DPL Reading List – October 20, 2017
Here are some of the articles we’ve been reading around this office this week.
Why Product Thinking is the next big thing in UX Design – “Thinking in products makes sure designers build the right features for the right people and tackle real problems people have. It empowers to make the right decisions and is the foundation of building successful products users want.”
How to Nourish Your Team’s Creativity – “There is nothing more satisfying that watching your people fulfill the human need to create and having their creative contributions benefit the organization and the markets it serves. Doing this requires understanding the inherent tensions that come with leading creative endeavor. It takes intentional, thoughtful leadership to help your team unleash their most creative and powerful work.”
Why Tomorrow’s Customers Won’t Shop at Today’s Retailers – “Yet perhaps the most pressing challenge for retailers is keeping up with customers’ expectations for immediacy, personalization, innovative experiences, and the other myriad ways technological and societal changes are making Dawn the most demanding customer the retail industry has ever seen.”
What habits made me a better Software Engineer? – “Habits are the ones that created experts, geniuses, and gained proficiency in what they’re doing right now. It is not done overnight, but it’s possible. Most productive and smart people will say that habits were the ones that made them successful. I couldn’t agree more than that.”
Google X and the Science of Radical Creativity – “Each X idea adheres to a simple three-part formula. First, it must address a huge problem; second, it must propose a radical solution; third, it must employ a relatively feasible technology. In other words, any idea can be a moonshot—unless it’s frivolous, small-bore, or impossible.”
Lax Online Security Can Destroy Your Brand Overnight – “A 2016 study from KPMG found that 89 percent of small businesses that their reputation suffered after a security breach. Around the same time, the National Cyber Security Alliance released an even more alarming report, showing that 60 percent of small businesses collapse within six months of a security breach. However, only 23 percent of small businesses rated cyber security as one of their top concerns, suggesting many companies fail to take adequate precautions until it is too late.”
4 Ways Leaders Can Get More from Their Company’s Innovation Efforts – “While the execution of a conventional strategy lends itself to linear progress and clear benchmarks, innovation often proceeds by S-curves, moving at a slow crawl until it explodes at an exponential rate. To close the gap, we need to treat innovation differently than we do normal operations.”
