Just Imagine with Micol Galeotti 💭
Just imagine celebrating 90 years of play. Then imagine setting your mind to evolve play for the next generation. How we push the boundaries of what we do next with LEGO® bricks. This is the reality for Senior Interaction Designer, Micol Galeotti. It’s her job to take us forward and explore those possibilities. We think it’s fair to say she enjoys what she does.
“My role in the Creative Play Lab encompasses both physical and digital elements. It’s all about creating experiences that marry the awesome tactile feel of the LEGO bricks and what the LEGO system and physics allow you to create, together with the benefit of the responsiveness and immediate feedback that technology brings. The interactive experiences I work on aren’t just about you playing with LEGO bricks, it’s about LEGO experiences captivating you.
“When I joined four years ago, it was only supposed to be a six-week gig. I started out as a Consultant straight from school. Ten months later, I was still here and got a full-time offer that gave me the chance to relocate to London, which was great.
“I get to experiment, figure out new processes, find out what I’m good at. I’m not going to lie, there can be some heated discussions. We’re a diverse team with varying areas of expertise. So what’s ‘best’ for design might not be what’s ‘best’ for manufacturing for example. But we work on the trade-offs to hit the sweet spot in between us all and deliver the absolute best.
“One of the things I was absolutely not expecting - and still cherish deeply - was the push for play. Not simply being allowed to do this but being pushed to do so from every level of the business. I guess it makes a lot of sense. You have to have fun to create fun, right? It’s all part of the job. It’s the freedom I get here that I love too. I can fully be myself - and when that self is a loud, cheerful Italian who can hardly ever shut up, that’s saying something. But it’s not only fine, the team loves it. We have great camaraderie. So I feel comfortable and confident to be me. That matters. It creates an inspiring environment where I can really flourish.
“I’m like a kid in a candy store. Imagine being able to walk around a warehouse-sized room filled with all the bricks you can possibly imagine. Or getting to play with stuff that won’t be in stores for, what, two years maybe? That’s awesome.
“One of my proudest moments happened in a kids test earlier this year. To make sure we develop products that kids want and like, during the design process we invite some of them in to preview what we’re working on. That way we can gather their feedback to improve our products. I was quite nervous about this particular test. It involved something I’d been working on for months. The seal of approval from kids is, like, the ultimate accolade. They tell it how it is - no holding back. So when these two kids totally got what we wanted them to do, did that and understood what they got out of it, it felt amazing. I couldn’t show it in the room but there was a tiny me inside screaming and dancing. The researcher and I exchanged a look that said it all. It was a magical moment of joy, pride and validation.
“Being an Interaction Designer here right now is very exciting. By making the LEGO System in Play interactive, we’re inspiring and developing the builders of tomorrow in a whole new way. It’s keeping us as relevant and as fun as we’ve ever been and I’m helping to create the future of play. Making sure that it’s truthful to the ever-evolving needs kids have, as well as our values. It doesn’t get much better than that."
Just Imagine shaping the future of creativity.
Then make it real.
Join the LEGO® team today