Aashman Goghari - Tackling complex design challenges at Palantir

This episode explores the challenges and rewards of designing for complex, data-intensive enterprise applications at Palantir, a company specializing in data integration and analytics platforms. Against this backdrop, Aashman Goghari, a design lead at Palantir, details his experience, highlighting the significant autonomy afforded to designers from day one. More significantly, the conversation delves into the unique design process at Palantir, which often involves embedding designers directly with clients to build bespoke solutions before generalizing them for broader use. For instance, Aashman describes working on Foundry, Palantir's data operating system, where he focuses on improving data integration and user onboarding experiences for diverse users with varying technical expertise. The discussion also touches upon the importance of problem decomposition, progressive disclosure, and balancing the need for simplicity with the power of the underlying technology. Finally, Aashman offers advice for aspiring designers, emphasizing the value of asking questions, understanding data models, and developing a deep understanding of the user's domain. This highlights emerging industry patterns reflecting a growing need for designers capable of navigating complex technical landscapes and collaborating effectively with engineers.