Redefining the Role of Designers: From Solution Creators to Facilitators

What if instead of racing to solve problems, you paused to map the entire system first? In this episode, Hannah sits down with Sheryl Cababa—author of Closing the Loop: Systems Thinking for Designers and founder of Optimistic Design—to talk about what it really means to design for complexity. From AI adoption to organizational policy changes, Sheryl brings a systems lens to the decisions leaders make (often too hastily) in fast-moving environments.

They explore how design leaders can avoid short-sighted thinking, better understand stakeholder dynamics, and use accessible tools to facilitate organizational change that actually sticks. Whether you're planning your back-to-office strategy or rethinking your product's impact, this conversation will leave you re-evaluating how your decisions ripple through the system.

Resources from this episode:

• Subscribe to The Product Manager newsletter
• Connect with Sheryl on LinkedIn
• Sheryl’s book — Closing the Loop: Systems Thinking for Designers
• Check out Optimistic Design