The Busy Creator Podcast, episode 43 with Designer & Creative Director Bob Calvano

Bob Calvano (@bobcalvano) runs the digital media & design studio for A+E Networks, and oversees the development of mobile apps, websites, interfaces, and a variety of other design elements for A+E’s brands.

This conversation discusses his origins in digital and traditional design work, how he manages a diverse team of designers and programmers, and the challenges of working in the always-changing business of television and entertainment.

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Show Notes & Links

• TV is the first screen; computers are the second screen; mobile is the third screen
• Bob describes himself thoroughly as a husband, father, son, brother, drummer, speaker, friend, designer … at different times
• “Proudly hyphenated”
• A+E, Lifetime, History, FYI — television networks under the A+E umbrella
• Basement storage racks
• Bob started as a fine artist & illustrator, later worked as an in-house designer for Panasonic
• An early business found Bob and his partner painting & airbrushing motorcycles, boats, etc.
• Oxygen Network
• R/GA, digital agency
• To move from creative agencies like media to less-creative agencies like pharma, banking, etc.
• The Narcissism of Minor Differences
• Bob’s team focuses on “digital execution” of many different projects
• “mobile-first” mentality for the websites
• “watch” apps for Android and iOS (for watching, not timepieces)
• XBOX 360
• Roku
• AppleTV
• Amazon Fire TV
• “media agnostic” — problem-solving is more important than a particular execution
• “integrated branding” or “360 campaigns”, putting all the pieces together
• Erica Heinz, previous guest on The Busy Creator Podcast (episode 10)
• A+E’s studio is packed with “Product Designers”
• “It’s a designer-slash-developer world.” ← Click to Tweet
• Waterfall method, sort of outdated but still in use in many agencies/teams
• “A show idea could come from anywhere.” ← Click to Tweet
• Duck Dynasty, not-so-accidental smash hit
• Netflix Original Programming
• Amazon Original Programming
• Vimeo Original Programming
• A+E Studios, upcoming original content producers
• Forthcoming Apple Watch
• Responsive design vs. breakpoints
• Microsoft changes rendering engine for Outlook
• Vikings, on The History Channel
• The History Channel app for iOS
• No traffic department
• We did an entire episode about Project Management Application & Collaboration Software
• Vessel
• “T-Shaped People“, originally an IDEO term
  
  

  T-Shaped skillset

• “The Static Photoshop Comp is slowly becoming extinct.” ← Click to Tweet
• “Photoshop is a “mullet-shaped” tool; 90% of the users only use 10% of the features.” ← Click to Tweet
• Vijay Mathews was a previous guest on The Busy Creator Podcast (episode 32)
• Designers should have a background in Calculus (jeez, what a cranky bastard)
• Google Ventures design sprints
  
• Lifetime app for iOS
• Oxygen app for iOS
• A&E app for iOS
• All the networks have social media followings (too many to list, in fact)

Tools

• Blank paper (for sketching during conversations)
• “watch” apps
• History Here app for iOS
• Jira by Atlassian
• Freedcamp (a free version of Basecamp)
• Trello
• Sketch

Techniques

• Use Agile framework for your design+development projects
• Use Scrum framework to keep teams together
• Kanban board to manage project stages
• Mine your own data
• Set up “teams of three”, where Art Directors work closely with a UX/UI designer and a developer
• Turn your Project Managers into Scrum Masters on a Product Team (same thing but on a different model)
• Use an all-digital workflow
• Hire T-Shaped People and encourage them to grow
• Present clickable prototypes rather than flat comps — it yields better results, even if it takes slightly longer
• Use transit time to prepare for, and recover from, the working day. Meditate or at least mentally plan.

Habits

• Sketch during conversations; think out loud
• Capture and measure all possible statistics; use data & metrics to inform decisions
• Don’t base everything off data & metrics; trust your gut as designers
• Keep your finger on the pulse of design & digital media by going to conferences, taking classes, subscribing to magazines, take field trips
• Wake up at 5:45
• Eliminate Gluten & Dairy
• Take the stairs! If you’re a commuter, they’re always right there.
• On weekends, sleep as late as kids & dogs will allow

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