Level 6 designer: how we motivate and develop designers

What happens if each product designer is assigned a level

Hello! I am Vanya Solovyov , design director at DocDoc (part of the Sberbank group). Today is the Dream-Tim heading , which tells how to create a dream team.

Last year, we encountered problems that came from two sides: from designers and the company.

Designer

"How to ask for a raise, and if they don’t raise it?" , "Where to develop further, maybe what courses to take?" . These and other questions put the designer in limbo and directly affect the quality of work.

It is unclear how much in a year it will be possible to grow in wages and what to do?

Designers want to develop, get more money, and this is normal. But raising such issues is difficult.

Company

When a company is steadily developing and growing, it is important that employees keep up with the general pace and continue to expand their knowledge and expertise.

How to systematize the development of designers in the right direction?

In the opposite case, inertia is an occasion to reduce and search for a new candidate.

Level 6 Designer

To solve these problems, we abandoned the basic system of roles: junior, middle, senior. Well really, is it really cool to feel like a "beginner middle" when a colleague and friend are a "cool senior"?

Instead, they introduced a level system: 9 for product designers and 6 for managerial designers. There was only one essence - the “designer”, but of different levels.

How was the description of the levels

The requirements were based on what we expect from the designer at one level or another. I am sure that most food companies have similar needs.

From the level 5 designer, we expect strong hard skills, and from the level 7 designer - a good pumping of soft skills.

Levels and roles of product designers. At the end of the article is a link to the table.


“Roles and responsibilities” and “Skills and requirements” turned out to be common for some levels. This is the development vector that the designer must adhere to.

However, the “Transition Conditions” and “Theoretical Base” are unique for each level. These are key indicators of moving to the next level.

"Features Points"

One of the key indicators was “feature points”. This is when the designer monitors and evaluates which of his tasks have reached the set metrics.

Grades are given on a 5-point scale. Tasks that affect conversion earn more points than tasks on other metrics.

For example, a task with a metric in the spirit of “making an image page” can get 1-2 points, because it is difficult to measure in money. But the task with the metric of “achieve conversion into a 12% bid” can be estimated at 4–5 points.


"Features-points" in the presentation of the product designer


"Features-points" in the presentation of the mobile designer

Side benefits. When a designer evaluates past tasks, he once again understands that the interface created by him directly affected the business. + 1 to FAQ

When and how do we go to the next level

You can apply for a level review 2 times a year. First, the designer collects a presentation in which he tells how he fulfilled the conditions of the transition.


The cover of the presentation of the mobile designer moving on to level 6. The charm!

Then he sets up a meeting with the participation of: HR Director, Product Director and Design Director. Speaks at it with a presentation and answers questions.

A designer can increase his level and raise his salary up to 2 times a year.

If its transfer is approved, bonuses, salaries, etc. are agreed. If it is a failure, then the detailed reason is why.

pros

For the designer:

• allows you to plan growth for the year ahead and not strain about raising salaries;
• helps to determine where to grow and what is expected of him in the future;
• collecting information for the presentation helps to evaluate the work done;
• Preparing for a presentation and speaking in public develops soft skills and communication skills.

For the company:

• employee development plan is flexible and changes to the needs of the company without unnecessary processes;
• the leader does not worry that the motivation and productivity of the designer may fall;
• Roles in design easily scale to new designers, which leads to the desired consistency in their development.

Minuses

• the current version of the roles is suitable only for product designers, but I am sure that in version 2.0 we can adapt it for marketing designers as well;
• if the designer is not striving for development, you will only see it in six months - he will simply miss the opportunity to move.

PS What if your company does not yet have roles?

Captain obvious

If you have the strength and opportunity - create! The size of the design team does not matter. The main thing is the desire to make the work of their guys comfortable. And our role table will be a good start.

If you don’t have strength, write and call for a visit - we will help.

Use the milestones

Briefly - fix the milestones of your achievements, approved with the leader and tied to salary or bonuses. Details - in one of the following articles.