Christina Wodtke has written that "...our design work doesn’t exist inside of a bubble. The reality of the matter is that we influence many aspects of a business with our work but that they also have huge influence on what we design…whether we like it or not."

Design is often undervalued because it's misunderstood. As designers, we're often the sole advocates for design in our organisations. How can we change the status quo? How can we create more champions and help shape more effective organisations?

We've invited two designers sharing a wealth of experiences to bring us their perspectives and thoughts on the leading design in today's business context.

The agenda for the evening

18:30 - 19:00 - Doors open

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19:00 - 19:30 - Séamus Byrne - Successful Design in Agile UX
As more and more software projects are adopting agile methodologies for product development it is clear that Design is the game-changing ingredient that determines the ultimate success of a product. But too often Design is treated as an afterthought, rather than an important phase in the software development process. When it is considered, it’s often squeezed in so tightly from a time and scope perspective, the Design team is unable to flex its creative and problem-solving muscles in order to be effective.

In this discussion, Séamus sheds light on how to integrate User-Centred Design with the agile software development process. He will identify the areas with the biggest pain-points, outline methodologies that successfully bake-in the right amount of Design into the process, and he'll share some war-stories. The net result will be liberation to apply the UX toolkit more effectively to your next agile project.

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19:30 - 20:00 - Kim Lenox - Executing Against All Odds
As leaders, we sometimes find ourselves in unexpected positions and realize that everything is not OK. When that also involves product transformation, the stakes get very high, very quickly and our skills are put to the test. While the temptation might be to take a backseat and let others solve the problems, it is even more important to step up to foster trust, create a shared vision, and lead across parallel paths. Kim will share a compelling story of digging in and achieving success when it seemed unlikely.

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20:00 - 20:30 - Refreshments
Make new friends and discuss what you've heard with our speakers and the rest of the IxDA Dublin community. IxDA Dublin will provide soft drinks and some light snacks.

About Séamus
Séamus Byrne is a User Experience thought leader from Ireland. He is co-founder and Director of UX at Graphic Mint, an award-winning UX Design and Innovation Studio based in Dublin, Ireland. Graphic Mint’s programmes include: UsabilityTesting.ie, Participants.ie and UXAcademy.ie For over 20 years, he has worked in Europe and North America as a designer, creating meaningful and easy to use customer and user experiences for multinational companies, SMEs and educational institutions.

He is an original founder of IxDA Dublin, Defuse, Co-Chair for Interaction12 and a former IxDA Board member. He writes about UX for the Graphic Mint blog and is an avid user of twitter. When he gets a spare moment, he likes to sing, play guitar, grow plants and evangelise Irish Design @SeamusByrne

About Kim
Kim Lenox joined LinkedIn in the Fall of 2014 to lead the San Francisco-based product design teams. She is currently a Director of Product Design, leading LinkedIn’s Marketing Solutions, Commerce and Enterprise Platform design teams.

Kim’s work is about creating products that matter — to business, the product landscape, the customers who use them and teams who build them. Known for fostering creativity and collaboration in the workplace, while keeping an eye on a strategic vision and business goals, Kim builds healthy, intelligent processes and relationships that result in products with a lasting influence.

Over the last 22 years in the software R&D industry, she has led the design of product experiences for technology companies including Samsung, Palm/HP and at design consultancies including LUNAR and Adaptive Path. In 2007 she cofounded IxDA-SF and from 2011-2015, she served on the Board of Directors for the Interaction Design Association (IxDA).