of data-driven insights in creating relevant and impactful marketing campaigns.

    Takeaway: Utilizing data-driven insights can help in crafting marketing campaigns that are not only relevant but also highly effective in engaging customers and driving business outcomes.

    Networking Opportunity

    The event concluded with a high tea and networking session, providing attendees with the opportunity to connect, share ideas, and foster collaborations.

    Takeaway: Networking is a vital component of professional growth. Engaging with peers and industry leaders can lead to new ideas, partnerships, and opportunities.

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    Conclusion

    The Target Design Meet underscored Target’s commitment to design excellence, innovation, and inclusivity. It showcased how thoughtful design, when aligned with business goals, can drive significant success. As design leaders, it’s essential to incorporate these insights into our practice, continually striving to create designs that are not only functional but also meaningful and inclusive.

  • Navigating the Corporate Jungle: Insights from the Bhagavad Gita

    Navigating the Corporate Jungle: Insights from the Bhagavad Gita

    In today’s corporate world, it can often feel like navigating a jungle filled with predators. The competitive and fast-paced environment can be overwhelming, leading many to experience stress and burnout. However, ancient wisdom from the Bhagavad Gita offers timeless guidance to not only survive but thrive in such settings. One particularly relevant verse is Chapter 6, Verse 5, which emphasizes the power of self-mastery and the mind.

    Sanskrit:

    उद्धरेदात्मनात्मानं नात्मानमवसादयेत्।
    आत्मैव ह्यात्मनो बन्धुरात्मैव रिपुरात्मन:।।

    Transliteration:

    Uddhared ātmanātmānaṁ nātmānam avasādayet
    Ātmaiva hyātmano bandhur ātmaiva ripur ātmanaḥ

    Translation:

    “One must elevate oneself by one’s own mind, not degrade oneself. The mind is the friend of the conditioned soul, and it is also its enemy.”

    Understanding the Verse

    This verse from the Bhagavad Gita highlights the importance of self-reliance and mental discipline. It suggests that the mind can be both our greatest ally and our worst enemy, depending on how we manage it. Here’s a deeper look at how this wisdom can be applied to the corporate environment.

    Elevate Yourself by Your Own Mind

    In the corporate world, it’s easy to be influenced by external pressures and the actions of others. True strength, however, comes from within. By cultivating a positive mindset and focusing on personal growth, you can rise above the challenges and negativity around you.

    Actionable Tips:

    • Continuous Learning: Invest in your personal and professional development. Attend workshops, read books, and seek mentorship.
    • Positive Thinking: Practice gratitude and positive affirmations to maintain a constructive outlook.
    • Mindfulness: Engage in mindfulness practices like meditation and yoga to stay centered and calm.

    Do Not Degrade Yourself

    Avoid behaviors and thoughts that can harm your mental and emotional well-being. This includes negative self-talk, self-doubt, and engaging in office politics.

    Actionable Tips:

    • Set Boundaries: Know your limits and set healthy boundaries to prevent burnout.
    • Self-Care: Prioritize activities that rejuvenate you, such as exercise, hobbies, and spending time with loved ones.
    • Seek Support: Don’t hesitate to seek help from a coach or therapist if you’re feeling overwhelmed.

    The Mind as Friend and Enemy

    The mind’s dual nature means it can either support or sabotage you. Mastering your mind can turn it into a powerful ally.

    Actionable Tips:

    • Self-Awareness: Regularly reflect on your thoughts and behaviors. Identify patterns that are holding you back and work on changing them.
    • Goal Setting: Set clear, achievable goals and create action plans to stay focused and motivated.
    • Resilience: Build resilience by viewing challenges as opportunities for growth rather than threats.

    Applying These Principles in the Corporate World

    Navigating a corporate environment where many act like predators requires a strategic approach. Here’s how you can apply the wisdom of the Bhagavad Gita in practical terms:

    • Maintain Integrity: Even when faced with unethical behavior, adhere to your principles. Integrity builds trust and respect, which are invaluable in the long run.
    • Focus on Your Strengths: Identify your unique strengths and leverage them to stand out. Whether it’s problem-solving, creativity, or leadership, use your talents to make a meaningful contribution.
    • Build Alliances: Cultivate positive relationships with colleagues who share your values. Supportive alliances can act as a buffer against negativity and help you advance.
    • Stay Adaptable: The corporate world is constantly evolving. Remain flexible and open to new opportunities, which can help you navigate changes and turn challenges into advantages.
    • Lead by Example: If you’re in a leadership position, set a positive example. Inspire your team by demonstrating resilience, integrity, and a commitment to continuous improvement.

