Design maturity results
September 2023
The results of the design maturity survey carried out in the Department for Education in September 2023
Summary
Overall, the results show improvements in several aspects of design maturity in DfE from 2022 to 2023, including increased understanding and support for design, more inclusion in planning, and better consistency across teams.
However, there are still areas where further progress is needed, such as defining and using design metrics more effectively.
View 2022's maturity survey results
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76
Responses
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1 2 3 4 5 6
Maturity score: 3 (unchanged) - What this score means
Notes on results data
The percentages in the table represent the proportion of respondents who selected each response category, and the percentage change shows how these proportions have changed from 2022 to 2023 for each measure.
Results
1. Does DfE have any of the following types of design goals?
| Year | 2022 | 2023 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Measure | Number of responses | % of responses | Number of responses | % of responses | % change |
| No goals | 8 | 17% | 11 | 14% | -3% |
| General design-related goals describing what design should be or achieve | 28 | 60% | 35 | 46% | -14% |
| Specific, well-documented goals | 8 | 17% | 16 | 21% | +4% |
| Prioritized goals indicating which are the most important | 1 | 2% | 11 | 14% | +12% |
| A roadmap or plan for how to achieve organizational design goals | 2 | 4% | 3 | 4% | Unchanged |
2. When are design activities included in planning?
| Year | 2022 | 2023 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Measure | Number of responses | % of responses | Number of responses | % of responses | % change |
| Design is not included in planning schedules | 5 | 9% | 5 | 7% | -2% |
| This usually happens before a design is implemented | 8 | 14% | 9 | 12% | -2% |
| This is usually included in planning | 21 | 37% | 19 | 25% | -12% |
| This is included in planning and prioritized | 13 | 23% | 19 | 25% | +2% |
| This is always part of early project planning or to at least understand what’s required | 10 | 18% | 24 | 32% | +14% |
3. How well is the design profession staffed?
| Year | 2022 | 2023 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Measure | Number of responses | % of responses | Number of responses | % of responses | % change |
| No staff with specialized design skills or experience | 1 | 2% | 0 | 0% | -2% |
| Some people with design skills or experience but it's not their main job | 3 | 7% | 9 | 12% | +5% |
| Dedicated people in design roles, but not enough to do all the work that’s needed or external contractors hired occasionally | 37 | 90% | 61 | 80% | -10% |
| Enough specialized people and skills to address current work | 0 | 0% | 6 | 8% | +8% |
4. How well is design funded?
| Year | 2022 | 2023 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Measure | Number of responses | % of responses | Number of responses | % of responses | % change |
| No money is spent on internal design staff, external contractors, or other design resources | 3 | 7% | 2 | 3% | -5% |
| Some design work is funded, but there is no dedicated design budget | 17 | 41% | 25 | 33% | -9% |
| There is some design budget, but it’s not enough | 17 | 41% | 39 | 51% | +10% |
| There is adequate budget, nearly adequate, or even more than enough budget | 4 | 10% | 10 | 13% | +3% |
5. Across DfE, what do people think design is?
| Year | 2022 | 2023 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Measure | Number of responses | % of responses | Number of responses | % of responses | % change |
| People don't know or they have a toxic or problematic understanding of design | 3 | 7% | 3 | 4% | -3% |
| There is an awareness of the concept of design but limited understanding of the benefits | 17 | 41% | 15 | 20% | -22% |
| Some people have a good understanding, but many others don't | 17 | 41% | 46 | 61% | +19% |
| There is a consistent definition of design and is understood across DfE | 4 | 10% | 11 | 14% | +5% |
| The purpose of design is not only consistent across the organization, but is applied across departments, services, and processes | 0 | 0% | 1 | 1% | +1% |
6. How does leadership support design?
| Year | 2022 | 2023 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Measure | Number of responses | % of responses | Number of responses | % of responses | % change |
| Leadership does not support design in any way | 2 | 5% | 6 | 8% | +3% |
| Leaders are aware of design but are indifferent to it or even hostile | 9 | 22% | 16 | 21% | -1% |
| Leadership accepts the need for design but there are some skeptical leaders who aren't convinced or don't provide enough or the right support | 25 | 61% | 42 | 55% | -6% |
| There is design support at Deputy Director level upwards | 5 | 12% | 12 | 16% | +4% |
