The 'Software as a Medium' Model
by Bob Baxley • Designer, Executive, Advisor at Formerly Apple, Pinterest, Yahoo, ThoughtSpot
Design leader who played a pivotal role in the Apple Online Store, App Store, Pinterest, and Yahoo Answers. Known for applying 'Silicon Valley' design thinking to enterprise software and advocating for design as a moral obligation.
🎙️ Episode Context
Bob Baxley discusses the evolution of design, arguing that software is a powerful medium akin to film or music that carries a moral obligation to respect user emotion. He challenges standard startup wisdom by advocating for design to report to engineering, delaying high-fidelity prototyping to avoid the 'Primal Mark' bias, and replacing generic design principles with opinionated 'Tenets' that drive hard decision-making.
Problem It Solves
Transforms transactional, frustrating products into emotionally resonant experiences by shifting the maker's mindset from 'utility' to 'human connection'.
Framework Overview
A mental model that redefines software not as a utility, but as a media format (like film or music) capable of eliciting emotion. This model posits that builders have a moral obligation to manage the emotional energy users expend while interacting with the product.
🔺 Priority Pyramid
When to Use
When setting product vision or when a team becomes too metric-obsessed and loses sight of the human user experience.
Common Mistakes
Thinking of software as just a tool (like a hammer) rather than a medium (like a movie) that creates an emotional state.
Real World Example
The Apollo Program (Moon Landing) vs. standard aviation; looking at software through the lens of 'Awe and Wonder' rather than just 'Task Completion'.
Design is trying to imagine the future you want to live in and then take the steps to make it real... We have an obligation as product people to put that emotional energy back into people's lives.
— Bob Baxley