The topics covered summarize 20 years of professional experience and discussions on this issue with designers, employers, and clients from Latin America, North America, and Europe.

Professional Respect is what allows a professional to perform their tasks. If a doctor did not have the professional respect they deserve, it would take a long time to convince us to undress for an examination.

Designers worldwide often face situations where we do not have the necessary professional respect. How can we achieve it? What is the gap between university and professional practice? How can we bridge it effectively?

The Levels of Professional Respect

Together with José Allona, co-coordinator of IXDA BA, we developed what we call “the ladder of respect.” There are a series of steps we need to cover to reach “universal respect,” which is when “designer” becomes a title sufficient to establish productive conversations, much like how titles such as “doctor” or “engineer” achieve that status today. The first step on this ladder is moving from dealing with artifacts to engaging with people.

Central Concepts:

• Acceptance Criteria: Moving from technical criteria (where an authority approves or rejects the result) to professional criteria (the fulfillment of a committed obligation).
• Professional Communication: Distinguishing between ways to listen to information or emotions (understanding vs. empathizing), ways to express them (explaining vs. expressing), and the appropriate moments for each.
• Planning and Management: Understanding the triple constraint model (quality, time, cost) and the actions needed to keep the project properly framed, or reviewing the framework in time if necessary.
• Avoiding Attachment to Decisions and Results: The designer’s job is not to make “the” decision and achieve “the design.” It is to provide resolution alternatives so that the project leader can understand the pros and cons and guide each stage. This involves developing alternatives in an economically reasonable manner, presenting their pros and cons, and supporting an informed decision.

The entry Design Leadership: on earning professional respect was first published on Kambrica.