{"id":14921,"date":"2025-10-02T13:29:26","date_gmt":"2025-10-02T06:29:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cstc.vn\/blogtsk\/conde-nasts-nicola-ryan-on-scaling-design-with-soul\/"},"modified":"2025-10-02T13:29:26","modified_gmt":"2025-10-02T06:29:26","slug":"conde-nasts-nicola-ryan-on-scaling-design-with-soul","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cstc.vn\/blogtsk\/conde-nasts-nicola-ryan-on-scaling-design-with-soul\/","title":{"rendered":"Cond\u00e9 Nast\u2019s Nicola Ryan on scaling design with soul"},"content":{"rendered":"

In August, GQ<\/em> magazine\u2019s cover story was an interview with Travis Kelce, the American football player (and three-time Superbowl winner) now perhaps better-known as Taylor Swift\u2019s fianc\u00e9.<\/p>\n

On stage at Frontify\u2019s Paradigms conference, Nicola Ryan, VP of global design at GQ\u2019s<\/em> parent company, Cond\u00e9 Nast, showed the exuberant print lay-outs.<\/p>\n

The story, which was shot by Ryan McGinley, seemed to burst out of the pages with energy \u2013 a fitting reflection of both Kelce\u2019s personality, and his current standing in the cultural zeitgeist.<\/p>\n

Then Ryan showed the same story in its digital form, which was very neat.<\/p>\n

Ryan used it to pose the question \u2013 how do we scale that human element from print to digital? Or to paraphrase the title of her talk, how do we design for scale without losing soul?<\/p>\n

To some extent, that is a question that has threaded through Ryan\u2019s career.<\/p>\n

GQ\u2019s Travis Kelce cover story<\/p>\n

After graduating from University Arts London in 2010, she joined Angus Hyland\u2019s team at Pentagram, where she worked with clients like Cass Art, Penguin and the Qatar National Museum.<\/p>\n

After a stint at Karmarama, she moved into the media, joining The Times<\/em> as head of digital design in 2013. She went onto The Telegraph<\/em>, where she became creative director, before joining Cond\u00e9 Nast in 2021.<\/p>\n

As one of the biggest media organisations in the UK, The Telegraph<\/em> is not an easy gig. But the leap to her new employer was, Ryan admits, \u201cmassive.\u201d<\/p>\n

Now, with her team of around 60 product designers, user researchers and content designers, she oversees digital experiences for 22 titles across the Cond\u00e9 Nast portfolio. These include some of the best-known, and most-loved, publications around, including Vogue<\/em>, The New Yorker<\/em>, Wired<\/em> and Vanity Fair<\/em>.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a really steep learning curve,\u201d Ryan says. \u201cAt a smaller, more contained company like The Telegraph<\/em>, you can both look at the bigger picture with the system, and you can look at all of the individual projects.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut when you go to something at the scale of Cond\u00e9 Nast, you can\u2019t possibly do all of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

A selection of Cond\u00e9 Nast sites on mobile<\/p>\n

In a role like this, design systems are crucial. But, Ryan says, they can\u2019t be her only focus. \u201cIf you only look at the system, you get too abstract, and too removed from what people care about.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Ryan, the key balance is between systems and soul, consistency and emotional resonance. And it\u2019s important to understand how these two things co-exist.<\/p>\n

\u201cSystems have the power to elevate soul, or to flatten it,\u201d she explains. \u201cWe should audit systems for character, as well as consistency. Where is soul showing up? And where is it being squeezed out?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ultimately though, bringing soul into design work comes down to culture \u2013 what leaders encourage, expect, and make room for.<\/p>\n

\u201cSoul isn\u2019t a feature you ship, it\u2019s a position you hold,\u201d Ryan says. \u201cYou don\u2019t scale soul by making a smarter system \u2013 you scale soul by making people braver.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSoul isn\u2019t a feature you ship, it\u2019s a position you hold.\u201d<\/p>\n

In practical terms, that means creating a design culture that \u201cfosters confidence to have an opinion, and processes that give time to critique.\u201d<\/p>\n

As everyone in the industry knows, the pressures on designers are intensifying.<\/p>\n

The rise of AI, the squeezing of budgets, and the heightening of demands and expectations threaten to create a perfect storm.<\/p>\n

