What Others are saying
Here is the latest buzz on “design thinking” and related topics from sources we trust. Enjoy!
design is everything and nothing, all the time
March 27, 2026, 6:10 am – I’ll admit it. I’m tired of this dance. Yet every time I try to leave the party someone or some song drags me back onto the dance floor for just one last twerk. Those that have been around pre-covid know all too well the highs… Read More [ Read the full story ... ]
Fail-Safe Foresight: Practicing Strategic Foresight in Today’s Organizations
March 25, 2026, 3:31 pm – In this tutorial you will learn: Ethnographers and researchers frequently play the role of canary in the coal mine, sounding the alarm about weak signals that will become big problems […] The post Fail-Safe Foresight: Practicing Strategic Foresigh... [ Read the full story ... ]
Your Tech Stack Needs A Thinking Stack: Building a High-Value Ethnographic Practice in the AI Era
March 25, 2026, 3:29 pm – In this tutorial you will learn: As AI research tools and the pressure to use them proliferate, it’s time to evolve our tech stacks. Even more urgently, it’s time to […] The post Your Tech Stack Needs A Thinking Stack: Building a High-Value Ethnog... [ Read the full story ... ]
Creating a Strategic Role for Research in Your Organization
March 25, 2026, 3:26 pm – In this highly interactive workshop you will learn to: Research impact is typically associated with the important work of communicating and socializing insights. But skillful alignment with stakeholders before research […] The post Creating a Stra... [ Read the full story ... ]
Ethnofutures for Innovation: Practicing Foresight with Diverse Intelligences
March 25, 2026, 3:24 pm – In this tutorial you will: Predictive analytics have become increasingly sophisticated, yet organizations still struggle to anticipate and plan for social change, emerging use cases, spaces of transformative innovation. Ethnofutures […] The post E... [ Read the full story ... ]
Thinking and Communicating with Frameworks: Using Visual Frameworks to Strengthen Insights and Communicate Findings
March 25, 2026, 3:21 pm – Creating visual frameworks is a powerful method for making complex information comprehensible, persuasive, and actionable. Visual frameworks: This tutorial is a crash course in understanding, creating, and using visual frameworks. […] The post Thi... [ Read the full story ... ]
Beyond “It’s Complex”: How to Recognize, Analyze, and Apply Systems Frameworks
March 25, 2026, 3:19 pm – In this tutorial you will learn: ‘Systems’ and ‘complexity’ are buzzwords these days – they frequently refer to anything complicated, interrelated, multivariate, or just difficult to understand. But there are […] The post Beyond “It’s Complex”: Ho... [ Read the full story ... ]
Trust Unpacked: Using Social Insights to Understand and Cultivate Trust
March 25, 2026, 3:16 pm – In this tutorial you will: It’s practically business orthodoxy that trust = growth = trust, but trust remains poorly conceptualized and mismeasured in many organizations. Meanwhile, executives overestimate the levels […] The post Trust Unpacked: U... [ Read the full story ... ]
Mobilizing Teams with Tangible Theory: Collective Sensemaking for Actionable and Scalable Insights
March 25, 2026, 3:13 pm – In this tutorial you will: Sometimes sidelined as esoteric thinking that bogs down action, theory is always in action when we do and use research. If we don’t engage theory […] The post Mobilizing Teams with Tangible Theory: Collective Sensemaking... [ Read the full story ... ]
Designing AI to Think with Us, Not for Us: A Guide to Cognitive Offloading
March 25, 2026, 2:58 pm – In this tutorial you will learn: Technology has long shaped how we think, remember, and learn, from writing to calculators to navigation apps. But as rapidly evolving, emergent genAI solutions […] The post Designing AI to Think with Us, Not for Us... [ Read the full story ... ]
Crafting Ethnography
February 24, 2026, 7:15 pm – New digital and algorithmic research tools have introduced new opportunities for access and insights, but increasingly, they tend to short circuit the researchers’ and stakeholders’ engagement with research participants, presence […] The post Craf... [ Read the full story ... ]
Episode 6 of “Off the Path with Sam and Steve” – Making Mistakes
December 18, 2025, 4:17 pm – Here’s the sixth (and final!) episode of Off the Path with Sam and Steve, Making Mistakes. Above is a short promo. Here’s the episode itself: Apple Podcasts YouTube We aren’t sharing our content (including Dollars to Donuts) on Spotify because the... [ Read the full story ... ]
Interviewing Users audiobook sale: 50% off!
