The Brief: Afraid of losing your job? Become irreplaceable
Design Better20 Mar 2025

The Brief: Afraid of losing your job? Become irreplaceable

Becoming an irreplaceable designer By Aarron Walter The software industry is in a tough contraction phase. Teams are downsizing, and companies are prioritizing efficiency. It’s a stressful time for many. But it’s also an opportunity—to reflect on your work, your skills, and the unique value you bring as a designer. What could you do to make yourself indispensable to your team? In my career, I’ve worked with a number of truly irreplaceable designers, and they all share a common trait: they became more than just a designer. They bring additional skills in coding, research, or business that expand their value, make them better cross-team collaborators, and help them solve problems more effectively. Irreplaceable designers thrive in the blurry space between disciplines. They adapt their language and perspective as they work across teams, earning respect from their peers. These designers are rare—but they shouldn’t be. AI is making it easier for all of us to bridge the gap between disciplines. While there’s a lot of excitement about how AI can help designers improve their craft, the real opportunity lies in designers learning to build as well. Continue reading this issue of The Brief on Substack

Episoder(240)

Video Rewind: Cassie McDaniel: How Medium eliminated its PM function and started moving faster

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Aaron Draplin: Field Notes co-founder on what skate culture taught him about design

Aaron Draplin: Field Notes co-founder on what skate culture taught him about design

A larger than life figure in the creative world, Aaron Draplin has been designing everything from logos to posters since 1995. Few designers are as prolific as Aaron. He’s the founder of Draplin Desig...

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Jessica Hische and Chris Shiflett: Designing business tools that support how creatives actually work

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Phil Gilbert: Making a 114-year-old, 400,000 person company care about design

Phil Gilbert: Making a 114-year-old, 400,000 person company care about design

Changing the culture of a 400,000-person company isn’t just hard—it’s the kind of transformation most leaders wouldn’t even attempt. But when Phil Gilbert joined IBM as General Manager of Design in 20...

25 Nov 202544min

Cecilia Brenner: Moving beyond design theater to measurable impact

Cecilia Brenner: Moving beyond design theater to measurable impact

We’ve talked to many design leaders who have burned out after a decade or more of corporate work. But after 17 years at Philips designing health innovations, Cecilia Brenner wasn’t burnt out…she loved...

18 Nov 202522min

Video Rewind: Jordan Mechner: Pioneering game designer on creating Prince of Persia, Karateka, and a new graphic novel memoir

Video Rewind: Jordan Mechner: Pioneering game designer on creating Prince of Persia, Karateka, and a new graphic novel memoir

This is a preview of a premium episode. You can find a video version of the full episode on our YouTube channel: ⁠https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3dvoGPZEY1g⁠ We’ve been on the road this week, record...

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Ben Swire: Author of "Safe Danger" on the hidden reason team building efforts fail

Ben Swire: Author of "Safe Danger" on the hidden reason team building efforts fail

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