Leader By Design

The inspirational true story of former Sportsgirl CEO Colleen Callander's rise to the top and her lessons for those looking to step up.Before we can lead anyone else, we need to be leading in our own lives.In Leader by Design, Colleen Callander aims to inspire all women to have a voice, live with purpose, lead in their own lives, change the rules, live with confidence and embrace their superpowers.She also aims to inspire organisations to embrace a new era of leadership - one that leads with kindness, trust and authenticity and one that has more women at the helm.A wife, mother of three, and chronic high-achiever, Colleen left school at the age of 16 and became state manager of a national retail brand within a few short years. She went on to become a top female CEO - but not before she almost threw in the towel, burdened under the crushing weight of burnout.Colleen held the role of CEO for 13 years, over which time her mission was to empower, engage, inspire and allow people to bring their best selves to work each day. This book is part autobiography, sharing Colleen's life journey (including how her upbringing shaped the women and leader she is today), and it is part guide/pocket mentor, full of actionable tips, advice, actions and insights to help women step into their confidence and lead with purpose.Each chapter shares insights and tips, is thought-provoking, and will empower and inspire all women who, no matter at what stage they are in on their leadership journey in business or in life, to believe that the best is yet to come. Leader By Design will ignite the courage and confidence to believe in your own superpower and believe in and embrace the positive influence that women can have on the world today through the way we lead. Perfect for job seekers, new graduates, and experienced professionals, this practical, invaluable guide will have you prepared, ready and positioned for career success.

What does it take to be the leader of a design firm or group? We often assume they have all the answers, but in this rapidly evolving industry they’re forced to find their way like the rest of us. So how do good design leaders manage? If you lead a design group, or want to understand the people who do, this insightful book explores behind-the-scenes strategies and tactics from leaders of top design companies throughout North America. Based on scores of interviews he conducted over a two-year period—from small companies to massive corporations like ESPN—author Richard Banfield covers a wide range of topics, including: How design leaders create a healthy company culture Innovative ways for attracting and nurturing talent Creating productive workspaces, and handling remote employees Staying on top of demands while making time for themselves Consistent patterns among vastly different leadership styles Techniques and approaches for keeping the work pipeline full Making strategic and tactical plans for the future Mistakes that design leaders made—and how they bounced back

Complete the following sentences:“I am most energized when . . .”“I have always dreamed of . . .”“I derive joy from . . .”If there is a disconnect between how you completed these statements and the reality of your present situation, then something is getting in the way of you and the future you desire.Most of us actually spend a great deal of time thinking about our future, yet it is something we rarely address in a formal way. Why is it that the very thing we think about so often is something for which we rarely receive guidance? Leader of One: Shaping Your Future through Imagination and Design changes that reality, helping us to envision our future and to take action to make it happen.We have all experienced the widening gap between where we are and where we wish to be. Life, we find, gets in the way. It becomes too easy in this hyper-dynamic world to confuse means with ends, busyness with importance, and activity with progress. We have a living to make after all, or, if we're students, we must prepare to do so. For those of us in mid-career, there appear to be even more obstacles. In time, we discover we have drifted away from whatever it was we were passionate about, unaware that we were forfeiting a future that was ours to claim if only we had known how to unleash the “leader” within.Leader of One tells us how. Through Gerald Suarez's engaging voice, we learn about a process called idealized design, a method first applied in corporations by the renowned Wharton Emeritus Professor Russell Ackoff and his team. Ackoff and Suarez worked together to apply the same methodology in the White House where Suarez served two presidents for over a decade. As an internationally recognized authority on leadership and organizational redesign, Professor Suarez found the process worked as easily in the classroom as it did in the boardroom. What works for large organizations works for individuals as well.The methodology is simple, but the implications are profound. Suarez describes a cycle of activities that begins with the mental creation of an idealized future and ends with its realization. He teaches us how to begin in the future and work backwards to the present, from B to A, so to speak. He has us examine assumptions about who we are and asks us to explore what we value, to “dig deep” for answers. He does not allow us to be passive observers. He requires we learn by doing. It is not enough to dream, we must have the courage to take action. Leader of One is a book to guide us as we move through our days. In one sense it is timeless. Readers will find it invaluable now, but worth revisiting in the years ahead as circumstances change and as new passions take hold.

In The Leader within Us, business leader and experienced mentor Warren Rustand finally puts in writing the basic principles of what he calls a life by design-- that is, a life that, through deliberate choice and hard work, reflects the vision and aspirations of the person living it. These are the same principles that Rustand has enacted in his own life and has taught to many other adults who have come to him for guidance. You will find his story, and some of their stories, in this book. No matter where you begin, no matter your age or ability or circumstances, there is always the possibility for growth, for redemption, and for success. This book is a blueprint for making significant changes, setting and achieving your goals, and living a life you can be proud of. It will help you be the person you want to be, starting today.

