What is a playbook?

A design team’s playbook refers to the set of practices, processes, tools, and guidelines that determine how that team approaches and executes their work. Playbooks can vary significantly across teams and may include elements like:

• Team structure and roles
• Design processes like user research, ideation, prototyping
• Collaboration rituals like design critiques, standups
• Tools and workflows
• Quality control
• Communication norms
• Rules for decision making
• Prioritization frameworks
• Rules for documentation and knowledge sharing
• Strategies for soliciting feedback

The exact composition of a playbook depends on the team’s context and needs. There is no universally ideal playbook. As a design leader, being aware of these dynamics allows you to better support the unique playbooks that emerge within your teams and how they need to morph over time.

Tailoring the Playbook to the Team

Successful design teams come in all shapes and sizes. What works well for one team may not be the best approach for another. As a design leader, it’s important to recognize and embrace this diversity of playbooks.

No two teams are exactly alike. Consider the following examples:

Team A

This is a large 30-person team that owns all design for a mature product with an established user base. Their playbook focuses on:

• Structure: Strict specialization of roles (visual design, UX, research). Designers assigned to specific product areas.
• Processes: Heavy emphasis on design systems and pattern libraries to enable scaling.
• Tools: Figma design system libraries. Abstract for version control.
• Communication: Rely more on documentation over direct collaboration. Weekly syncs to align.

Team B

This nimble 5-person team is working on an early stage product still finding product-market fit. Their playbook centers on:

• Roles: Very fluid roles, designers wear many hats. Tight collaboration.
• Processes: Fast iteration and prototyping prioritized over polish. User research integral.
• Rituals: Daily standups, critique sessions, and informal collaboration.
• Tools: Figma boards to quickly iterate and test concepts.
• Communication: Heavy use of video calls, Slack, and whiteboarding over documentation.

Team C

This distributed 10-person team is split across offices in different time zones. Their playbook needs to bridge cross-location collaboration through:

• Documentation: Confluence docs on all design guidelines, assets, and decisions.
• Processes: Structured handoff processes between locations.
• Tools: Figma/FigJam for remote design workshops and brainstorms.
• Rituals: Alternating meeting times to share context cross-location.

Team D

This is a team of one – a single designer at an early stage startup. Their playbook is highly adaptable by necessity:

• Roles: The designer wears many hats – UI, UX, interaction design, research.
• Processes: Rapid prototyping and user testing is crucial to validate and iterate.
• Tools: Figma for quick design mocks and prototypes. UsabilityHub for remote user testing.
• Rituals: Close collaboration with engineers and product managers to align frequently.
• Prioritization: Focus on biggest user pain points and smoothest flows first.
• Documentation: Less emphasis on thorough docs, more on conveying context through Slack/emails.
• Feedback: Lean heavily on user tests and any customer conversations for feedback.

The right playbook really depends on team size, product stage, scope of ownership, as well as the skills and experience of each team member. As a leader, it’s important to take the time to understand what will enable your specific team to thrive.

It’s also important to recognize that your playbook may need to adapt over time based on the growing needs of your team and the business.

Tactical Tips for Flexible Playbooks

Here are some ways you can support diverse playbooks:

• Focus on outcomes – Give teams autonomy in their processes as long as they achieve their goals. Don’t mandate rigid processes.
• Avoid micromanaging – Empower teams to organize workflows and rituals that optimize their effectiveness. Resist over-controlling.
• Allow experimentation – Recognize that methodologies will evolve over time. Leave room for teams to try new approaches if needed.
• Solicit feedback – Regularly ask about and listen to team needs. Use insights to improve how you support them.
• Evaluate tradeoffs – Weigh the pros and cons of different playbook elements rather than seeking “perfect”.

Avoiding Forced Conformity

Don’t be fooled into thinking that a playbook that worked at one company will magically work at another. Enforcing the same playbook everywhere has consequences. Teams are less engaged when they cannot work in ways that play to their strengths. Morale can suffer under a one-size-fits-all playbook. Innovation and creativity may taper off. As a design leader it’s your job to constantly re-examine what’s working and what isn’t and thoughtfully rebalance based on what you’re seeing.

Examining Your Own Playbook

Some questions worth considering:

• How aligned is your playbook to the needs of your team in it’s current state?
• In what ways are you encouraging flexibility versus rigidity? Do teams feel empowered to adapt?
• What core principles guide your playbook? Are they helping or hindering your teams?
• What feedback have you gathered from teams about what’s working? What did you learn?
• What tradeoffs and tensions surface as you balance business goals with team needs? How do you navigate these?
• What personal biases or assumptions do you think are affecting your playbook and leadership style?

By regularly examining your own playbook through thoughtful questions, you can gain insights to become a more self-aware, adaptive design leader.

Discussion

What does your current playbook look like? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments.