Wow i cant believe noone suggested a quick dial icon on the home screen. So,
1. Go to widgets, and in there you will find a widget that says direct dial (i think) and another that says direct message. Simply tap the dial option for your quick dial and choose your contact. It will put an icon on your home screen that you can just press and it will dial the number you said to dial. I personally have two folders on my home screen, one with my most 5 dialed people and another with my 5 most messaged. This will fix your speed dial issue in a much more powerful way.
2. Go to the market and download LightFlow. This will not only ensure notifications, but it will let you program the color of the LED for each action. For example, i have it set so that if a new text comes in, i will see a green LED, but if its email, its red.
3. Looks like this one has already been fixed for you!
Enjoy ICS! Its the most amazing and magical Android yet