You cannot build a product on your own; you either need to collaborate with a committed team or an expert to enable it to fully materialize. There is tension and ideological disagreement between members often, which can put a dent in the cohesive workflow required to build the product. It is important to address this misunderstanding so that the operations accelerate with zero obstacles. The team that leads the charge in developing the product consist of both designers and developers. This is why maintaining a cordial relationship between the two can move mountains regardless of the tasks that have to deal with.
The designing process is not limited to coming up with a design only. It has to go through the development phase, and then the testing phase before it can be launched officially. Every phase needs to have all eyes and ears in place to oversee the entire process. We will look closer to the relationship between designers and developers regarding what causes their division and how we can resolve these issues.
What Deters Cooperation Between Developers and Designers?
Some of the more well-known hindrances designers and developers face can be identified in the following.
- No communication with your designers and developers before or during the duration of the design process.
- No documentation
- Zero explanation of what makes applications workable and user flows
- Solutions that are difficult to implement
- Edges and errors are not through
- The difference of opinion pertaining to the proposed solution
How to Avoid These Problems?
Persistent Communication Before, During, and After the Design Process
Both designers and developers require consultations from one another. Time and technical limitations always affect the design. This is why the designers cannot design in a void, and they must need to inquire from developers whether or not the design can be possibly implemented. Developers handle the construction of the ideas proposed by the designers and may, once in a while, identify something that the designer missed, which is a two-way consultation that is beneficial for both designers and developers. With input from developers, the designers can make the alterations he needs according to the requirements of the developer.
The designer must always request the opinion of the developer and vice versa. With this level of consultation, both designers and developers can rectify every issue they are dealing with concerning the product development process. You can create certain mediums to help facilitate the communication lines between designers and developers. This can be in the form of Slack, Messenger, and other channels that will give both of them the means to ask the relevant questions about the designs. If the developer has any opposition to a particular design, he can quickly alert the designer to halt any further design.
Similarly, he can request the designer to make some alterations to the design so it can improve. The same is the case with the designer who will view the developer’s prototype and request him to make the necessary modifications to perfect the design. Both sides need to take scrutiny seriously during their communication and respect each other’s opinions. Always shower praise for the other side’s efforts to come up with the design or create the design. Never lose your temper and always exercise patience for the other side.
An environment that is open to feedback in a company makes way for a constructive discourse, which opens the door to making productive improvements. This is beneficial for both the business and the project. The project delivered through this cooperation will be flawless, faultless, and error free. This is why it is imperative that designers and developers work as a team with constant collaboration as opposed to separate units.
Project Handover: Sharing Is Caring
Designers share the initial responsibility for brainstorming and crafting the design they hope to solidify. This means that the designer needs to go beyond offering user flow explanations and screen presentation. A design needs to remember that he’s working as a team with his counterparts and thus has the responsibility of sharing his research with them.
The designer also needs to take the needs of the users into consideration and make them a part of the designing process. He needs to empathize with the users and understand how your product idea can solve their problems. This knowledge builds customer empathy and reinforces the designer’s view that the product is catered towards a specific demographic. The research phase of the product enables the designer to present personas and customer journey maps, which allows the designer to make decisive actions to cons structure his product idea in a way that is directed to respond to the needs of the users.
This, in turn, will allow the developer to understand your decisions better, and even though some aspects of your idea may seem strange to them, they can either question that about you, or if he places enough trust in you, will go ahead with the construction of the product. A handover such as this creates a productive team spirit and allows both designers and developers to care for one another.
It is relatively clear that communication is what will determine the relationship between the designer and the developer. It also requires insight sharing and proper workflow to decrease any semblance of misunderstanding and conflict that may arise during the designing process. Instead of going to countless meetings and engaging in unnecessary diatribe, it is preferable to communicate in digital mediums that will ensure that the developer shares the vision of the designer. Any grievance or complaint either side shares can be rectified through proper discourse, which allows them to come to a resolution. A Prototype makes everything much more convenient. If the prototype is not according to either the designer or developer’s vision, they can modify the other side needs until the two sides can come to an agreement.
About The Author
Stephanie Braga
Hi, I am Stephanie Braga. A professional blogger and content community manager on this platform. I love to write and post content on different niche. Contact me, if you need any help related to digital marketing or content marketing.
