“I’m not a design leader, I’m a business leader.” It’s quotes like this, from VMWare’s Head of Design Jehad Affoneh, that are one of many reasons why we love the insights and tactics that he has shared over the course of our conversations. 

In this discussion, we speak with Jehad about how he measures the impact of design, and aligns design goals with engineering goals. We learn why he thinks it’s important to lead with context, and how he goes about ensuring that the diverse voices on his team are heard.

Takeaways:

• What kinds of OKRs Jehad uses to align design goals with engineering goals.
• What Jehad learned by running an internal conference that brought all designers together with executive leadership.
• Tactics for ensuring that diverse voices of your team are heard in meetings and workshops.

Bio

Jehad Affoneh is the Senior Director, Head of Design at VMWare. He’s an experienced design and product leader, building and growing an amazing design and research team at VMware and transforming the culture of VMware’s user experience. Jehad drives innovation by focusing on the end user experience first and working within strong cross-functional teams.