Communicating the power of design on a multidisciplinary team
How designing alongside a diverse team on a special project in IBM Security helped our team understand the power of design in driving outcomes
Last year, my manager approached me with an offer I couldn’t refuse — to work on a top-secret identity project. I had been doing a lot of UI work for Security software since joining IBM but with my previous background in branding design, I was intrigued by the offer to flex those muscles again.
X-Force Command, the threat intelligence branch of IBM Security, was building a mobile operations center inside a 40-foot truck. Known as the Cyber Tactical Operations Center (C-TOC), it would travel across Europe delivering our services to clients. Enthralled as I was to be part of this special project, my immediate reaction was that such an ambitious endeavor would never be completed, let alone released. Less than a year later I ate my own words as we launched at the IBM Security Summit in New York.
What is the C-TOC?
Cyber attacks are far from fiction in today’s world, especially for larger enterprises. A Security Operations Center (SOC) is a space to deal with real security issues as they arise, spanning across technical and organizational divides. The military and police use “mobile” operations centers as command posts to maintain lines of communication. The C-TOC is a hybrid solution that can travel directly to clients and simulate what a real cyber attack looks and feels like. The truck itself expands to seat 20 people, allowing the team of experts to run a 3 to 5 hour breach experience. The goal is to help clients build resiliency and muscle memory against potential threats. Like a fire drill, the participants need to be able to believe that the attack is really happening so it’s important that the space be as immersive as possible. The C-TOC also doubles as a 40-foot billboard for IBM Security, while it’s driving across the continent, so we needed our design solution to attract attention as well as keep our audience engaged.
Branding the experience
The context of this project is of utmost importance in shattering stereotypes, considering that the security industry is usually saturated with fear-based imagery of faceless men in hoodies. What IBM Security offers is “light in the darkness;” a way to make people feel like they are in control instead of just feeling anxious. For this reason, light was a very important factor in our design solution. From the graphics on the outside of the truck to the interior design and the digital experience for the simulation, we use a blue and purple light, or “aurora” which signifies the presence of security. The “X” mark embodies the theme. Literally reflecting light, it glows and moves in the darkness. Inside the space, we use the light to guide the experience and control the atmosphere. This solution allows users to be fearless and open to exploring the challenges we give them.
Bringing design to a new team
One of the biggest responsibilities in delivering such a huge project like this, for me, was bringing design to a new team. I had the privilege of working with people who are very smart, extremely technical and very good at delivering solutions at speed. It’s difficult not to feel like a blocker when you need to keep stopping the team to explain why all of these seemingly small design choices are so important. The colors, the texture of the building materials, the quality of the fabric, the amount of logos, the size of the logos — translating what all of these elements are visually communicating to a user is a challenge. How do all the visual elements work together to express the same brand values in different ways? How do we maintain the vibrancy and integrity of the brand across digital and physical mediums? How do all these individual pieces weave together to craft the authenticity of the experience? It’s not about aesthetics, or whether people “like” it, it’s about expressing the credibility of the brand. It’s about creating an environment that makes the user feel safe and empowered, and assuring the user that they can have confidence in us as the experts.
Restless Reinvention
What I learned, or at least validated, was that—as designer — we need to manage our expectations. It became more and more important for me to focus on building long-term relationships than on creating a perfect solution the first time. This is reflective of design thinking in practice; to iterate and reinvent restlessly, always improving upon the last prototype. There were many things I had to let go of, but after some time we have been able to go back and start optimizing the space. Being open to other people’s expertise and life experience challenged me to consider my choices more deeply.
Communicating the value of design
Most of the skill development for me was in communication. Breaking down why a design decision matters, with real case studies outlining where it has worked and not worked, was a daily occurrence. When we intentionally make design decisions with real data from use cases, the aesthetics are no longer subjective. For example, if we know the approximate distance at which our audience will read our logo, we can adjust its size for legibility instead of just “making it bigger.”
Structure is key
Working across such a wide variety of departments, vendors and partners— all of whom have their own processes—project management is essential. Organization and structure were things that had always been provided for me up until that point, I see now that I took them for granted. Suddenly I was the design lead, delivering a project completely unlike anything I, or anyone else, had delivered before. Deadlines kept shifting, samples arrived late, and after planning a direction for weeks we frequently had to pivot at the last minute. I didn’t have time to organize everyone and either did anyone else, we were all so busy trying to complete our own tasks. If I was starting the project again, I would push harder for a design project manager and onboard everyone to agile processes. Regular stand-ups and acceptance criteria are key in aligning the team so that everyone knows what is expected and when. We now have a Trello board shared across our team and business partners, with two project managers to help align everyone and drive outcomes.
To conclude…
Working together — with exemplary teammates who bring such diverse skills and background — towards the common goal of creating a space to explore a security threat, is what allowed us to deliver this first-of-its-kind experience. As a mid-career designer, it was amazing to be able to work with very senior, technical people and have an equal seat at the table. Overall, it made me feel a lot more confident about the future of design at IBM.
To learn more about X-Force Command, check out our website here. And to learn more about Design at IBM, go here.
Thanks to all who worked on this project, including the X-Force Command team (particularly Caleb Barlow, Allison Ritter and Amy Gelpey), our partners at the Brewco Marketing Group, Featherlite Trailers and Diversified (particularly Andrea Phelps), my design colleagues (particularly Haidy Francis, Peter Garvin and Mike Abbink), and many more.
A final thank you to my editor Allison Biesboer, Content Designer & Strategist on the Designer Practices & Community team, for helping me to tell my story.
About me
A graphic designer by trade, I joined IBM Security after studying UX. 3 years later, I’ve had the opportunity to work across brand and product design. For the last year I’ve been working with X-Force Command, developing their brand through physical and digital mediums.
In The Wild is a monthly series featuring a candid career stories from a designer at IBM. Story snapshots reveal truths about career successes, failures, and lessons learned through designers’ own voice. Stay tuned for the next story, which will be linked here.
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The above story is personal and does not necessarily represent IBM’s positions, strategies, or opinions.