December 17, 2025, 4:18 pm – The audiobook of Interviewing Users is 50% off, through January 1st. You can buy it here. The post Interviewing Users audiobook sale: 50% off! first appeared on Portigal Consulting. [ Read the full story ... ]
Episode 5 of “Off the Path with Sam and Steve” – Why aren’t you a big shot?
December 15, 2025, 4:21 pm – Here’s the fifth episode of Off the Path with Sam and Steve. It’s called “Why aren’t you a big shot?” We’ve got a short promo video above. Here’s the episode itself: Apple Podcasts YouTube Once again, we took this podcast (and Dollars to Donuts) o... [ Read the full story ... ]
Episode 4 of “Off the Path with Sam and Steve” – Impact without Authority
December 12, 2025, 5:17 pm – Here’s the fourth episode of Off the Path with Sam and Steve. It’s called “Impact without Authority” and above is a short promo video. Here’s the episode itself: Apple Podcasts YouTube We took this podcast (and Dollars to Donuts) off of Spotify be... [ Read the full story ... ]
Episode 3 of “Off the Path with Sam and Steve” – Good Interviewing
October 16, 2025, 2:32 pm – Here’s the third episode of Off the Path with Sam and Steve Good Interviewing Apple Podcasts YouTube The post Episode 3 of “Off the Path with Sam and Steve” – Good Interviewing first appeared on Portigal Consulting. [ Read the full story ... ]
Episode 2 of “Off the Path with Sam and Steve” – What Do You Do When You Want To Grow
October 15, 2025, 2:46 pm – Here’s the second episode of Off the Path with Sam and Steve What Do You Do When You Want To Grow Apple Podcasts YouTube The post Episode 2 of “Off the Path with Sam and Steve” – What Do You Do When You Want To Grow first appeared on Portigal Cons... [ Read the full story ... ]
Episode 1 of “Off the Path with Sam and Steve” – The Good Enough Career
October 14, 2025, 2:11 pm – Here’s the first episode of Off the Path with Sam and Steve The Good Enough Career Apple Podcasts YouTube The post Episode 1 of “Off the Path with Sam and Steve” – The Good Enough Career first appeared on Portigal Consulting. [ Read the full story ... ]
Check out “Off the Path with Sam and Steve” – a limited series podcast
October 13, 2025, 5:06 pm – Sam Ladner and I have a new podcast, called Off the Path with Sam and Steve. It’s a limited series, where we talk about what a research career looks like, even when it goes “off the path.” It’s on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, and Spotify. Our first th... [ Read the full story ... ]
Announcing my new (fiction) book: Occupied Minds
September 30, 2025, 5:51 pm – My new novella, Occupied Minds, is now for sale at Amazon. If you’ve enjoyed my writing, I hope you’ll check it out and leave a review. It’s only $2.99! On a quiet and humid night, good-hearted county employee Bubba Montgomery meets a strange visi... [ Read the full story ... ]
Treat your LLM like your frenemy
August 25, 2025, 4:27 am – Critical thinking. Do you think you have a handle on it? What about with respect to objectively analysing yourself and your emotions? Even prior to the advent of AI, studies showed that due to wider technological impacts such as social media and t... [ Read the full story ... ]
Listen to Steve and Justin on The UX Consultants Lounge
August 13, 2025, 5:47 pm – Thanks to Kyle Soucy for the conversation with me and my collaborator Justin Dauer on her podcast The UX Consultants Lounge. The episode is embedded at the bottom of this post and is on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Amazon Music. Visit the episode ... [ Read the full story ... ]
Are soft-skills more impactful without people?
