We, as the Designer Interviews ("DI") had the distinct pleasure and opportunity to interview award-winning, most creative and innovative Vishal Jadhav ("VJ").
As a Design Thinker, I believe STRATEGIC DESIGN can transform brands, businesses, & society in a unique way. Two decades of experience in human-centered research & strategic design for brands, businesses & products/services, my ability to empathize with the businesses & customers at the same time, sets me apart. I love to collaborate with businesses & people, to talk about their next big dreams. I research, explore and strategize the design solutions to solve the complex problems in the simplest way. I have worked on several B2B, B2C & Enterprise applications for UX Research, Architecture, Visual Design, Branding & Strategy projects for different sizes of companies. Having a commerce background, I am a self-taught design practitioner, started my journey with passion from practice to theory. I see the design as a mindset and sophisticated method of problem-solving & communication that beautifully connects people together.
Vishal Jadhav Designs
We are pleased to share with you original and innovative design work by Vishal Jadhav.
Vishal Jadhav Design - Intelehealth Mobile Web Application
Designer Interview of Vishal Jadhav:
DI: Could you please tell us more about your art and design background? What made you become an artist/designer? Have you always wanted to be a designer?
VJ : Coming from a commerce background, I am a self-taught design practitioner who started on this path driven by passion, transitioning from practical experience to a deep understanding of design theory. For me, design is not just a profession but a mindset—a sophisticated method of problem-solving and communication that beautifully connects people. I started with 3D graphics, Motion design, web design and eventually started own design studio with my partners.
DI: Can you tell us more about your company / design studio?
VJ : Prismic Reflections® - an award-winningUser Experience Design studiospecialised in solving business challenges through strategic designs. In a journey of more than two decades, we have collaborated with start-ups as well as established enterprises in tackling challenges likeMVP launch, enhancing User Engagement, Adoption, Conversions, Retention&User SatisfactionthroughStrategic UX design.
DI: What is "design" for you?
VJ : For me, design is not just a profession but a mindset—a sophisticated method of problem-solving and communication that beautifully connects people.
DI: What kinds of works do you like designing most?
VJ : My true passion lies in collaborating with businesses and individuals to explore their big visions. I like immerse myself in research, discovery and strategy to craft design solutions that elegantly solve complex problems. Throughout my career, I have successfully undertaken projects ranging from B2B and B2C applications to enterprise-level initiatives, encompassing UX research, architecture, visual design, branding, and strategic planning, catering to companies of all sizes.
DI: What is your most favorite design, could you please tell more about it?
VJ : I enjoyed working on building experiences for digital products of healthtech, fintech and companies in other sectors. Apart from UX projects I also love working on Branding projects to craft bespoke identities, define their visual language etc
DI: What was the first thing you designed for a company?
VJ : I remember, first time I worked on 3D project for a company working in card stack parking. I handled modeling and animation to show how multiple cars can be parked in limited space. Then I worked on one graphic design project for US based company, it was 20 years back then.
DI: What is your favorite material / platform / technology?
VJ : I love to sketch with pencil and paper primarily, followed by drawing tool on my i-pad, figma for UI design tool and different frameworks like design thinking, design sprint, human-centered design etc.
DI: When do you feel the most creative?
VJ : There is no fix and specific time slot, but very early morning or little late night I think I can produce much better with focused approach
DI: Which aspects of a design do you focus more during designing?
VJ : In UX I primarily focus on core business goal, user needs & their (user's) aspiration. All my strategic and tactile decision comes from that space.
DI: What kind of emotions do you feel when you design?
VJ : Its hard to seperate myself from the work I do when I am totally into it. There is no feeling of I there. Work is me and me is work. Yes after completing the work, I feel good. There are times when I fall short on my own expectations when I complete something.
DI: What kind of emotions do you feel when your designs are realized?
VJ : It feels great!
DI: What makes a design successful?
VJ : Design is always created for targeted users/user groups. So entire success of design depends of the upto what extent it serves that purpose. Other part of success is linked to business who is initiating and investing in it. As a designer, we also need to factor in the social impact while we are designing.
