This is our bi-weekly newsletter of interesting stuff in business, design, and tech. If there is something you’d like more of or things we could be doing better then get in touch with lauren@eli5.io.
From, Eli5
💼 Business
“What differentiates a digital product builder from a software developer?”. Answer: LOTS. These are the 7 questions you need to ask before hiring or partnering with a software or product developer. Link.
One of my favourite business podcasts this year. Featuring Kat Cole (President and Chief Operating Officer of Focus Brands, formerly Hooters and Cinnabon). She covers leading through hyper-growth, why time is bad when dealing with problems, and the importance of consumer-obsessed mindsets in business. Link.
✏️ Design
Make video content? Then it’s definitely worth checking in with Short of the Week every now and again. A site with the latest in innovative visual storytelling. Link.
This MetaMuse podcast features Andrew Allen (formerly of WeTransfer, FiftyThree, Microsoft) and discusses products as a vector for culture, allowing yourself to be weird as a small company, and pushing back against scale in software. Link.
🖥️ Technology
13 simple rules for good coding from Hackernoon. Link.
An introduction to Web Authentication (WebAuthn), the new API that can replace passwords with strong authentication. Link.
🕹️ Cool stuff
A completely non-verified fact I heard this week: Did you know that Apple designed the iPhone box around the perfect amount of time for anticipation to build - 7 seconds? That is why you can't grab the bottom and why there is that friction you feel in the material as it slides out. It was also unusual in design as when you open it the phone is the first and only thing you see (and the box is shaped around it).
And something wholesome that we recommend for teams - the donut (as in ‘donut-be-strangers’) app for Slack. It pairs you with another member of your team for virtual lunch, coffee, or donuts. You can also secretly request who you do-NUT want to be paired with, which I clearly didn’t do to my buddy Jorrit who I haven’t had a proper chat with since August. It’s nice. Link.
Enjoy the rest of your week!
Team Eli5