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I have a small team (just me and a designer), where I am the programmer and project manager, and the designer just does what I need him to do.

This is my second time working in this "setup", and I just realized that I lack something very essential.

Due to the fact that the designers I worked with are my friends, we don't have any contracts or legal stuff. The workflow is in a very Adhoc manner. We meet once per a few weeks, and exchange notes, and maybe send e-mails back an forth. Problem is, I sometimes come to the meeting expecting something that I told him to do, but he totally skipped it. It could be that he forgot, or he thought that it wasn't important and his idea was better.

Now, I need a good way to collaborate with the designer. I would really like to know if there are any native applications (I don't want websites) that can help us work better together. I had my eyes on Evernote, but I think it is a personal application. I would like something close to Evernote, but more public and can be used to share TODO lists easily and track progress as the TODOs are completed. An embedded chatting system and notifications would be very awesome, too.

In terms of websites, I've tried teamlabs.com before, and it wasn't bad. I will use it if I couldn't find any native application.

Final Note: I am a Mac user, and he uses Windows. The app should at least run on Win and Mac.

EDIT: I have been using reminders for iOS lately, and the idea of it working offline, and then syncing my reminders as soon as I am online is very convenient, and I love it. For this reason, I might actually ditch teamlabs.com, and use the spreadsheet/dropbox idea Jeff O suggested (if I couldn't find a native app).

I am either totally misunderstood or misunderstanding.

jmort253 said:

If your friends view this relationship differently than you do, then Evernote or any other tool really isn't going to matter. In short, no application is really going to solve this problem.

I think you guys are making lots of assumptions on my workflow. To put it bluntly, the app WILL DEFINITELY solve my problem. I am building a commercial app, and I am paying the designer a non-trivial amount of money (for a project by two people, at least), but we trust each other because we have lots of plans for the future. So, I just need to fix these workflow problems.

If you are not convinced, you might want to read on.

The thing that is happening now is, he might forget some points that we made. I think we at least agree that using the app as reference will solve that problem. The other thing, I might want (for example) Tabbar application because I believe this is the best UX. The designer might decide to go with something else, and continue working on his idea for a week or so, and when we finally meet, I tell him that the tabbar is a must, and he has to rework lots of stuff. Now, if the tab bar requirement was in some sort of todo list, he could just strike it out, and I can immediately give him feedback that this requirement is a must. That's how things are going on here.

Even though one might argue that designers are the UX experts, well, not in my situation. Designers I worked with so far are too much concerned with the overall look of the app, and tend to miss small things related to UX in favor of a better look. Especially the current app that I am working on, which is used by young and old people alike.

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How does this solve, "... he thought that it wasn't important and his idea was better." problem? That seems like more of a problem. The other could be solved with a spreadsheet shared on dropbox or google docs for only two people. – JeffO Nov 5 '12 at 8:42
@JeffO To answer your first question, in a "real-time" todo, I can see that he stroke out my todo, and added his own. Also, I might classify the todo list into important and normal priorities. To answer the second question, for convenience. A nice UI which will tempt the team member to use the software is IMHO important. And also having notifications and chat in an isolated app makes us focus on the project (Sorry if I didn't convey my thoughts very well). – Mazyod Nov 5 '12 at 8:49
One of the makers of this site has created Trello. You'll like the UI and changes appear in real-time. Phone apps available. – JeffO Nov 5 '12 at 9:42
@JeffO omg, that looks really awesome! Even for a website, it really gives a native app feel. I'll check it out, thanks. – Mazyod Nov 5 '12 at 9:58
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@pdr - Mazyod was right. It's not a programming problem. It's a general work issue. The solution is to get a contract and a mechanism for assigning tasks. – ChrisF Nov 5 '12 at 15:46
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closed as not constructive by pdr, Jim♦, Rarity Nov 5 '12 at 19:17

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1 Answer

up vote 2 down vote

Problem is, I sometimes come to the meeting expecting something that I told him to do, but he totally skipped it.

You mentioned that you were collaborating with a designer, yet this one sentence makes me question whether or not you're really collaborating. Regardless of whether or not you're friends, consider that even in a professional environment, no designer (or developer) is going to accept being told what to do.

Designers have a lot in common with developers, although neither side likes to admit it. Both are professionals, and both roles involve lots of freedom, creativity, and autonomy in order to thrive and be able to do a good job. So if there's something that one of you disagrees on, you may need to simply talk it out until you both come to an agreement.

Honestly, even if you hired a designer, you're the developer. You're hiring a designer precisely fill a gap in your own professional expertise.

If your friends view this relationship differently than you do, then Evernote or any other tool really isn't going to matter. In short, no application is really going to solve this problem.

You didn't mention what you're doing, whether or not this is for profit or just a side project you're collaborating on. If you're starting a business, then you need to get a contract. The goal of a contract isn't to necessarily keep you from being taken advantage of, although it can definitely do that. Instead, a contract is a written agreement between you and another party that can actually be referred to, like a map, when either of you come to a point where there might be a disagreement. Sometimes, a contract can prevent issues from escalating, since it outlines what each party agrees to.

For instance, maybe your contract states that you have final say in the project because you contributed 100% of the startup costs.

If this is just something you're doing together for fun, then an ad-hoc written agreement can still be helpful. This doesn't have to be notarized or written by an attorney or anything, but sometimes it's easier to preemptively strike and agree on what you'll do under certain circumstances, while you both are calm, rather than waiting until your professional ideals are challenged.

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"No designer (or developer) is going to accept being told what to do" - They have to. When I need the button sizes and other UI elements to be in accordance to Apple's HIG (standard), he has to stick to it. I know designers need freedom in choosing colors, shapes and that sort of stuff. But ultimately, when it comes to UX, I believe the developer has the upper hand. Even though I confirmed my designer read Apple's standards, he misses things from time to time. I need to enforce these things. – Mazyod Nov 5 '12 at 9:37
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Well, with that argument, one could say that developers have professional standards to abide by as well. What's preventing some designer from hiring you and then telling you how to write good, clean SQL code? ;) Keep in mind no one is saying there aren't going to be standards, but they're not designed to beat people over the head with them. If a designer doesn't like Apple's style, then he/she should find a job where he/she will fit in. In short, maybe your friend isn't the designer for your product if you're having such harsh professional differences... – jmort253♦ Nov 5 '12 at 9:49
Oh, I see where you are headed... You consider the UX as the designers job? I totally agree! However!! We are both "very" young and not that experienced! So, we are learning from each other.. That's why I mentioned we are friends, we are not rigid and will cope with each other till we work coherently. :) – Mazyod Nov 5 '12 at 9:56
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Then it sounds like some kind of "unofficial" written agreement may be helpful. These are both fields where people will literally fight to the death for their beliefs, figuratively speaking. ;). So if you both can come to an agreement on how to resolve disputes, it will be very helpful to know both what each person's sphere of control is as well as sphere of influence, where influence means you can discuss and debate, but the ultimate decision belongs to who has control of that aspect. Hope this helps! – jmort253♦ Nov 5 '12 at 9:59
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@Chad, I agree with you 100%; it's the developers job to understand the standards. However, I'm not quite convinced it's the designers job to tell said developer how to write good, clean SQL code. I don't think most designers went to school for that. You must work with some really talented designers since that happens all the time. Do any of them ever tell you how to write your SQL? That would be funny. – jmort253♦ Nov 6 '12 at 9:31
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