Design
Our Guiding Principles: Design
By
Josh Mauldin
on •
Apr 16, 2021
These principles—and how we apply them—define our approach to design. They hold our work to a standard, inform the tactics we use, and they establish the role our designs play in the community. At its core, design at Artium should be thoughtful. From start to finish, our intentions should always be evident.
Our work is careful
To us, design is like woodworking. To get the best from your piece of wood, you need to understand its properties: things like knots and grain’s direction. Likewise, when we understand the problem and the paths available to us, the solutions tend to reveal themselves
We are responsible for what we put into the world so we must be careful about what we make so that it doesn't unintentionally harm others
When we're thinking about things "at scale" we need to consider that some people will likely be harmed by what we do, so we need to mitigate that
We believe that the richest insights come from spending quality time with the problem, isolated from distractions
We believe in mastering our craft. Tiny details matter and we attend to them with love and joy.
We build psychological safety among our teammates, stakeholders, and users so that we can be as open and direct as needed
Our work is mindful
We maintain a beginner's mind and actively suspend our assumptions. In this way, we are fully present and unbiased when trying to understand a problem
We value gentleness and intuition over rigor and process
We welcome criticism and differing viewpoints
We stay objective…mostly. Data and goals are important, but incomplete without intuition
We create products with a soul
Our work happens in short, repeatable cycles
We do not spend unnecessary time on preparation, we have a ruthless bias toward action
We prioritize delivering small bits of information quickly rather than one big thing slowly
We validate our ideas constantly with users and the business
We believe it’s more valuable to have something working than something perfect
We have strong, smart defaults but are not beholden to any framework, we will adapt our process to fit the need
Our work represents the users
We are the voice of the users and help our stakeholders map their needs to users’ expectations
We owe clients more than our labor—we also owe them our counsel and will not shy away from hard conversations on the implications of their decisions
We practice compassionate detachment, which allows us to advocate for what's right and then let the client make the final call
Our work is collaborative
We strongly prefer tools that encourage collaboration (Figma, Miro, etc.)
We work as a team with other disciplines, design does not rule everything
Our work lifts the community up
We participate in the design community by writing, speaking, mentoring, and coaching others
These principles—and how we apply them—define our approach to design. They hold our work to a standard, inform the tactics we use, and they establish the role our designs play in the community. At its core, design at Artium should be thoughtful. From start to finish, our intentions should always be evident.
Our work is careful
To us, design is like woodworking. To get the best from your piece of wood, you need to understand its properties: things like knots and grain’s direction. Likewise, when we understand the problem and the paths available to us, the solutions tend to reveal themselves
We are responsible for what we put into the world so we must be careful about what we make so that it doesn't unintentionally harm others
When we're thinking about things "at scale" we need to consider that some people will likely be harmed by what we do, so we need to mitigate that
We believe that the richest insights come from spending quality time with the problem, isolated from distractions
We believe in mastering our craft. Tiny details matter and we attend to them with love and joy.
We build psychological safety among our teammates, stakeholders, and users so that we can be as open and direct as needed
Our work is mindful
We maintain a beginner's mind and actively suspend our assumptions. In this way, we are fully present and unbiased when trying to understand a problem
We value gentleness and intuition over rigor and process
We welcome criticism and differing viewpoints
We stay objective…mostly. Data and goals are important, but incomplete without intuition
We create products with a soul
Our work happens in short, repeatable cycles
We do not spend unnecessary time on preparation, we have a ruthless bias toward action
We prioritize delivering small bits of information quickly rather than one big thing slowly
We validate our ideas constantly with users and the business
We believe it’s more valuable to have something working than something perfect
We have strong, smart defaults but are not beholden to any framework, we will adapt our process to fit the need
Our work represents the users
We are the voice of the users and help our stakeholders map their needs to users’ expectations
We owe clients more than our labor—we also owe them our counsel and will not shy away from hard conversations on the implications of their decisions
We practice compassionate detachment, which allows us to advocate for what's right and then let the client make the final call
Our work is collaborative
We strongly prefer tools that encourage collaboration (Figma, Miro, etc.)
We work as a team with other disciplines, design does not rule everything
Our work lifts the community up
We participate in the design community by writing, speaking, mentoring, and coaching others
These principles—and how we apply them—define our approach to design. They hold our work to a standard, inform the tactics we use, and they establish the role our designs play in the community. At its core, design at Artium should be thoughtful. From start to finish, our intentions should always be evident.
Our work is careful
To us, design is like woodworking. To get the best from your piece of wood, you need to understand its properties: things like knots and grain’s direction. Likewise, when we understand the problem and the paths available to us, the solutions tend to reveal themselves
We are responsible for what we put into the world so we must be careful about what we make so that it doesn't unintentionally harm others
When we're thinking about things "at scale" we need to consider that some people will likely be harmed by what we do, so we need to mitigate that
We believe that the richest insights come from spending quality time with the problem, isolated from distractions
We believe in mastering our craft. Tiny details matter and we attend to them with love and joy.
We build psychological safety among our teammates, stakeholders, and users so that we can be as open and direct as needed
Our work is mindful
We maintain a beginner's mind and actively suspend our assumptions. In this way, we are fully present and unbiased when trying to understand a problem
We value gentleness and intuition over rigor and process
We welcome criticism and differing viewpoints
We stay objective…mostly. Data and goals are important, but incomplete without intuition
We create products with a soul
Our work happens in short, repeatable cycles
We do not spend unnecessary time on preparation, we have a ruthless bias toward action
We prioritize delivering small bits of information quickly rather than one big thing slowly
We validate our ideas constantly with users and the business
We believe it’s more valuable to have something working than something perfect
We have strong, smart defaults but are not beholden to any framework, we will adapt our process to fit the need
Our work represents the users
We are the voice of the users and help our stakeholders map their needs to users’ expectations
We owe clients more than our labor—we also owe them our counsel and will not shy away from hard conversations on the implications of their decisions
We practice compassionate detachment, which allows us to advocate for what's right and then let the client make the final call
Our work is collaborative
We strongly prefer tools that encourage collaboration (Figma, Miro, etc.)
We work as a team with other disciplines, design does not rule everything
Our work lifts the community up
We participate in the design community by writing, speaking, mentoring, and coaching others