What to look for when hiring an app designer in Australia.

Hiring · 5 min read

There are a lot of people who'll tell you they can design your app. The hard part isn't finding a designer. It's finding the right one. Here's what I'd look for if I were in your shoes.

Are they giving you industry advice, or just taking your order?

A good app designer doesn't just say "sure, I'll make that." They ask hard questions. They challenge your assumptions. They educate you on how the industry works, not to show off, but because it helps you make better decisions.

If a designer just nods along and agrees with everything you say, that's a red flag. You're hiring them for their expertise, not their obedience. They should be helping you figure out your MVP, not just drawing whatever you describe. You want someone who'll say "have you considered this?" or "that feature might cost you more in development than you'd expect" or "your competitors are doing it this way, and here's why."

The best designers are also consultants, whether they call themselves that or not.

Can they show you their thinking, not just their screens?

Case studies are everything. Any designer can show you a gallery of pretty screens. What you want to see is how they got there. What was the problem? Who were the users? What decisions did they make and why? What did they learn during research that changed the direction?

If a designer's portfolio is just a grid of thumbnails with no context, you're seeing the surface. You need to see the thinking. That's what you're actually paying for, the thinking, the research, the decisions. The screens are just the output.

Have they considered what the developers will need?

This is the one almost nobody thinks to ask, and it's probably the most important question on this list.

Your designer creates the blueprint. Your developer builds from it. If the designer hasn't thought about what the developer will need, detailed specs, interaction notes, edge cases, how things behave on different screen sizes, then your development phase is going to be slower and more expensive than it needs to be.

And here's the golden ticket: a designer who's also been a developer. That's the combination you want. Someone who designs with build costs in mind. Someone who knows that a beautiful animation might take a developer three days to implement. Someone who writes implementation notes that actually make sense to a programmer, because they've been on that side of the fence.

Designers who've never written a line of code tend to design things that look incredible but are nightmares to build. That disconnect between design and development is where budgets blow out and timelines collapse. McKinsey found that IT projects run an average of 45% over budget, and a huge part of that is the gap between what's designed and what's buildable. If you find a designer who understands both worlds, hold onto them. You can see how different designer types compare to understand why this matters so much.

Do they have a presence beyond their website?

Check LinkedIn. See what they've posted, who's endorsed them, whether people have written recommendations. Look for profiles on Dribbble or Behance. See if they've contributed to conversations in their industry.

This isn't about vanity metrics. It's about verification. You want to know that this person is real, that they've been doing this for a while, and that other people can vouch for them. If the only thing you can find is a website with no names, no faces, and no references, proceed with caution.

Are they upfront about what they can't do?

The best designers are honest about their limits. They'll tell you when something is outside their expertise. They'll tell you when an idea needs more research before they can commit to a direction. They'll tell you when your budget doesn't match your scope.

If someone promises they can do everything, quickly and cheaply, they're probably cutting corners you won't see until it's too late.

The short version

Look for a designer who: educates you on the industry, shows their thinking through case studies, understands what developers need (bonus if they've been one), has a verifiable presence online, and is honest about what they don't know. Find that person and you're in good hands.

Sources
Delivering large-scale IT projects on time, on budget, and on value (McKinsey) - IT projects run an average of 45% over budget, often because of the gap between what's designed and what's actually buildable.

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