August 1, 2025, 3:57 am – Allow me to be the canary in the cave for you guys. Don’t worry, the things I am chirping about aren’t all doomsday calls. At least, not for you and I for now. Look. I don’t know if what I am about to say, says,… Read More [ Read the full story ... ]
To prompt is to… know the art of creative storytelling
July 24, 2025, 3:13 am – Is it ironic to suggest that the LLM support systems we now have at our fingertips actually require us to learn how to communicate better? For the vast vast majority of the workforce, very few individuals are going to step beyond prompting and tow... [ Read the full story ... ]
ChatGPT is my CEO
July 13, 2025, 10:16 pm – I don’t want to get all poissardes on you, but the recent statements from le bon papa Sam Altman, Fiverr CEO, and Amazon CEO Andy Jasse kind of feels like we are entering into our own niche version of the Ancien Régime. Naturally, the rebel… Read ... [ Read the full story ... ]
Why Technology Alone Can’t Solve Problems: The Importance of Human-Centred Design
July 4, 2024, 2:54 am – In an era where technology is rapidly advancing, it is tempting to view it as a universal remedy for a myriad of challenges. However, while technology has immense potential, it cannot solve problems by itself. The effectiveness of technology as a ... [ Read the full story ... ]
3 Ways Boxing Has Made Me A Better Design Thinker
July 4, 2024, 2:54 am – What do Design Thinking and boxing have in common? Surprisingly, more than you might think. As an Experience designer who has been boxing recreationally for the past two and a half years, I have discovered surprising parallels between these seemin... [ Read the full story ... ]
Design Thinking: A Catalyst for Business Growth
July 4, 2024, 2:53 am – Running a business is widely recognized as challenging, with the average startup lasting only about five years. While starting a business might seem straightforward, maintaining it proves to be the true test, a reality faced even by large multinat... [ Read the full story ... ]
I Don't Post Here Any Longer. But There is Some Old Stuff You Might Like
April 20, 2024, 5:08 pm – Dear Readers, I stopped blogging here actively about 10 years ago. If you are interested in my newer work, check out bobsutton.net, my posts on LinkedIn, and on X/Twitter. That said, there is still a lot of old stuff here... [ Read the full story ... ]
ESC and Design Sojourn’s Innovating for Sustainability Programme Offers Grant Support for Singaporean Companies
September 5, 2023, 7:00 am – ESC, the leading sustainability consultancy in Asia, and Design Sojourn, a renowned design thinking and innovation consultancy, have partnered to launch the Innovating for Sustainability Programme (ISP). This new programme aims to help Singaporean... [ Read the full story ... ]
Fintech uses Design but not in the way it should
November 9, 2022, 2:17 pm – I was honoured to be invited last Friday (4th Nov 2022) to speak at the Singapore Fintech Festival’s Talent Pavilion organised by our partner WSG (Workforce Singapore). I shared why Fintech needs Design. But before I get into that, let me share ... [ Read the full story ... ]
Recyclable materials
September 29, 2022, 11:17 am – [ Read the full story ... ]
Key phenomenon
September 29, 2022, 11:11 am – [ Read the full story ... ]
Lens International Design Conference 2022 Keynote: Redesigning Design
August 10, 2022, 2:43 pm – I am honoured to be invited by Shih Chien University College of Design to give a keynote speech during their Lens International Design Conference 2022 on January 7th 2022. In the conference The Lens, design is interpreted as a multi-perspective ... [ Read the full story ... ]
What do designers and canaries have in common?
March 28, 2022, 10:07 am – Point of View by Vikki Eriksson, Postdoctoral researcher, Aalto Design Factory Sensitive to emerging changes, the first one to respond to early signs of trouble in the operational environment, with a vital role for the survival of the whole organi... [ Read the full story ... ]
Can we measure with facial expression analysis, how well does a designer understand a user?
February 18, 2022, 8:06 am – What did we study? A key element of product development is understanding the user. In design interviews, the designer tries to understand what the user thinks and feels, and what are their needs.Correctly identifying these needs helps to create us... [ Read the full story ... ]
Together we stand – joining forces to advance the industry as a whole
December 17, 2021, 9:32 am – Operating in the same market does not always make competitors. Despite the alcoholic beverages industry being heavily restricted by laws and regulations, it is also an industry with a lot of cooperation going on between different players. Especial... [ Read the full story ... ]
Saving the ‘little ones’ & our oceans
December 17, 2021, 9:23 am – Cabbage farmers with passion to innovate and work with various projects involving farming, nature, bees and handcraft, Sugar Daddies Co. based in Iso-Kyrö is a good case where linked missions influence business actions, strategy and decision makin... [ Read the full story ... ]
