The impact of design: How design influences outcomes

We like to think that technology can make the world a better place, but we (conveniently) forget how it can make it worse. Primum non nocere (first do no harm) is the first concept taught in medical school, serving as a reminder of the possible harm that any intervention might do. Cynthia Savard Saucier challenges the tech industry to come up with its own fundamental principle.

Engineers are responsible for the code, and designers are responsible for the user, right? Well, contrary to popular belief, designers and developers have very similar jobs: both are responsible for solving problems for their users. Consequently, the existence of a user experience designer on a team doesn’t mean that developers are unaccountable for the users’ well being. Developers make design decisions daily that impact users in significant ways that are not always obvious. For example, algorithms define what and when we see things, security considerations create trust and prevent loss, performance and accessibility defines who gets to use a product, and clear instructions and error handling can save lives. We like to think that technology can make the world a better place, but we (conveniently) forget how it can make it worse—poorly designed products can anger, sadden, exclude, and even kill people who use them. Primum non nocere (first do no harm) is the first concept taught in medical school, serving as a reminder of the possible harm that any intervention might do. Cynthia Savard Saucier challenges the tech industry to come up with its own fundamental principle.