Design has become the key link between users and today’s complex and rapidly evolving digital experiences, and designers are starting to be included in strategic conversations about the products and services that enterprises ultimately deliver. This has led to companies building in-house digital/experience design teams at unprecedented rates, but many of them don’t understand how to get the most out of their investment. This practical guide provides guidelines for creating and leading design teams within your organization, and explores ways to use design as part of broader strategic planning. You’ll discover: Why design’s role has evolved in the digital age How to infuse design into every product and service experience The 12 qualities of effective design organizations How to structure your design team through a Centralized Partnership Design team roles and evolution The process of recruiting and hiring designers How to manage your design team and promote professional growth

"Design is the rendering of intent." What if education leaders approached their work with the perspective of a designer? This new perspective of seeing the world differently is desperately needed in schools and begins with school leadership. Alyssa Gallagher and Kami Thordarson, widely recognized experts on Design Thinking, educational leadership, and innovative strategies, call this new perspective design-inspired leadership—one of the most powerful ways to ignite positive change and address education challenges using the same design and innovation principles that have been so successful in private industry. Design Thinking for School Leaders explores the changing landscape of leadership and offers practical ways to reframe the role of school leader using Design Thinking, one step at a time. Leaders can shift from "accidental designers" to "design-inspired leaders," acting with greater intention and achieving greater impact. You'll learn how viewing the world through a more empathetic lens—a critical first step on the path to becoming a design-inspired leader—can raise your awareness of the uniqueness of your teachers and students and prompt you to question the ways in which they experience your school. Gallagher and Thordarson detail five specific roles to help you identify opportunities for positively impacting students, teachers, districts, parents, and the community: Opportunity Seeker. Shifts from problem solving to problem finding. Experience Architect. Designs and curates learning experiences. Rule Breaker. Challenges the way things are "always" done. Producer. Gets things done and creates rapid learning cycles for teams. Storyteller. Captures the hearts and minds of a community. Full of examples of Design Thinking in action in schools across the country, Design Thinking for School Leaders can help you guide your school to the forefront of the new design + education movement, one that will move traditional education into the modern world and drive the future of learning.

What does it take to be the leader of a design firm or group? We often assume they have all the answers, but in this rapidly evolving industry they’re forced to find their way like the rest of us. So how do good design leaders manage? If you lead a design group, or want to understand the people who do, this insightful book explores behind-the-scenes strategies and tactics from leaders of top design companies throughout North America. Based on scores of interviews he conducted over a two-year period—from small companies to massive corporations like ESPN—author Richard Banfield covers a wide range of topics, including: How design leaders create a healthy company culture Innovative ways for attracting and nurturing talent Creating productive workspaces, and handling remote employees Staying on top of demands while making time for themselves Consistent patterns among vastly different leadership styles Techniques and approaches for keeping the work pipeline full Making strategic and tactical plans for the future Mistakes that design leaders made—and how they bounced back

In today’s lightning-fast technology world, good product management is critical to maintaining a competitive advantage. Yet, managing human beings and navigating complex product roadmaps is no easy task, and it’s rare to find a product leader who can steward a digital product from concept to launch without a couple of major hiccups. Why do some product leaders succeed while others don’t? This insightful book presents interviews with nearly 100 leading product managers from all over the world. Authors Richard Banfield, Martin Eriksson, and Nate Walkingshaw draw on decades of experience in product design and development to capture the approaches, styles, insights, and techniques of successful product managers. If you want to understand what drives good product leaders, this book is an irreplaceable resource. In three parts, Product Leadership helps you explore: Themes and patterns of successful teams and their leaders, and ways to attain those characteristics Best approaches for guiding your product team through the startup, emerging, and enterprise stages of a company’s evolution Strategies and tactics for working with customers, agencies, partners, and external stakeholders

The book reveals a new understanding of the ways that design shapes our lives and gives professionals and interested citizens the tools to seek out and demand designs that dignify.

Bad design is everywhere, and its cost is much higher than we think. In this thought-provoking book, authors Jonathan Shariat and Cynthia Savard Saucier explain how poorly designed products can anger, sadden, exclude, and even kill people who use them. The designers responsible certainly didn’t intend harm, so what can you do to avoid making similar mistakes? Tragic Design examines real case studies that show how certain design choices adversely affected users, and includes in-depth interviews with authorities in the design industry. Pick up this book and learn how you can be an agent of change in the design community and at your company. You’ll explore: Designs that can kill, including the bad interface that doomed a young cancer patient Designs that anger, through impolite technology and dark patterns How design can inadvertently cause emotional pain Designs that exclude people through lack of accessibility, diversity, and justice How to advocate for ethical design when it isn’t easy to do so Tools and techniques that can help you avoid harmful design decisions Inspiring professionals who use design to improve our world