Talking about team growth is one thing; delivering on that promise is another. So, what’s the best way to show our team that we are committed to their professional development?
It’s 100% through actions. That’s why last month, we sent our design team overseas to Config 2024 in San Francisco, an amazing Figma event for design professionals. Encouraging our team to attend conferences is one of the best investments we can make for both our team and our company.
After all, what’s better than gaining new knowledge and connecting with fellow design enthusiasts outside the office walls in a foreign country?
This blog post highlights our investment in opportunities like conferences for our team and explains how and why encouraging them to attend events like Config 2024 demonstrates our commitment to ongoing learning and professional growth – key to enhancing our design and development processes.
Building a Learning-Driven Culture for Our Team
According to a recent survey, 80 % of workers find that learning adds significant purpose to their work (source: Deel).
Recognizing that purpose drives performance, we invest in our team’s growth by providing monthly budgets for skill development and access to essential resources. We give each team member the freedom to choose the licenses, certifications, or training that they believe will be most beneficial for their role.
By aligning these investments with our team’s personal and career goals and allowing them to choose the development opportunities that best fit their job, we create a deeper sense of purpose and enhance their engagement in their work.
Supporting Team and Individual Professional Growth Through Conferences
We specifically encourage choosing and attending industry-specific conferences. Since Figma is our go-to platform for UI/UX design, sending our design team to their conference made perfect sense. And each designer had the opportunity to select sessions tailored to their interests and professional needs, ensuring they gained the most relevant and beneficial insights.
Overall, the conference was a great chance to expand their knowledge, network with industry leaders and fellow designers, and bring back fresh ideas to improve our design workflows and projects.
However, we believe that learning shouldn’t be a dull obligation or just about acquiring new knowledge. Instead, it should be an opportunity for both professional and personal growth.
At Config 2024, our team not only explored a new city and experienced different cultures but also connected with colleagues outside the usual work setting and stepped out of their comfort zones.
This kind of opportunity, which brings the whole design team closer together, reflects one of our core values: the importance of close, collaborative relationships within our company.
"Config 2024 was awesome! Not only did I get to visit San Francisco for the first time, but I also learned so much about the latest trends and best practices, met some amazing people, and came back with tons of new ideas. I can't wait to put this new knowledge into practice!" — Lara
Why Professional Development Matters to Us?
1 Empowering and Engaging Employees
Investing in our team's growth firsthand shows we believe in their potential and are committed to their success.
This boosts morale and creates a positive atmosphere where everyone feels valued and supported. And by encouraging them to take charge of their careers and equip them with more skills and knowledge, their work becomes more meaningful. This helps our team stay engaged, feel connected to our company's mission, and fosters loyalty and teamwork – improving collaboration and boosting productivity.
But also the real impact that makes our employees empowering and engaging employees becomes clear when our team steps out of the office for conferences – where, in addition to learning, we are able to create a sense of belonging and unity among all of us, enhancing both personal and professional connections.
2 Better Team Collaboration Through New Ideas and Knowledge Sharing
UI/UX design often presents its own set of challenges, demanding continual innovation and new approaches. But when the design team came back from the conference, they brought back fresh energy, motivation, and creativity, along with exciting new ideas for projects.
As the saying goes, "Two heads are better than one," and this is where knowledge sharing comes in.
To maximize the impact of their conference experience, the team shared their key takeaways and new strategies in a meeting with a presentation, ensuring that everyone benefits from their insights and ideas.
By bringing in new ideas and sharing knowledge, they were able to refresh our design workflow and also enhanced collaboration between designers and developers – creating a culture of openness and respect, encouraging proactive communication, and supporting diverse viewpoints.
Teamwork like this strengthens our team's bond in working towards shared goals and supporting our company's mission.
3 Recognizing Team Members' Contribution Through Advocacy
Conferences like Config 2024 offer our team a valuable opportunity to connect directly with industry leaders and fellow designers. At the event, our team had the chance to hear from over 75 speakers from around the world, including experts from top companies like Zalando, GitHub, Adobe, Figma, Discord, Apple, and many more – gaining insights from the best in the field.
When our team engaged with attendees, sponsors, and speakers, they not only represented our company but also became proud advocates for our company's mission and vision. By assigning advocacy responsibilities to our designers, we show our trust in their judgment and skills, motivating them to take full ownership of their roles. And this trust in their ability to advocate for us is also our way of appreciating their role and contributions to the company.
And networking at these events is really valuable – it helps us expand our professional network and build relationships that can lead to collaborations, partnerships, and new business opportunities.
4 Equipping Our Team with Top-tier UI/UX development opportunities and Maintaining Competitiveness
UI/UX design is a dynamic field where new technologies, tools, and methodologies emerge regularly. To remain competitive, adaptation is the key.
Our designers have quite a responsibility: they need to create designs that are not only aesthetically pleasing but also functional and buildable. They play a key role in ensuring that their designs work well in real-world applications.
With opportunities for skill improvement, we aim to enhance each individual's qualifications, helping them gain specialized knowledge and master new techniques. As they develop their skills, our goal is for them to feel more capable and accomplished because we know that this personal growth boosts their confidence and motivates them to take on challenging tasks and responsibilities.
Through this cycle of learning and achievement, we strive for increased job satisfaction and fulfillment.
Therefore, we prioritize opportunities such as conferences for our team to continually update their skills and knowledge, staying ahead of the curve in UI/UX design and implementing the most effective and efficient solutions in our app development. This ensures that our apps are not only visually appealing but also highly functional, user-centric, and top-tier in performance and usability.
Check out 4 new releases from Config 2024 that we are adopting.
Plus, learning new skills at conferences helps them build a stronger professional identity. This makes them feel more connected to their field and more dedicated to their career.
A culture of learning requires mutual engagement
It demands active participation and dedication from both our team and our leadership to pursue shared goals, uphold a unified mission and vision, and create a fulfilling workplace for all.
And when there is collective commitment to learning and growth, we see the best outcomes in our app development.
Up next, our developers have chosen to attend the FlutterFlow Conference in New York, because there is no better way to gain new tech knowledge while being in one of the fastest-growing and most technologically advanced cities!