From business chemistry to perfecting food chemistry
December 16, 2021, 12:06 pm – Collaboration and co-creation between companies can spark new ideas, products and ways forward. Restaurants and their chefs have been one of the most active development collaborators of packaged food and beverage entrepreneurs, testing products as... [ Read the full story ... ]
Co-creating with bartenders
December 16, 2021, 12:01 pm – Already familiar with utilizing the expertise of bartenders in their earlier products, Kyrö Distillery Company decided to utilize the expertise of international bartenders in developing their bitters. After choosing seven bartenders as co-develope... [ Read the full story ... ]
Learnings from collaboration in times of calm & crisis
December 16, 2021, 10:57 am – Within 72 entrepreneur interviews, 37 DesignBites case companies reported 606 interactions with stakeholders outside of their company when describing their development efforts – we’ve analyzed what these reflect on during-crisis collaboration. In ... [ Read the full story ... ]
Experimenting during the pandemic
December 16, 2021, 8:59 am – CREATIVE RESPONSES OF FINNISH FOOD VENTURES AMIDST THE CRISIS Based on interviews from 24 Finnish food ventures and 844 Covid-19 related Instagram posts in March-May 2020 from 66 Finnish food ventures, we found that many companies were active expe... [ Read the full story ... ]
How to Work From Home as a Designer
October 22, 2021, 10:15 am – If you have been working from home the past year or so, you are not alone! As you know, since the Covid-19 pandemic erupted, remote working has started to become a norm (due to safe management measures to mitigate the risk of wide-spreading...... [ Read the full story ... ]
We are looking for Junior Experience Designers! (Closed)
August 17, 2021, 11:32 am – The hiring for this position is now officially closed! Design Sojourn is a Design Led Innovation Consultancy that loves to inspire, impact and create better lives. We are currently looking for smart, dynamic, self-motivated Junior Experience D... [ Read the full story ... ]
We are Hiring Experience Designers and Design Thinkers (Closed!)
December 16, 2020, 3:29 am – Design Sojourn is a proven Design Led Innovation Consultancy passionate in radically transforming lives. We are growing our team in 2021! The post We are Hiring Experience Designers and Design Thinkers (Closed!) appeared first on Design Sojourn. ... [ Read the full story ... ]
Designing Clarity 03 – Did Apple just Disrupt Healthcare?
October 8, 2020, 7:28 am – Did Apple just disrupt Healthcare? More specifically, Health Tech? I would say Healthcare is one of those industries ripe for innovation disruption. It is a mature industry lead by large slow-moving organisations, that have been around forever. ... [ Read the full story ... ]
The Asshole Survival Guide: My Latest Book
April 17, 2017, 4:19 pm – The No Asshole Rule was published 10 years ago. It focused on building civilized workplaces. Yet the most frequent question that it provoked were variations of "Help. I am dealing with an asshole (or a bunch of them), what do... [ Read the full story ... ]
The Dark Side of Scaling Up: Will You Want to Live in What You Build?
February 12, 2015, 11:21 pm – My Stanford colleague Huggy Rao and I devoted seven years to learning about what it takes to scale up excellence in organizations. We studied how leaders and teams build and identify pockets of goodness in organizations and spread such goodness... [ Read the full story ... ]
My Organizational Behavior Class: The Current Iteration
January 3, 2015, 7:13 pm – The first time I taught an introductory organizational behavior class was in 1980 or 1981. I was a second-year doctoral student in organizational psychology at The University of Michigan. I had no teaching experience (except for one guest lecture ... [ Read the full story ... ]
12 Books That Every Leader Should Read: Updated
December 17, 2014, 9:03 pm – I have been maintaining – and occasionally updating -- a list of “Books Every Leader Should Read” on this Work Matters blog since 2011. These are books that have taught me much about people, teams, and organizations -- while at... [ Read the full story ... ]
Random thoughts on the future and implications on corporations and universities
May 19, 2014, 3:26 am – I just got back from the Bay Area Maker Faire 2014. Looking at all of the cool maker stuff, the upcoming technologies and the startups pitching their next generation 3D printing robot drones has got me thinking about the future. I thought it wo... [ Read the full story ... ]
Random thoughts on the future and implications on corporations and universities
May 19, 2014, 3:26 am – I just got back from the Bay Area Maker Faire 2014. Looking at all of the cool maker stuff, the upcoming technologies and the startups pitching their next generation 3D printing robot drones has got me thinking about the future. I thought it wo... [ Read the full story ... ]
