⚖️ Risk Management: A strategy for managing moral dilemmas

Join Per Axbom for his first Inclusive Design and Digital Ethics topic of the fall. Learn about the different mitigation strategies in risk assessment and practice a way to document the ethical hurdles that you identify.

You will see examples of how to apply risk management in projects, be able to connect this to AI and Digital Ethics, and gain some inspiration for creating a risk program. The topic also covers a template and tool for documenting your insights and action plan.

Find out more and join Ambition Empower here:
https://lnkd.in/ezqXw6Ss

#inclusivedesign#digitalethics#riskmanagement

🧱 Design System Components: The basic building blocks

Components are the basic building blocks of design systems. In this – the first topic of the fall – we’ll cover the basics, but also get into all the details that make a component complete. We’ll cover best practices in documenting them. And lastly, we’ll explore UI frameworks, including when to use and not use them.

Sign up before September 4, and join Michelle Chin‘s first topic on the Design Systems track!

Find out more and join Ambition Empower here:
https://lnkd.in/eRcR6AHQ

#designsystems#ui#ux

🔮 The Secret to Intuitive Design: Matching the users’ mental models with the design of the product

Behavioral Design is about encouraging people to take specific actions. And a key way to get people to take action is to match the design of the product to the mental models of the people who use it.

Join Susan Weinschenk‘s first topic this autumn and get into the details of how to use conceptual model design.

Find out more and join Ambition Empower here:
https://lnkd.in/e7cz2EtY

#behavioraldesign#ui#ux

🙋‍♀️ AI-Driven Design Dynamics: Integrating AI in Human-Centered Design and Design Thinking

First AI & Design topic of the autumn: Join Pontus Wärnestål and explore the intricate interplay between AI and the HCD and design thinking process. You’ll learn how AI can enhance user experiences, boost engagement, and foster a deeper understanding of user needs, ultimately leading to more innovative and impactful solutions.

Find out more and join Ambition Empower here:
https://lnkd.in/dPkacH2R

#ai#hcd#designthinking

🤩 Here we go! Get ready for September! 🚀

During the spring and summer, we have continued to work with Ambition Empower to make it even easier and more fun to grow together with others in design, UX, and product development.

Within each Empower track, there are now a number of “Topics” where we focus on a specific subject for four weeks before it’s time for something new.

In September, we have the following on the menu:
– AI-Driven Design Dynamics with Pontus Wärnestål
– The Secret to Intuitive Design with Susan Weinschenk
– Design System Components with Michelle Chin
– Risk Management with Per Axbom
– Foundational Concepts in Design and Product Leadership with Kim Goodwin
– Collaboration between Product and UX with Christian Crumlish
– Models, Diagrams, and Visualizations in Service Design with Chris Risdon
– Improving Collaboration with Susan Weinschenk

The new setup also means it’s easier to pick a topic from one track one month and then pick a topic from another the next month, if you feel like it. We’re super excited and believe strongly in this new approach, and, of course, we look forward to hearing what all 350+ members think when it starts September 4. 😊

Take a look at the link below, and/or send a PM to Jane Murray or Johan Berndtsson if you want to know more about Ambition Empower.
https://lnkd.in/dZEfcTCp

#ambitionempower#professionalgrowth#ux

– My job as a leader is to lower barriers and help my colleagues to grow. 💪

Let me introduce Linn Morén, Design Manager for Customer Experience in Swedbank’s Baltic digital channels. Linn and her team recently joined Ambition Empower, and I’m excited to share her insights on why they made this decision and how it’s transforming their approach to competence development.

Q: Linn, why did you and your team decide to join Ambition Empower?

A: Competence development is crucial to Swedbank, and your setup caught our attention. The flexibility of remote learning, with just one hour per week, fits well into our busy schedules.

Furthermore, as a geographically distributed team—based in Tallinn, Riga, and Umeå—the remote setup offers a unique advantage. It enables us to foster collective growth and development, which would be challenging to achieve with other programs.

Q: How did competence development work before, and what changed with Ambition Empower?

A: We used to rely on seminars, conferences, and targeted interventions like feedback and pitch training. LinkedIn Learning was introduced to all Swedbank employees a few years ago. There is plenty of good material on disciplines such as business administration. However, finding valuable courses for specialized design and UX professionals was challenging, so instead, we used it to set up a basic design track suitable for non-designer.

My job as a leader is to lower barriers and help my colleagues to grow. Ambition Empower aligns perfectly with these goals. We aim to strengthen our design community, foster a learning culture at Swedbank, and ensure that the new insights we gain provide immediate value to our business.

Q: 19 people from your team have joined Ambition Empower. How have you organized your participation to maximize the benefits?

A: We follow the tracks each week and conduct internal meetings every other week to reflect collectively on our learnings and identify opportunities to improve the ways we work.

Each participant has chosen tracks based on their interests and expertise. However, to facilitate the discussions during our internal reflection meetings, we have merged certain tracks, such as Design Research and Behavioral Design. This ensures we always have sufficient participants engaged in enriching conversations and allows us to enhance our work methods based on the insights we gain.

Q: What has been the most rewarding so far?

A: The most fulfilling aspect has been seeing colleagues embrace and apply the program’s teachings. It’s inspiring to witness new ideas shaping fresh perspectives and approaches. Personally, I found Kim Goodwin’s latest session on the leadership track particularly impactful. Even as an experienced manager, I gained several insights. Learning really is a lifelong journey.

