The Meaning of Design. Design isn’t just about making things… | by Reena Merchant | Google Design | Medium

Calling myself a designer frequently results in the misunderstanding that my job is to make software products “look pretty”. On the other hand, venturing to call myself a design leader or design strategist frequently garners looks of confusion, especially in those outside the technology and design industries. Even when speaking with others within the industry, a truly aligned understanding of design roles is rare. Every company, every team, has their own understanding of what design is and what the role of designers should be. Within the user experience field, there are so many specializations within design roles — interaction designer, visual designer, information architect, motion designer, prototyper — and these roles can have overlaps with other domains such as marketing, architecture, industrial design, or even sound design. To add to the confusion, no matter what the mix of roles on a team, UX as a discipline itself can be at varying levels of maturity within organizations. Some

Calling myself a designer frequently results in the misunderstanding that my job is to make software products “look pretty”. On the other hand, venturing to call myself a design leader or design strategist frequently garners looks of confusion, especially in those outside the technology and design industries. Even when speaking with others within the industry, a truly aligned understanding of design roles is rare. Every company, every team, has their own understanding of what design is and what the role of designers should be. Within the user experience field, there are so many specializations