Innovation Networks in Action: The Case Study of Intuit's Innovation Catalysts
May 2, 2014, 7:58 pm – I recently published a case study on the Innovation Catalysts. I was focusing on how creating a network for people to connect with upon completing innovation training can ensure the lasting impact of the training and ignite new opportunities to ... [ Read the full story ... ]
Innovation Networks in Action: The Case Study of Intuit's Innovation Catalysts
May 2, 2014, 7:58 pm – I recently published a case study on the Innovation Catalysts. I was focusing on how creating a network for people to connect with upon completing innovation training can ensure the lasting impact of the training and ignite new opportunities to ... [ Read the full story ... ]
Walt Disney and Brad Bird on Why They Want to Make Money
March 7, 2014, 12:06 am – I was exchanging emails with a colleague that used to be at the Stanford d.school and now works with schools. He menionted Brad Bird, which reminded my of an interview that Huggy Rao and I did with him in 2008... [ Read the full story ... ]
Why Big Teams Suck: Seven (Plus or Minus Two) Is the Magical Number Once Again
March 3, 2014, 5:28 pm – I also posted this piece over at LinkedIn this morning. It offers a simple lesson, but one that is often disregarded, and in turn undermines the team and organizational performance, creates dysfunctional conflict. and weakens social bonds. In 1957... [ Read the full story ... ]
The Writing Life And Scaling Up Excellence: You Are What You Do
December 27, 2013, 11:42 pm – A few years back, one of my closest friends at Stanford, Steve Barley, made a comment that I still think of often “If you are what you do, then I am a sociologist.” Steve was making a general point (drawn... [ Read the full story ... ]
Essentialism; It Will Make You Think and Might Even Make You Less Crazy
December 8, 2013, 3:08 pm – Greg McKeown's publisher sent me an advanced copy of his book Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less. I said I would look at for a possible blurb (I don't do advanced praise for a lot of books, in part, because... [ Read the full story ... ]
Huggy Rao, Scaling, and Me: An Excellent, Exacting, and Eccentric Adventure
November 27, 2013, 5:16 pm – During the seven years that Huggy Rao and I worked on Scaling Up Excellence, we got involved in some pretty unusual situations – at least for two rather staid old professors. We did everything from working with a company that... [ Read the full story ... ]
Three Hallmarks of Good Performance Evaluations
November 24, 2013, 8:18 pm – Phyllis Korkki of the New York Times wrote a piece this Sunday for her Workstation column called Invasion of the Annual Reviews. It emphasizes the risks and downsides of annual reviews, and she quotes me quite a bit -- I... [ Read the full story ... ]
Creativity,Inc. by Pixar's Ed Catmull: One of the Best Business Books of All Time
November 22, 2013, 7:12 pm – Ed Catmull has been one of my favorite senior executives for a long time. I admired him from afar after reading about him in David Price's excellent The Pixar Touch. I admired him even more after talking to people at... [ Read the full story ... ]
Scaling Up Excellence: The Problem of More
October 9, 2013, 4:34 pm – This is reprinted from the Harvard Business Review site. A big thanks to Julia Kirby for the wonderful editing. Start talking about the challenge of “scaling” with people, and you’ll find the term gets used to mean a lot of... [ Read the full story ... ]
James G. March: Organizations aren't Rigid, They are Impressively Imaginative
October 7, 2013, 4:28 pm – Stanford's James G. March is arguably the most prestigious living organizational theorist. We are reading his 1981 classic paper "Footnotes to Organizational Change" for my scaling up excellence doctoral class. There is one paragraph in this paper... [ Read the full story ... ]
Back at HBR, the Joys of Writing, and Continuing the Scaling Conversation
October 5, 2013, 6:37 pm – Earlier in the week, I did my first post at HBR.org in over 2.5 years -- my last was in January 2011. I was pretty shocked that it had been so long -- my last post was about a story... [ Read the full story ... ]
F.M. Cornford's Complete Principle of the Dangerous Precedent
August 28, 2013, 9:51 pm – I was tried to get this out over Twitter, but breaking it into pieces ruins it. If you want to read one of the most spot on, timeless, and funny books about organizational politics, check out the F.M. Cornford's 1908... [ Read the full story ... ]
Scott Berkun's The Year Without Pants: Funny Title, Silly Cover, Seriously Well-Crafted Book
August 22, 2013, 6:43 pm – Several months back, Scott Berkun's publisher sent me an advanced copy of "The Year Without Pants" to read; it is a pretty silly title and as you can see, the cover is pretty wild too (I love it). Scott's last... [ Read the full story ... ]
Dysfunctional Competition, the Knowing-Doing Gap, and Sears Holdings
