2023/10/06

Last day at Co-op, a real privilege to have worked with the CX, design, digital and operations team over the past 2.5 years. As I’ve said to everyone who asked, it still doesn’t feel real. But sat on the train back from Manchester for the last time it’s starting to sink in. Thankfully you all know where to find me at least!

So this week:

• Appreciation matters and we should do it more often. In your final weeks people say (mostly) nice things to you, and you get to say it back. Of course there’s no reason why you can’t all say these things at other times. One of the joys of working at Co-op was that we did practice this, as evidenced by a few familiar names in Katherine’s screenshots from the template she’s shared. If you’re looking for a way to start including a bit of appreciation into your team routines, it’s a great template to work from.

• People expect and value constructive challenge to ways of working. Probably the most common version of this I tried to bring was ‘how could we get this in front of/in the hands of the people who will use it sooner?’. People didn’t disagree with the principle, but wouldn’t always prioritise it over their aspirational timelines. As design and research leaders we should be asking this all the time. The reason I think people value it…I’ve heard that when planning for my replacement the Ops teams have asked for someone who brings a ‘different perspective and can challenge plans’. If you wonder whether your challenge is being appreciated, maybe it is more than you think?
• The professional world is small. Two of my old bosses from different places are now working together somewhere else. I’m going to work with another again, with a whole bunch of people who’ve also worked at Co-op before. Reviewing applications for my replacement and there’s familiar names in there too. I’m organising a catch up with people I’ve never worked with, but have been passed my name by people I have…Whatever you do, don’t burn bridges. You never know what those connections will lead to in the future.
• When it comes to making things better, you probably have more allies than you think. It’s very unlikely nobody else has noticed the thing (although sometimes they haven’t found the root cause). There will be people across a whole range of teams who will be happy to support change. The harder part is finding the person (or becoming the person) who can action the change. In a big org, the people who understand how to navigate business cases and governance to get things done are great allies to have. Conversely learn when to tell that someone who is maybe on board with the problem, actually has no inclination of trying to find a solution.
• Sometimes you might not agree with how to get things done. That might include promotions, expanding teams, making business cases, the endless meetings needed to ‘socialise’ and get support for an idea. So finding people who have been there and done it before is super important, Kate Tarling refers to them as ‘bureaucratic hackers’. You also need to stay focused on why you’re doing it and keep checking with yourself if the end justifies the means. Sometimes it doesn’t, pick your battles and know when enough is enough.
• I should round off with a word about the team at Co-op. I had long admired the work they did, and how they went about it. So presented with the opportunity to remotely, I jumped at the chance. It didn’t disappoint in terms of what I’ve learned, the leaders I’ve been able to work with and then the trust that was placed in me as I took on leadership. Big orgs are tough places to do design, especially service design but there is a lot to be learned about the importance of relationships in creating fulfilling and meaningful work for people. I’ll very much be cheering everyone on from the sidelines and will be thankful for my time spent as part of Co-op.

You can probably tell I’m in a reflective mood. Leaving a job will do that to you. The other side of my reflections are around not leaving Cardiff. I get asked a lot if I’m leaving Cardiff, especially with the new office in London. My answer is no.

Related to this the long read is one of a few fascinating articles about Blaenau Ffestiniog, challenging the ‘left behind’ narrative when people actively choose to stay where they were born. It’s hard to compare Cardiff to much of mid Wales, but it made me reflect on my own families choice not to leave where we grew up, not because we are left behind, but because we have strong connections here and if everyone left that might not always be true.

Generally I’ve been surprised at the number of people who have mentioned to me they read these. If that’s you, thanks for taking the time and feel free to stay in touch, making old/new connections is always a good thing in my experience!