Recent Reads (Issue 16) - Information Architecture, Creating Change, Life Logging, Democratization, Brainstorming & Interactions
I have been doing a lot of brainstorming at work for the last couple of weeks, so this issue leans a bit more towards the product design side of the world
How Intercom restructured its information architecture: I don’t often come across good articles on information architecture. Not sure how popular that field, or at least that label, is. In the teams I have worked with and talking to some friends of mine in other companies, it is a discipline that seems to have been subsumed by the moniker “User Experience” which I feel is too broad. Some of the most clarifying conversations I have had are with good Information Architects. This post is a great read on how IA can help refine your product and make it less overwhelming to users.
How to create change: I have worked at various iterations of a “new products” organization for the last 13 years, building ideas that hope to change the status quo in the organization. Creating change is fundamentally hard and often frustrating. This quick video by Simon Sinek, author of the book “Start with the Why” (which I also recommend as a great read) was insightful recommending that attempting to change 100% of your audience is likely a failure waiting to happen - rather focus on the 15-18% of early adopters who can champion your idea and who can be the change agents you need.
A life in weeks: Gina Trapani, someone I used to follow very attentively in earlier times back when she was at Lifehacker, posted a visualization of her life in weeks based on the idea on Wait But Why (there are also hosted versions if you want to try your own). An interesting, low barrier to entry, approach to chronicling your life. I tried to build my own but realized so much of my life I only remember in years, or quarters. I have been thinking about my own journey from India to the US a lot lately so am extra curious about life journaling tools.
The Democratization of (Everything): An insightful post by my friend David that challenges the idea that democratizing technology—especially AI—automatically leads to progress. David argues that true empowerment requires education, critical thinking, and structural support, without which democratization risks being an empty promise, benefiting those already positioned to succeed. Worth a read.
Tackling UX challenges as a team - An good post on brainstorming as a team. While the post focuses more on the user experience aspect, the Miro template feels like a good fit even in the product design brainstorm sessions that I often participate in.
A beautiful collection of interactions: Beautiful work by designer Nitish Khagwal