DI: When judging a design as good or bad, which aspects do you consider first?
VJ : I think good design covers all the above points which I broadly mentioned in "Successful design" In addition to it, fundamentals of design is critical in any design piece.
DI: From your point of view, what are the responsibilities of a designer for society and environment?
VJ : As a designer, we should be aware of potential negative impact that our designs might create. Making users more aware and conscious about their choices when they interact, following sustainable design practices, advocating circular economy and such aspects needs designer's involvement.
DI: How do you think the "design field" is evolving? What is the future of design?
VJ : Its changing and evolving rapidly. Designers have more responsibility and more powers with new tools. Design is broadening & encapsulating more. Design should serve well being of the planet as a whole now and not just stay limited to needs of business or some individuals or group.
DI: Where does the design inspiration for your works come from? How do you feed your creativity? What are your sources of inspirations?
VJ : Inspiration always come from nature and circumstance or situation I face. Deep and careful observation, meditation, reading books feeds my creativity.
DI: How would you describe your design style? What made you explore more this style and what are the main characteristics of your style? What's your approach to design?
VJ : Minimal - I love the most. However, it depends on project demand, client's need and user's emotional need. As a designer we should be versatile enough to work with and on any style.
DI: Where do you live? Do you feel the cultural heritage of your country affects your designs? What are the pros and cons during designing as a result of living in your country?
VJ : I am from Bharat i.e. India. We have a rich cultural heritage. It's so diverse hence difficult to meet the design needs for every culture, hence challenging. But its fun as well.
DI: How do you work with companies?
VJ : As a studio we work under various engagement model like retainer, time & material, fixed price etc
DI: What are your suggestions to companies for working with a designer? How can companies select a good designer?
VJ : Companies must put some effort and have patience to grasp the design process. Of course, everything is moving rapidly but good things take some reasonable time. Also, not every design decision will have logic, allow some time and space for creative magic. Selecting a good designer depends on the needs of company. But those who are good at their foundation, have a strong (even limited) portfolio and some soft skills is good to consider.
DI: Can you talk a little about your design process?
VJ : In simple steps - Discover, define, strategise, design, validate, launch and evolve.
DI: What are 5 of your favorite design items at home?
VJ : My macbook, i-pad, my pencil sketches
DI: Can you describe a day in your life?
VJ : As a design entrepreneur, Its more strategic than tactical now. Filled with lot of variety of responsibilities in developing client relationship, building team, focusing on culture and RnD.
DI: Could you please share some pearls of wisdom for young designers? What are your suggestions to young, up and coming designers?
VJ : Be smart but don't skip deep work mode. Dont miss the fundamentals & foundation in design. Be a good creator as well as good curator.
DI: From your perspective, what would you say are some positives and negatives of being a designer?
VJ : Chase of perfection can kill your happiness and satisfaction. However, it should not be an excuse to chase the excellence.
DI: What is your "golden rule" in design?
VJ : I dont think I have figured it out yet. There are many mantras :-)
DI: What skills are most important for a designer?
VJ : Critical thinking, balancing logic and magic in design, problem solving, analytical thinking, business empathy, selling & negotiation.
DI: Which tools do you use during design? What is inside your toolbox? Such as software, application, hardware, books, sources of inspiration etc.?
VJ : Pencil, Paper, i-Pad, Macbook, Figma, chatGPT, Excel sheet, Spiritual, self discovery books, design books etc
DI: Designing can sometimes be a really time consuming task, how do you manage your time?
VJ : Plan it well. Sometime its ok to go off the track.
DI: What type of design work do you enjoy the most and why?
VJ : Strategic thinking in UX UI, Branding projects, art direction.
DI: What are your future plans? What is next for you?
VJ : Expanding our design studio, adding more design disciplines & services, spreading the design knowledge.
DI: Do you work as a team, or do you develop your designs yourself?
VJ : We work as a team
DI: How can people contact you?
VJ : Through my linkedin profile given below https://www.linkedin.com/in/vishal-jadhav-29b19823/