In a regular year, design conferences have offered attendees a solid excuse to leave their desk, hop on a plane, stay on top of new trends, and meet people doing cool things in their fields. Alas, 2020 has shown itself to wildly stray from the path of a regular year in every which way, including the cancellation of a slew of design and UX conferences due to the pandemic.
But thankfully, designers are just the types of people to methodically regroup and creatively reset when challenges are thrown their way. In the past few weeks, we’ve seen a number of conferences undergo digital transformations, offering all their attendees opportunities to stay inspired, try new things, and gain valuable perspective on their craft and career—all without leaving their homes.
So charge your computer, grab a beverage of your choice, and get ready to absorb a ton of knowledge, because we’ve updated our list of 2020 design conferences to include all those that have gone remote. Whether you’re planning on attending with your whole team or signing on solo to celebrate your successes and develop in new areas, these are the best UX and design conferences you should have on your radar:
July
Mind the Product: #mtpcon Digital 2020
When: July 13-15
What to expect: Project managers and leaders from around the world will gather (online) for this three day intersection of design, technology, and business.
UXBristol
When: July 17, 2020
What to expect: This small, locally-run conference is going remote in honor of its tenth anniversary. From free to low-cost sessions on designing for good to user literacy, all attendees will glean important information for the back half of the year.
Bureau of Digital: Design Leadership Camp Online
When: July 30-31, 2020
What to expect: Calling all design leaders: Connect with your peers at this two-day camp. You’ll get insight and support through tailored discussions of wins, losses and successes strategies to help you lead influential teams.
FinTech Design Summit
When: July 30, 2020
What to expect: Finance is going through a remarkable digital transformation, and at the center of it all is product design, UX, and strategy. Join members of the FinTech community to discuss the issues and possibilities the future holds for this cutting-edge industry.
August
Enterprise Experience 2020
When: August 31 – September 3, 2020
What to expect: This Rosenfeld Media virtual conference is made by UX people who’ve created UX conferences for UX people for nearly a decade. From a diverse speaker roster to a program that flows using design principles, attendees will soak up all the enterprise-focused info (and receive videos, decks, and presentation notes to share with the team back at home.)
September
Clarity Conference
When: September 3-4, 2020
What to expect: This two-day conference is all about design systems. From exploring tools and standards touching all platforms and products, sessions will explore diverse perspectives on cross-functional collaboration across engineering, design, and development.
Design Thinking “At Home”
When: September 8-11, 2020
What to expect: What’s better than an online conference featuring John Maeda? One that’s free to the first 1,000 attendees to sign up! And that’s exactly what’s happening at Design Thinking 2020 this year. First, spend a day celebrating the best in design and innovation, then dive into workshops based on your familiarity with design thinking on day two. By day three and four, you’ll have a solid foundation for exploring real industry topics in the days’ sessions and keynotes.
ACE! without borders 2020
When: September 17-18, 2020
What to expect: If the terms Agile, Scrum, Kanban, lean UX, and design thinking are meaningful to you, this software development conference is for you. This year, a workshop day has been added so attendees can explore and apply skills.
Have a conference you want us to add? Tell us on Twitter! @InVisionApp
Nathania is a writer and editor based in Melbourne, Australia.