    Conclusion

    The wisdom of the Bhagavad Gita, particularly Chapter 6, Verse 5, offers profound insights for navigating the corporate world. By mastering your mind, maintaining integrity, and focusing on personal growth, you can thrive even in the most challenging environments.

    Remember, the power to elevate yourself lies within you. Embrace it, and let your mind be your greatest ally on your corporate journey.

  • Experience Sharing in Coaching and Mentoring

    Experience Sharing in Coaching and Mentoring

    I stumbled upon this image on Instagram and it got me thinking. In coaching and mentoring, the process where someone uses their own past experiences to guide and assist another person is often referred to as “experience sharing” or “experiential learning.”

    This can include sharing personal anecdotes, lessons learned, and insights gained from similar situations to help the mentee or coachee navigate their current challenges. It’s a way of leveraging one’s own journey to provide practical advice and support.

    Having said that, if an individual is not receptive, helping them becomes challenging. Effective mentoring and coaching rely on the mentee’s openness and willingness to engage, listen, and reflect. Without this receptiveness, even the best guidance may not have the desired impact.

    Here are some do’s and don’ts in this approach:

    Do’s:

    • Be Empathetic: Understand and relate to the mentee’s feelings and challenges.
    • Share Relevant Experiences: Offer anecdotes and lessons that directly relate to the mentee’s situation.
    • Encourage Openness: Foster an environment where the mentee feels safe to share and discuss their issues.
    • Listen Actively: Pay attention to what the mentee is saying without interrupting or immediately offering solutions.
    • Be Patient: Allow the mentee time to process and reflect on the shared experiences and advice.

    Don’ts:

    • Overwhelm with Information: Avoid sharing too much at once; focus on the most relevant experiences.
    • Impose Your Views: Respect the mentee’s perspective and avoid forcing your opinions on them.
    • Be Judgmental: Approach the mentee’s situation without criticism or preconceived notions.
    • Assume One-Size-Fits-All: Recognize that each individual’s journey is unique and tailor your advice accordingly.
    • Ignore Feedback: Be open to receiving feedback from the mentee and adjust your approach as needed.
  • What if Vadivelu were a UX Designer. 

    What if Vadivelu were a UX Designer. 

    Disclaimer: This blog has no intention to hurt the UX designers or any designers for that matter. I’m adding a comical shade just to engage with the readers.

    For the audience who don’t know who Vadivelu is; he is an Indian film actor, comedian and playback singer. Since the 1990s, he performed supporting roles as a comedian in Tamil films and is renowned for his slapstick comedies.

    Now, let’s jump into the subject. Who are UX designers?

    UX Designer focuses on understanding user behaviors, needs, and motivations through observation techniques, task analysis, and taking feedbacks seriously.

    What Great UX Designer do

    1. Understanding users needs and connects to data points.

    2. Advocates useful, usable, and delightful interactions.

    3. Connecting brand principles, business goals and directions.

    4. Constant observer of customer and business feedback.

    5. Thinking new ideas and experiments that doesn’t affect the core value.

    What do UX designer influence

    1. Usefulness

    Your content should be original and fulfill a need. Designers will, generally, aspire to deliver useful products. which means they give high value for ease-of-use.

    2. Usability

    Evaluating a product by testing it on potential users. By doing this, designers are able to figure out if a website/ product is been well received by the users. If not, tweak the idea, test, repeat.

    3. Desirability

    It boils down to ‘wow factor’ that creates an emotional bond with the user, which make the website/product look again and fascinate the user with the experience; which is a great reward of itself.

    4. Findability

    One of the success factor of UX is helping users’ fulfil their search. Which means content needs to be navigable and locatable.

    5. Accessibility

    Content needs to be accessible to people with disabilities, that’s where the persona helps us understand the target users’.

    As per Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) a person with disability may have difficulty with the following factors: Vision, Movement, Thinking, Remembering, Learning, Communicating, Hearing, Mental health & Social relationships.

    6. Credibility

    Users must trust and believe what you tell them, credibility of your brand offer a way for people to find you on the web, which leads to brand connections to gain traction with your users’

    How do they define UX Metrics

    1. Set goals

    Clear business goals mean a precise and efficient execution.
    Any given goal should be Specific, Measurable, Actionable, Realistic, and Time-Based.

    2. Identify metrics

    Identifying clear goals will help choose the right metrics. The goals favours metrics and process facilitates the identification of meaningful metrics you’ll actually use.

    3. Find the baseline

    A baseline study is a usability test of the product as it currently is, before you modify it in an attempt to improve the user experience.

    4. Quantify targets

    If you don’t understand your users, the ideas you generate will be less worthy. They may not be on target, and, even worse, you won’t have the correct evaluation criteria to validate the idea/product.

    “Ignoring design means ignoring people, and a design is not complete until people use it” ~ Aditya Dhotre