August 21, 2013, 9:56 pm – A compelling and instructive story on Sears Holdings appeared in BusinessWeek last month -- they own Sears stores, Kmart, Land's End and a host of other brands such as Craftsman tools, Kenmore appliances, and DieHard batteries. It is written by... [ Read the full story ... ]
Delta Airlines Shows How to Apologize
July 15, 2013, 4:30 pm – Please forgive my months of silence. I appreciate all the folks who have asked if I am OK (I am fine!) and who have urged me to start blogging again. You will start hearing more here about what I've been... [ Read the full story ... ]
Lessons from Leading the Innovation Catalysts
May 30, 2013, 6:15 pm – I have a fantastic job that I love. I know that I'm lucky, but I also have aligned my work to my strengths and passions. My current job is as the Leader of the Innovation Catalysts at Intuit. I've been a part of the Innovation Catalyst program he... [ Read the full story ... ]
Lessons from Leading the Innovation Catalysts
May 30, 2013, 6:15 pm – I have a fantastic job that I love. I know that I'm lucky, but I also have aligned my work to my strengths and passions. My current job is as the Leader of the Innovation Catalysts at Intuit. I've been a part of the Innovation Catalyst program he... [ Read the full story ... ]
Beyond the PhD - advice for PhD students and grads who want to get into Industry
March 16, 2013, 9:53 pm – I recently spoke on a Panel at USC at their "Beyond the PhD" conference. I was struck by how academia hasn't really changed much in it's preparation of PhDs for the outside of academia (clearly, of course, USC recognized this, thus put on the con... [ Read the full story ... ]
Beyond the PhD - advice for PhD students and grads who want to get into Industry
March 16, 2013, 9:53 pm – I recently spoke on a Panel at USC at their "Beyond the PhD" conference. I was struck by how academia hasn't really changed much in it's preparation of PhDs for the outside of academia (clearly, of course, USC recognized this, thus put on the con... [ Read the full story ... ]
UX Influence & Innovation
March 16, 2013, 7:42 pm – UX Influence & Innovation from Wendy CastlemanA talk I recently gave at the Walmart Global UX Summit on Gaining influence as User Experience Professionals within corporations by empowering others with your tools. [ Read the full story ... ]
UX Influence & Innovation
March 16, 2013, 7:42 pm – UX Influence & Innovation from Wendy CastlemanA talk I recently gave at the Walmart Global UX Summit on Gaining influence as User Experience Professionals within corporations by empowering others with your tools. [ Read the full story ... ]
12 Books Every Leader Should Read:Updated
November 26, 2012, 9:13 pm – I first posted this in 2011, but I update it now and then. Note I have removed two from the list: Men and Women of the Corporation and Who Says that Elephants Can't Dance? They are both great books, but... [ Read the full story ... ]
Two talks I gave and haven't posted here...
April 27, 2012, 2:23 pm – These are two webinar format talks that I gave over the last 9 months that I neglected to post on my blog. Actually, I've been neglecting the blog completely for a while. Perhaps its time to revisit... Shift: 5 lessons for changing a corporate c... [ Read the full story ... ]
Two talks I gave and haven't posted here...
April 27, 2012, 2:23 pm – These are two webinar format talks that I gave over the last 9 months that I neglected to post on my blog. Actually, I've been neglecting the blog completely for a while. Perhaps its time to revisit... Shift: 5 lessons for changing a corporate c... [ Read the full story ... ]
Go through training to be your customer
June 28, 2011, 3:49 am – We all know that when we aren't our customer, we make design choices that often don't really resonate with the customer. This can be especially true if you are highly tech savvy and your customer is not. In some cases, we are designing for audie... [ Read the full story ... ]
Go through training to be your customer
June 28, 2011, 3:49 am – We all know that when we aren't our customer, we make design choices that often don't really resonate with the customer. This can be especially true if you are highly tech savvy and your customer is not. In some cases, we are designing for audie... [ Read the full story ... ]
Deep Customer Empathy Method: Be the solution
June 7, 2011, 10:08 pm – Want to understand the relationship between your customer and your product? Here's a method that might reveal some good insights. Use bodystorming with your customer and have them teach you. In this case, you play the role of your product. Ask ... [ Read the full story ... ]
Deep Customer Empathy Method: Be the solution
June 7, 2011, 10:08 pm – Want to understand the relationship between your customer and your product? Here's a method that might reveal some good insights. Use bodystorming with your customer and have them teach you. In this case, you play the role of your product. Ask ... [ Read the full story ... ]
