Brad Frost on the need for tight collaboration between designers and front-end developers:
The most frustrating projects I’ve ever worked on were with people that didn’t understand why front-end development needed to involved in the design process. The most rewarding projects I’ve ever worked on were projects that included front-end development at the very beginning.
We must replace outdated design artifacts with real collaboration and communication.
I have had the same experience as Brad, both good and bad. The traditional approach is to divide the team and structure the organization based upon the deliverables produced (code or pictures, technical or creative). This approach is superficial and does not lead to good results.
It is better to have those who are focused on user experience working side by side, regardless of the deliverables they create.