The UX Reader

we’re in a great position to not only share information, but foster connections.

You have to hire great people, provide vision, then get the hell out of their way. And to do that, you have to trust each other.

The troika of UX follows: research, design, and development.

Our MailChimp UX team is tiny, but our size isn’t a shortcoming—it’s an advantage. Communication is easier when teams are small. We’re able to make plans quickly, then get back to making. Each little team has the autonomy to make decisions about their own work, and when there’s uncertainty, they discuss with another autonomous team that can provide more definitive direction.

It’s sometimes hard to let go of ideas you’re invested in and move in a new direction, but that’s just part of the creative process.

I realized that it would be easier to begin the process by redesigning the MailChimp pattern library—a system of components, rules, and interactions that are used to build and design the application

At least once a year, we have an entire release focused solely on cleanup and maintenance. We find that the holidays are a good time for this. We’ll also use that time to plan new features for the next release and the upcoming year.

Like holes in a bucket, big ones will drain trust quickly, and lots of small ones will kill it slowly over time.

If you come across something that’s interesting but outside the scope of your current research goals, great! Start a running list of “things to explore” and come back to it later.

Flagging potential interviewees while I’m sorting data saves me from having to search for them again later.