Websites are a blend of design and technology, and it’s often hard to make the distinction between the two. My role as a Design Technologist puts me squarely in the middle of the two worlds.
It’s tricky, but I have a few principles that I use to help guide the projects, which apply to just about anyone involved in building websites. In order for web projects to be successful a balance needs to be made between design and development and I find these principles help to reduce that developer and designer tension that can crop up.
Be Involved in the Process Early
Having an overall understanding of the project is crucial to making the right decisions down the line. It’ll help make the process go significantly smoother when the development begins. It seems like a no brainer but traditionally developers and programmers are relegated to the end of the process. Yes, with agile development this is changing but you can step up and facilitate this even more.
Be Positive
Coming from a programming and developer background I know how easy it is to slip into being negative. It’s all too easy to project your own technical limits onto a problem and think it to be significantly more difficult to accomplish then it really is. Be realistic, but remain positive. I’m not saying it’s easy, but it’s essential.
Be Technology Agnostic
It’s tough to not become enamored with the latest web framework or to want to shun everything related to Microsoft, but you can’t fall in love with one solution. Sure you’ll have preferences and reasons why you’d recommend one technological solution over the other, but when you’re at an agency your responsibility is to the client and to find the best solution for them. Even if it might be painful that the .Net framework might be the best option for them. Personally, I’ve yet to ever see when this is the case but it’s always good to keep all options open.
Be Open Minded
Going along with technology agnostic you need to be open minded. You need to be open minded to the best solution possible. It’s easy to want to figure out the solution before taking into account the problem. At Blue Flavor we call this “solutioneering” and it’s something that’s easy do and you need to constantly remind yourself not to do it. Take a step back and really look at the problems and the solutions will come—trust me.
Know the Latest Technology
This is a no brainer. You need to be up on the latest technologies. Whatever field you’re in you just need to stay on top of it. For me this is Web and Mobile. I need to at least have a good understanding of most of the technologies related to them or be able to get up to speed on how the different things work quickly. It isn’t necessarily a code level knowledge but you need to understand the underlying principals of how to write software and be able to give advice on the best way to architect the overall user experience. Don’t ignore prebuilt solutions either. You’ll need to weigh both the costs to the client, the flexibility of solution needed, and time it’ll take to get it all accomplished. Sometimes the best solution isn’t necessarily the most technically elegant, and often isn’t but if it meets those three goals, then it’s the best one for the job.
Get your Hands Dirty
Being able to dive in and do a bit of rapid prototyping is crucial and keeps you grounded. I think a nice XHTML/CSS/Javascript skillset lends itself well to this. You can quickly create a prototype so you and clients can get in there and start playing a little with things. Some of this stuff may or may not end up in the final development materials but it can save huge amounts of time in the development cycle later if you realize earlier on that feature X just isn’t working.
You need to get in and get your hands dirty and be able to jump in and help with your skills. You didn’t come into this roll knowing nothing so be sure you can do it. Being able to build rapid prototypes or help with css templates will prove invaluable in getting the project to completion. Your sort of the foreman of the project and if something needs to be nailed being able to jump in and use a hammer to take care of that.
Listen to Developers and Designers Equally
Building websites is a balance between Designer feels is best and what the Developer says is technically feasible. Be creative and try to find a solution where both people get what they want, and if not compromise. Sure it can be a bit of a political minefield but it’s worth it for the user in the end.
Talk with Clients, Be A Teacher
You need to take highly technically complicated things and boil them down to their essence and explain them back to the client in an easy to understand way. I find metaphors work great here but however you can get that lightbulb to pop on is the best way. I’ve spent some time teaching and this experience has become invaluable when I need to explain things to clients.
Conclusion
Building a website has many facets, but if there’s one thing to come away with is that remaining balanced is key. Throughout the process you’re going to be managing a lot of expectations from clients, developers, and designers. Figuring out what’s the best solution to meet the client’s goals and produce the best website possible is tricky, but the rewards are great.
Great points! I’m totally in agreement about “being technology agnostic” - too many times, I’ve seen good developers give up languages and frameworks they’re very proficient in for the sake of doing something different. A lot of people say to specialize, but there is value (particularly in the development industry) in being a jack of all trades.
You make some great observations here. All too often, we get lost in the technology and forget what we’re there to do for the client- create a practical solution that meets scope.
Yeah great points and I agree that it is best if the people involved have an understanding of what is involved.
I personally have been involved in projects, were the manager/ leading designers/ developers etc have had not real understanding and it makes the project suffer.
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