Log in or create a free Rosenverse account to watch this video.
Log in Create free account100s of community videos are available to free members. Conference talks are generally available to Gold members.
Storytelling for DesignOps
Summary
Key Insights
-
•
Storytelling is essential for design ops leaders to effectively drive change and overcome organizational resistance.
-
•
Owning and crafting your own design ops story is crucial to avoid being defined by others' narratives.
-
•
Design ops functions as a disruptive force but must balance disruption with collaboration to succeed.
-
•
Empathy and emotional connection are key to making your audience feel included rather than defensive.
-
•
Strategic narratives thread together multiple stories to present an aspirational future that aligns stakeholders.
-
•
Resistance to change is often rooted in human biochemical responses like fight-or-flight and must be addressed thoughtfully.
-
•
Data and metrics should support the story after emotional buy-in, not lead with facts to avoid skepticism.
-
•
Authenticity and personal vulnerability in storytelling can build trust and unlock organizational change.
-
•
Change leadership requires securing buy-in from people without formal authority through shared purpose and currency beyond money.
-
•
Successful storytelling requires iterative practice, listening, context awareness, and tailoring to your audience’s current mindset.
Notable Quotes
"The heart of the storyteller is actually the heart of the story."
"If you haven’t taken command and control of your story someone else has, and it’s likely not the story you want to be told."
"Design ops is a change leadership function because you have to influence people you often have no formal authority over."
"No one wants to hear a story that makes them feel bad; you have to create a safe environment that offers hope."
"Make your audience the hero in your story to ensure they identify deeply and emotionally."
"You can be right without making others wrong by telling a story that respects their worldview."
"Resistance is real, and it’s tied to our body’s natural protective responses to change."
"The art of storytelling is the ability to talk about difficult subjects in a way that leaves people feeling good."
"Change is the reason we keep paying attention to stories; without it, there is no story."
"You can’t escape existential matters; you need to confront them head on to unleash the power of storytelling."
Or choose a question:
More Videos
"Change is a constant in design, but at USAA it often felt like change within change — inception-like change."
Erin HauberDesign is Not the Frosting on the Scaled Agile Layer Cake
October 24, 2019
"Confidence doesn’t dull criticality; self-doubt is a statement about your own worth, which we want to reduce."
Megan KiersteadYou Are a Badass at UX: Overcoming Imposter Syndrome
March 10, 2021
"Not a week has gone by in my four years at Uber that something slightly shocking or jarring did not happen."
Maggie DieringerCreating Consistency Through Constant Change
January 8, 2024
"All negative outcomes in legacy modernization can be traced back to not bringing product thinking to the table."
Meaghan Waters Fotina KoutropoulousLack of Product Thinking will Doom Your Legacy Modernization
June 9, 2021
"Brand is not just what you say, it’s what you do — your product and design live and breathe the brand."
Jemma AhmedBringing together market and user research
October 17, 2019
"Trust is a major enabler for tacit knowledge sharing because people must feel safe to be vulnerable and share their knowledge."
Maria TaylorKnowledge is Power: Managing the Lifeblood of the Design Org
October 3, 2023
"If you falsely think you are having the same experience as a native user, you become afraid of accessibility and say it's impossible."
Sam ProulxUnderstanding Screen Readers on Mobile: How And Why to Learn from Native Users
June 6, 2023
"We created a decision tree to help junior staff decide which stakeholder requests to triage and which to respond to directly."
Catherine BlizzardUsing Integrated Insight to Drive Growth
March 10, 2022
"I know who you are and I have opinions."
Randolph Duke IIWar Stories LIVE! Randy Duke II
March 30, 2020
