Shifting team culture at Config 2021 | Figma Blog

The Config 2021 sessions argued that inclusive, collaborative design depends on building cultures of transparency, trust, and shared participation. Speakers emphasized two complementary practices: acknowledging people’s real emotions and circumstances, and creating accessible spaces where newcomers and diverse perspectives can contribute. The overall conclusion was that teams cannot create inclusive experiences alone; they need intentional routines, open resources, and community support.

Embracing Vulnerability

• Figma researcher Nannearl Brown described how openness about personal struggles can create a more supportive team culture.
• Team members were encouraged to share:
  • How they were feeling
  • What support they needed
  • What they were focusing on during the day
• Daily Slack stand-ups included non-work activities—such as exercise, hobbies, or family time—to encourage work-life balance and help teammates understand one another.
• Support requires more than listening; teammates should make room for each other’s emotions, experiences, and difficult moments.
• The central message was that people do not need to appear fine all the time.

Creating Inclusive Spaces

• Bitcoin designers Johns Beharry and Christoph Ono noticed that Bitcoin design resources often excluded people without technical expertise or geographic access.
• They responded by building shared spaces where experienced designers could support newcomers, including:
  • A Slack community
  • GitHub resources
  • The Bitcoin Design resource hub
  • Weekly community calls
  • The open-source Bitcoin Design Guide
• The resources were designed to work across cultures, regions, languages, and levels of technical knowledge.
• Their goal was to create a friendly environment that encouraged broader participation and more diverse perspectives.
• They argued that inclusive and accessible design requires collaboration with people who bring different experiences.

Building Collaborative Culture

• Design is inherently collaborative and benefits from varied experiences and perspectives.
• Inclusive culture helps more team members and collaborators participate in the design process.
• Trust and transparency are developed through both interpersonal habits—such as honest check-ins—and structural tools that make knowledge widely accessible.

Teams seeking a more inclusive culture should normalize vulnerability, establish supportive communication routines, and create shared resources that invite participation from people with different backgrounds and levels of expertise.