Get first-hand experience with the task to understand the experience
September 23, 2010, 3:32 pm – I've worked with a lot of teams who have been trying to design a feature or product to help people with a particular task. Oddly, I often find that people on the team have not tried the task itself, either with their solution or with any other me... [ Read the full story ... ]
Get first-hand experience with the task to understand the experience
September 23, 2010, 3:32 pm – I've worked with a lot of teams who have been trying to design a feature or product to help people with a particular task. Oddly, I often find that people on the team have not tried the task itself, either with their solution or with any other me... [ Read the full story ... ]
AIGA D.Talk on The Rise of Service Design
September 17, 2010, 4:38 pm – Last night I attended a panel at AIGA on “The Rise of Service Design”. It was a packed room, reflecting the general interest in this topic. The session was moderated by Josh Levine (Great Monday) The panelists were: Chris McCarthy (... [ Read the full story ... ]
AIGA D.Talk on The Rise of Service Design
September 17, 2010, 4:38 pm – Last night I attended a panel at AIGA on “The Rise of Service Design”. It was a packed room, reflecting the general interest in this topic. The session was moderated by Josh Levine (Great Monday) The panelists were: Chris McCarthy (... [ Read the full story ... ]
Make your life an integral part of your customer's life
September 16, 2010, 8:32 pm – We all want our products and services to be important to our customers. So important that they are integral; the customers can't live without them! Since this is our aim, we need to really be intimate with that customer's life. Talking with them ... [ Read the full story ... ]
Make your life an integral part of your customer's life
September 16, 2010, 8:32 pm – We all want our products and services to be important to our customers. So important that they are integral; the customers can't live without them! Since this is our aim, we need to really be intimate with that customer's life. Talking with them ... [ Read the full story ... ]
Become the Customer for Deep Customer Empathy
September 15, 2010, 3:12 pm – About a year ago, I wanted to understand the big deal about Farmville... it seems that 1% of the world's population plays Farmville. I know that it leverages some of the key components of gaming that make it compelling (check out slide 8 on Byron ... [ Read the full story ... ]
Become the Customer for Deep Customer Empathy
September 15, 2010, 3:12 pm – About a year ago, I wanted to understand the big deal about Farmville... it seems that 1% of the world's population plays Farmville. I know that it leverages some of the key components of gaming that make it compelling (check out slide 8 on Byron ... [ Read the full story ... ]
101 Ways to get Deep Customer Empathy for Design Inspiration and Insights
September 13, 2010, 2:51 pm – Okay, so I'm not going to list all 101 right now. What I am going to do is start a series where I will be talking about these 101 ways. My goal is to write about at least 2 per week... but, before I start, I thought I'd lay some context:Why do y... [ Read the full story ... ]
101 Ways to get Deep Customer Empathy for Design Inspiration and Insights
September 13, 2010, 2:51 pm – Okay, so I'm not going to list all 101 right now. What I am going to do is start a series where I will be talking about these 101 ways. My goal is to write about at least 2 per week... but, before I start, I thought I'd lay some context:Why do y... [ Read the full story ... ]
Necessity as the mother of invention
August 20, 2010, 6:50 pm – I'm sure you've heard the Plato's phrase "Necessity is the Mother of Invention".. .A couple of weeks ago, I was introduced to someone who once again drove this home. His name is Matthew Browning. He's a nurse and founder of a really cool web a... [ Read the full story ... ]
Necessity as the mother of invention
August 20, 2010, 6:50 pm – I'm sure you've heard the Plato's phrase "Necessity is the Mother of Invention".. .A couple of weeks ago, I was introduced to someone who once again drove this home. His name is Matthew Browning. He's a nurse and founder of a really cool web a... [ Read the full story ... ]
Understand Your Customers' Minds
July 12, 2010, 2:40 pm – In some ways, this method isn't at all new. Yet, the video articulates it and the benefit so well... [ Read the full story ... ]
Understand Your Customers' Minds
July 12, 2010, 2:40 pm – In some ways, this method isn't at all new. Yet, the video articulates it and the benefit so well... [ Read the full story ... ]
iPad, Kindle and Paper - Reading Speeds and Immersion
July 2, 2010, 4:56 pm – Jakob Nielsen just released a study on iPad, Kindle, Paper and PC reading rates.I have issues with this study, but it's interesting. As a user of Paper Books, PCs, a Kindle, and an iPad, I can definitely say that I have some preferences. But, wh... [ Read the full story ... ]
iPad, Kindle and Paper - Reading Speeds and Immersion
