# Design growth framework ## 👋 Introduction The Obvious design growth framework is intended to: * Be open enough for discovery and tight enough for direction * Create a tangible sense of progression, especially between levels * Inspire regular conversations and record-keeping to offset recency bias * Acknowledge and codify work that is often overlooked * Treat team members equitably and reward appropriately * Build a T-shaped career while recognising the breadth of capability in our teams These goals, together, form the collective North Star for our growth framework. {% hint style="info" %} While this framework is designed for a designer at a consultancy, it has strong parallels with the growth of a designer at a product company. {% endhint %} *** ## 1️⃣ Team structure There are two kinds of teams at obvious—dedicated product teams and horizontal specialist teams.
### **Dedicated product teams** Teams are structured as pods. One pod works on one project at a time. Pods consist of 1-2 product designers led by a lead product designer. Product designers are expected to do good research, visual design and write microcopy. ### **Specialist horizontal teams** To take our work to the next level we have dedicated teams for graphics, content and research for support where needed. * **Graphics—**Responsible for conceptualising and executing visual and motion collateral for delivery pods as well as internal teams related to hiring and sales. * **Content—**Responsible for planning and executing content-led experiences as part of overall experience design. * **Research—**Responsible for gathering knowledge around user needs and goals across projects, as well as evaluating if designs meet user goals. *** ## 2️⃣ Design levels Levels 1 through 5 capture the increasing scope of responsibility of a designer. It applies to product designers, graphic designers, design researchers, and content designers alike:
LevelResponsibilitiesTime at level
1Craft and execution of tasks1 years
2Craft and execution of complete features2 years
3Anchor & uphold Obvious’s standard of quality and speed for a pod consisting of 2-3 people.3 years
4Delivery success for 3 pods. Works regularly with the CXOs and (CXO-1)s.4 years
5Setting the engagement up for success with the client C-suite and focusing on the smooth functioning and evolution of the practice across the entire design org.5 years +
*** ## 3️⃣ Design skills Product design has 7 skills for a designer to master - strategy, function, form, research, delivery, consulting, and positive surprises. The complexity of each skill goes up from level 1 to level 5:
{% hint style="info" %} Take a look at the complete framework [here](https://obvious.progressionapp.com/teams/design-1pkitcd6yagz/framework). {% endhint %} *** ## 4️⃣ Mastering a level For each skill at each level, a designer will go stages of mastery of the level. The stages of mastery use the metaphor of a video game: * `Working towards`: You’ve just started a new level of the game. You discover the challenges at this level and are working towards overcoming them. * `Meeting` : You’ve been playing at the level for a while. You’ve understood the challenges and have figured out how to do well enough to cross the level. However, you don’t cross the level just yet because you believe in mastery. Good isn’t good enough for you. * `Exceeding` : You solve every challenge at the current level with ease. You are also starting to pick up 1-2 parts of the next level too! *** ## 5️⃣ Moving to the next level To move from the current level to the next, you will need to: | Expectations | Skills | Timeframe | | ---------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------ | | Exceed expectations on | | Six months or more | | Meet expectations on | Remaining 2 skill areas | Six months or more | {% hint style="info" %} 💡 **Note**: If, due to project circumstances, an individual hasn’t had the opportunity to demonstrate capability in one skill area, but has exceeded and met all other promotion criteria as needed, they can be given the benefit of doubt and promoted. {% endhint %} *** --- # Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question. Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter: ``` GET https://university.obvious.in/hiring-and-growth/growth/design-growth-framework.md?ask= ``` The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language. The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation. Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.