Years ago, I worked on Universal Credit and regularly presented designs to hundreds of people.

I watched people talk through them like an estate agent showing you around a house.

The logo goes here. This is this size. We’ve put this here because…

Boringgggggg.

Nobody cared.

And why should they?

They weren’t paying us to explain font sizes or logo placement. That’s our job.

They wanted to know why we’d turned 150 questions into 10. Why the brown envelope worked better than the white one. Why we were designing the conversation between Work Coaches and claimants.

They wanted to know… yep, I’m going to say it - THE WHY.

That changed how I presented design and coached other designers.

At the FCA it became even more obvious. Presenting to 300+ people can be fiery. If you’re boring them, believe me, you’ll know.

So get to the point.

The FCA wasn’t paying us to make nicer forms or build a design system.

Incorrect forms meant people were paid to fix them. Inaccessible services created problems for customers and the organisation.

Easier forms mean fewer errors. Accessible forms mean more people can use them.

That’s the conversation.

The radio buttons are just how we got there.

I think designers sometimes make design sound like a mysterious craft that everyone else needs to learn the language of before they’re allowed in.

User needs. Double Diamonds. Design systems. Workshop techniques.

I know what those mean. My dad probably doesn’t.

He’s always been a weird little benchmark in my head. If I don’t think he’d understand what I’m saying, I question whether I need to say it that way.

That doesn’t mean the terminology or methods are pointless. Know your shit. Learn your craft and get really good at it.

Just don’t make knowing your shit everyone else’s problem.

User needs are hugely important, but telling someone their business need comes second isn’t going to bring them with you.

Show them how the two connect.

If meeting a user need means fewer mistakes, less support, faster processing, lower costs or happier customers, the user need isn’t fighting the business need.

It’s helping deliver it.

When I’m helping designers present their work, I think about three things:

  • Tell me what I’m about to hear.
  • Tell me why it matters. Show me evidence, numbers and words from actual people.
  • Show me what you’ve done and why.

Please, in the name of whatever is holy - not a design walkthrough.

A reason walkthrough.

And never finish on nothing.

Tell people what happens next. If you need something from them, tell them and make them part of getting it there.

Design isn’t a mystery. It’s a skill set, just like development, research or content.

Know your stuff, do it well, and speak their language. This matters, and your work matters too.