In this turbulent context, Ryan believes, smart companies will make \u201cquality a strategic priority.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAI can already create a lot of things that are \u2018good enough\u2019,\u201d she says. \u201cAnd, particularly in the media industry, quality, personality and perspective are what\u2019s going to differentiate us.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it\u2019s about finding the moment, and finding the narrative that ultimately hitches on to what the business is trying to do, and how you can help that through design.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nicola Ryan on stage at Paradigms, showing a typical leader\u2019s calendar<\/p>\n

A big part of her job is to make sure design is something that senior leadership cares about. Some of that is about using the right language \u2013 talking in business terms rather than leading with \u201cthe geeky aspects of typography.\u201d<\/p>\n

But another part is about finding ways to prove that quality and soul impact the business in positive ways.<\/p>\n

In the media, AI is having a direct impact by reducing search traffic to websites that used to benefit from huge audiences coming via Google.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think there\u2019s a recognition across the publishing industry that the future is in smaller but more loyal audiences,\u201d Ryan says. \u201cAnd therefore quality really matters, because you want people to keep coming back \u2013 loyal people who have an affinity to your brand.\u201d<\/p>\n

But proving the impact of that quality play, Ryan admits, is not always straightforward. Businesses have a wealth of data to analyse, but this tends to skew to short-term metrics.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s harder to do with soul,\u201d she says. \u201cWe need to look at the longer view, especially around engagement and loyalty metrics like time spent, scroll depth and bounce rate. You can\u2019t pin those things fully on quality, but if you look at them over time, you can start to show people a pattern.\u201d<\/p>\n

The New Yorker homepage<\/p>\n

With design having to prove its worth perhaps more than ever, the challenges facing design leaders are multiplied as well.<\/p>\n

Ryan says she never had any formal leadership training \u2013 rather she was \u201cplunged in at the deep end\u201d earlier in her career, and expected to learn on the job.<\/p>\n

\u201cI came into the industry at an opportune moment, when digital was this new shiny thing and companies were giving young people, with relatively little experience, a ridiculous amount of responsibility,\u201d she laughs.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd so I ended up learning a lot very quickly. I had some great bosses who were also great mentors. But mainly you make mistakes, you figure it out, and you just keep getting better. I think, by and large, that\u2019s the best way to do it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ryan believes good design leaders are able to balance two characteristics that may seem contradictory.<\/p>\n

\u201cOn the one hand, I am very democratic,\u201d she says. \u201cI really like listening to what everyone has to say, because the things that we work on are so complicated. If you don\u2019t listen to people who have a lot of knowledge, it\u2019s going to catch you out later.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd so I like to gather a lot of opinions and ideas and understanding. But on the other hand, I also think you have to lead with a perspective, because you can\u2019t design by committee.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou have to listen, and then you have to make a decision, and commit to that with clarity, and intent, and conviction.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nicola Ryan on stage at Paradigms, showing some of the tensions leaders face<\/p>\n

The reality of design leadership, she says, is that there are tensions \u2013 between freedom and control, for example, or global and local. A good leader recognises these competing forces, and works within them.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere will always be these tensions, and you can\u2019t possibly reconcile them,\u201d Ryan explains.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut you have to very intentionally know where you want to sit on one of those tensions, and keep tweaking so you don\u2019t go too far in one direction, or the other. The goal is to keep everything afloat.\u201d<\/p>\n

For design leaders and their teams, this balancing act can seem precarious.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s hard isn\u2019t it? We can\u2019t just focus on one thing \u2013 we have to be expanding our skillsets and figuring out how to use AI. We have to up our game, I think, as designers.\u201d<\/p>\n

But is she optimistic that design can come through as a creative and commercial driving force?<\/p>\n

\u201cI would like to be optimistic,\u201d she says. \u201cI think you have to be, as a leader.\u201d<\/p>\n

She pauses, and then doubles down.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, I am optimistic. There will be companies that are happy with \u2018good enough\u2019 design, who will just spit this stuff out. But I do think design is a differentiator, and the companies that see that will succeed and go further.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere will be an interesting few years, where we see how this plays out. It\u2019s also a really interesting time to be a designer,\u201d she says. \u201cBut you have to be up for change, to try new things, and new ideas.\u201d<\/p>\n

\nWhat to read next: <\/strong>\u201cIt was a bit nuts\u201d \u2013 Teo Connor on designing the new Airbnb app<\/a> | Neighbourhood app Nextdoor relaunches with new brand and product design<\/a> | Ben Terrett on his CBE, AI, and why designers need rigour<\/a> | \u201cVibe coding is exciting but designers must tread carefully\u201d<\/a>\n<\/div>\n

Source<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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