Thank you, Linn, for sharing your valuable insights! We’re thrilled to have you on board! 💜

Curious? Read more at: https://lnkd.in/dZEfcTCp

#ux#servicedesign#leadership

Photo of Georgiy Chernyavsky

NEW TRACK: UI Design & Prototyping with Figma

Working in design today is more demanding than ever. Interaction and UI designers are expected to maintain a high skill level and efficient working practices despite the high-paced development of the field. This new track will help you stay on top of everything related to UI Design and Prototyping with Figma.

Starting in October, the UI Design & Prototyping with Figma track will take a holistic view on UI design work. Together we’ll explore the latest best practices for UI design, prototyping, and Figma use, including sharing, storing, and organizing design artefacts, prototyping, and collaborating with cross-functional partners.

The track continually adapts to the needs of the members, but includes, e.g.:

  • UI design starting points: from blue-sky concepts to working with a design system
  • Working with a team, even if you are the only designer: how to be efficient with your file
  • How to make reusable components that make sense (and save time)
  • How to create realistic prototypes and where to test them
  • Good Figma habits that make you more efficient and simplify making changes
  • Creating UI design that can easily be implemented by developers
  • Organizing your Figma into a single source of truth for design
  • How to collaborate efficiently with non-designers in Figma

The track will be led by none other than Georgiy Chernyavsky! Georgiy is a Sr. Design Specialist and Figma expert at Mastercard. Here he is taking care of the full design cycle, focusing heavily on Design System components and UI design. Before joining Mastercard, Georgiy worked for enterprise software corporations, such as Broadcom and Citrix, as well as for various startups. Georgiy is a contributing author of the book “97 Things Every UX Practitioner Should Know” (O’Reilly Media, 2021), holds a patent for a keyboard-accessible web code editor, and is an amateur backyard farmer growing cucumbers and herbs in his small garden.

Every week Georgiy provides one hour of carefully selected recommendations on what to read, watch, or listen to, in order to stay ahead. And once a month, you’ll get to meet him in a live online workshop together with all other members who also are seeking to perfect their UI Design and Prototyping skills using Figma. Difficulty level: Intermediate to advanced.

I hope that you’re finding this just as exciting as we do! You can read more about Ambition Empower and sign up here.

There are still a few (>10) more discounted memberships available if you sign up before June 22 2023, and start in September. Use the code “September” to get 20% off.

Learn all about U* & *********** w Fi***

A new track is coming to Ambition Empower this fall! If you figure out the name of the track before Friday the 9th of June 2023, you can win a free one-year membership. If we get more than one reply with the same guess, we’ll have a raffle.

Just send an e-mail to with your guess, and we’ll get back to you. 😃

Chat with your PDF file!

Ambition Empower has a new track leader in the field of AI. AI is extremely popular right now, and many may even be getting tired of all the posts about AI. But deep down, don’t many designers want to take a deep dive into the world of AI? I decided to explore and familiarize myself with Pontus Wärneståls’ material on the Ambition Empower app.

Pontus provided me with numerous valuable tips on how to handle skeptical stakeholders, how to chat with a PDF file, how I, as a designer, can approach individuals working with AI, and thereby gain the authority for design to become a natural part of AI.

I took immediate action and ordered a stack of AI books to delve into – I’m incredibly excited!

I haven’t come across a single designer who doesn’t want to make a difference in our world, and right now, AI is truly at the forefront of its developmental curve. As designers, we have an enormous toolbox to support all organizations working with AI.

Read more about Pontus Wärnestål here.

Written by: Julia Mattelin

#Change#AI#OpenAi#ChatGPT

👋 Hello …

Karin Lövsund! It’s great to be working with you again! Welcome to Ambition! 💜

We met back in the spring of 2007 to consider working together. It took a few years before it happened, but my goodness, I was so impressed when we finally made it work. Your calm and reassuring demeanor, combined with your curiosity, has always been your superpower. These qualities are undoubtedly valuable for any designer, but as a design leader, they are crucial. So, where does this curiosity come from?

– I’m not quite sure… My dad sparked my curiosity in technology, and my mom in animals and nature. In primary school, art was the most enjoyable subject for me. I loved the freedom to explore and the clear visual feedback in what I created. I wanted to learn! I had the opportunity to try different techniques and learn how to create with greater precision and achieve a result I could be proud of with less frustration. Changing and improving through experimentation and trial and error is still something I find incredibly fulfilling. Thanks to curiosity as my driving force, I carry the visual expression as an incredibly powerful tool, regardless of what I’m doing.

It’s exciting to delve into technology, especially considering that your first assignment at Ambition involves supporting a project to design services for sustainable transportation. 🌱

You’ve always been a great listener and genuinely interested in other people. I think it’s a wonderful leadership quality, but I also believe it’s a part of that same curiosity.

– Yes, that’s probably true. Both because human behavior has always fascinated me, and because I truly appreciate working closely with others.

– Building relationships and collaborating to drive work forward is incredibly important. In many cases, it’s essential for success. I enjoy meeting new people and establishing new connections, especially in new projects.

Yes, there is something to that, both for the insights gained and because effective collaboration is vital for getting things done. Karin, once again, welcome to Ambition! It feels fantastic to have the opportunity to work together again! 🙌

#designleadership #servicedesign #userresearch #ux #newjob