7. How does DfE encourage people to develop their design career?
| Year | 2022 | 2023 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Measure | Number of responses | % of responses | Number of responses | % of responses | % change |
| No formal design roles exist | 2 | 5% | 1 | 1% | -4% |
| Few or no design role but some people are self-motivated and prioritize design work in their normal roles | 4 | 10% | 9 | 12% | +2% |
| There are some design roles but there are few design people in the organization | 11 | 27% | 39 | 51% | +24% |
| Job profiles and career paths exist but personal growth and development isn't tracked or understood well | 17 | 41% | 21 | 28% | -13% |
| Job profiles and career paths for some design roles are well defined and understood throughout DfE | 6 | 15% | 6 | 8% | -7% |
| Job profiles and career paths exist for all design roles (content, service, and Interaction design) but also for supporting roles in DesignOps or Research Ops | 1 | 2% | 0 | 0% | -2% |
8. How does DfE plan to continue to improve the design profession in future?
| Year | 2022 | 2023 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Measure | Number of responses | % of responses | Number of responses | % of responses | % change |
| No design work is being done | 1 | 2% | 1 | 1% | -1% |
| Design work is done haphazardly, there is little to no effort to evaluate or improve how it's done | 4 | 10% | 8 | 11% | +1% |
| Some teams are working towards improving their own work but not all teams are doing the same | 31 | 76% | 54 | 71% | -5% |
| Plans are in place to repeat and improve design work across DfE in all teams | 5 | 12% | 13 | 17% | +5% |
9. How and when are design methods used in DfE?
| Year | 2022 | 2023 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Measure | Number of responses | % of responses | Number of responses | % of responses | % change |
| No design or research methods are used | 2 | 3% | 0 | 0% | -3% |
| A few are used but not consistently | 17 | 24% | 21 | 28% | +4% |
| Design methods are used throughout the delivery lifecycle not just at the end | 25 | 36% | 24 | 32% | -4% |
| Established and documented methods are used across teams | 9 | 13% | 26 | 34% | +21% |
| A wide variety of methods are being used well | 13 | 19% | 5 | 7% | -12% |
| Design methods are being used outside of traditional digital teams, for example, finance teams, strategy, policy, support teams, operational teams | 4 | 6% | 0 | 0% | -6% |
10. How do non-design people perceive design?
| Year | 2022 | 2023 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Measure | Number of responses | % of responses | Number of responses | % of responses | % change |
| No design work is done or it's not talked about | 3 | 7% | 0 | 0% | -7% |
| Among non-design roles, design is noted but not accepted or supported | 5 | 12% | 5 | 7% | -5% |
| Some people in non-design roles are curious and want to be involved but most don't support it | 14 | 34% | 13 | 17% | -17% |
| Most non-design roles accept and support design but it varies across DfE | 16 | 39% | 55 | 72% | +33% |
| Non-design roles have strong respect for design and work alongside design roles on various activities | 3 | 7% | 3 | 4% | -3% |
11. How is design work kept consistent across teams and projects?
| Year | 2022 | 2023 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Measure | Number of responses | % of responses | Number of responses | % of responses | % change |
| It isn't: The only common thread is not knowing or caring about it | 2 | 5% | 4 | 5% | Unchanged |
| Inconsistently: there are many inconsistencies across design within and across projects | 31 | 76% | 44 | 58% | -18% |
| Consistently: Design process is similar or consistent across teams and projects | 7 | 17% | 26 | 34% | +17% |
| Systematically: There are established, successful frameworks across DfE which are shared, maintained and improved by everyone | 1 | 2% | 2 | 3% | +1% |
12. How does design impact the final outcome?
| Year | 2022 | 2023 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Measure | Number of responses | % of responses | Number of responses | % of responses | % change |
| Not at all, there is no design work being done so there is no impact | 1 | 2% | 1 | 1% | -1% |
| Weak: Design does not have a strong impact or positive outcome on design quality due to politics, constraints or lack of experience | 10 | 24% | 8 | 11% | -13% |
| Moderate: Teams are trying to produce high quality work and many are successful | 19 | 46% | 43 | 57% | +11% |
| Strong: Many or all of the design work produced is of high quality and meets required standards | 10 | 24% | 19 | 25% | +1% |
| Very strong: Designs are good, the lead industry and design community standards | 1 | 2% | 5 | 7% | +5% |
13. How are quantitative metrics used to measure design quality?
| Year | 2022 | 2023 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Measure | Number of responses | % of responses | Number of responses | % of responses | % change |
| No measurable indicators of design quality are defined | 17 | 31% | 19 | 25% | -6% |
| At least a few design metrics are collected and discussed | 21 | 38% | 39 | 51% | +13% |
| Design metrics are collected regularly and tracked over time | 8 | 15% | 10 | 13% | -2% |
| Design metrics are shared throughout DfE | 1 | 2% | 4 | 5% | +3% |
| Design metrics are shared with decision-makers | 4 | 7% | 1 | 1% | -6% |
| Design metrics influence decisions | 4 | 7% | 3 | 4% | -3% |