Interview methods high-performing product design teams use to evaluate designers
When I built my first team as a Product Design Manager, I hired 36 designers in 10 months. My interview process was simple for all levels and disciplines: a quick 15-minute screening call, and if that went well, a one-hour in-person portfolio review. That was it. I was lucky with the first 35 hires, but […]
AI portfolios and the future of hiring designers
I recently interviewed a designer who used AI to create a prototype for her portfolio. On the surface, that was fine, AI can be a powerful tool for designers. But when I asked why she made a specific design decision (the placement of a button) her response was: “The AI did it.” There was no […]
How to run a whiteboard activity to reveal a designer’s true potential
Whiteboard activities have become a staple in design interviews especially for UX and product designers. Done well, they give you a window into how a candidate thinks, collaborates, and approaches problems. But here’s the catch: done poorly, whiteboard activities can feel intimidating, biased, or even like free work. That’s not good for the candidate experience […]
The one question you should always ask a designer during a screening call
Screening calls may seem old-fashioned in an age of AI recruiting tools, but they’re still one of the most valuable steps in the hiring process. Why? Because in less than 30 minutes, you can figure out if a candidate is worth moving forward with, saving you and your team hours of time in deeper interviews. […]
Want better design candidates? Start with a better job description
Hiring a great designer starts long before the first interview. It starts with your job description. Too often, job postings for UX, product design, design research, and UX engineering roles read like a laundry list of tools and buzzwords. The result? You don’t attract the talent you want, you attract people who can check boxes […]
The secret to conducting great design interviews
When we think about job interviews, especially in competitive fields like product design, the focus often falls on rigorous evaluations, tricky whiteboard exercises, or clever questions meant to test a candidate’s abilities under pressure. Here is the real secret. The most successful interviews happen when candidates feel comfortable, respected, and able to present their authentic […]