July 2, 2010, 4:56 pm – Jakob Nielsen just released a study on iPad, Kindle, Paper and PC reading rates.I have issues with this study, but it's interesting. As a user of Paper Books, PCs, a Kindle, and an iPad, I can definitely say that I have some preferences. But, wh... [ Read the full story ... ]
Innovation Lessons from Visual Perception and Walks
June 9, 2010, 7:20 pm – I was just out on a walk at the lovely Shoreline park, just behind where I work. I was walking along, thinking about Innovation challenges, and passively observing the world go by.One of the things I noticed was the phenomenon of Motion Parallax.... [ Read the full story ... ]
Innovation Lessons from Visual Perception and Walks
June 9, 2010, 7:20 pm – I was just out on a walk at the lovely Shoreline park, just behind where I work. I was walking along, thinking about Innovation challenges, and passively observing the world go by.One of the things I noticed was the phenomenon of Motion Parallax.... [ Read the full story ... ]
Digging for innovation diamonds
June 2, 2010, 4:12 pm – This morning on NPR, I heard a story about Einstein’s brain. Bear with me, this is relevant to innovation…Apparently,Einstein’s brain was fairly normal, except that it had an overabundance of a type of cell called a Glial cell. When I was taught... [ Read the full story ... ]
Digging for innovation diamonds
June 2, 2010, 4:12 pm – This morning on NPR, I heard a story about Einstein’s brain. Bear with me, this is relevant to innovation…Apparently,Einstein’s brain was fairly normal, except that it had an overabundance of a type of cell called a Glial cell. When I was taught... [ Read the full story ... ]
Is your culture inhibiting your creativity?
May 26, 2010, 7:28 pm – I'm giving a talk tomorrow morning on the impact of working environment "culture" on creativity and capability to design great solutions. This is an update on the one that I gave a little over a year ago at the Design Research conference in Spoka... [ Read the full story ... ]
Is your culture inhibiting your creativity?
May 26, 2010, 7:28 pm – I'm giving a talk tomorrow morning on the impact of working environment "culture" on creativity and capability to design great solutions. This is an update on the one that I gave a little over a year ago at the Design Research conference in Spoka... [ Read the full story ... ]
Apparently, Nothing Trumps the Power of a Personal Experience
March 12, 2010, 12:06 am – A small group of executives was given a vast amount of data about a problem they were tackling about employee engagement. They looked it over and set it aside. Then, they had frank conversations with a couple of individual employees. They came aw... [ Read the full story ... ]
Apparently, Nothing Trumps the Power of a Personal Experience
March 12, 2010, 12:06 am – A small group of executives was given a vast amount of data about a problem they were tackling about employee engagement. They looked it over and set it aside. Then, they had frank conversations with a couple of individual employees. They came aw... [ Read the full story ... ]
Soaking rain of ideas in a brainstorm
February 23, 2010, 5:21 pm – I thought I'd take a moment to reflect on brainstorming. Sometimes brainstorms are wildly successful, and we come up with really new ways of approaching a problem/solution. Other times, it seems like brainstorms don't really generate much of any... [ Read the full story ... ]
Soaking rain of ideas in a brainstorm
February 23, 2010, 5:21 pm – I thought I'd take a moment to reflect on brainstorming. Sometimes brainstorms are wildly successful, and we come up with really new ways of approaching a problem/solution. Other times, it seems like brainstorms don't really generate much of any... [ Read the full story ... ]
Following Objects
February 12, 2010, 5:49 pm – When studying a new area, we often talk with and watch people doing whatever it is we're interested in. For example, if we were interested in Shopping, we might talk with people about their shopping habits, watch them shopping (maybe going with t... [ Read the full story ... ]
Following Objects
February 12, 2010, 5:49 pm – When studying a new area, we often talk with and watch people doing whatever it is we're interested in. For example, if we were interested in Shopping, we might talk with people about their shopping habits, watch them shopping (maybe going with t... [ Read the full story ... ]
Cool New Trend in Resumes
January 9, 2010, 8:57 pm – Looking for work? Got a resume? This is for you:Why be boring and staid like everyone else in the pile of resumes? Why not show your uniqueness, creativity and visual thinking design skills in creating a visual resume?One of my favorite blogs is ... [ Read the full story ... ]
Cool New Trend in Resumes
January 9, 2010, 8:57 pm – Looking for work? Got a resume? This is for you:Why be boring and staid like everyone else in the pile of resumes? Why not show your uniqueness, creativity and visual thinking design skills in creating a visual resume?One of my favorite blogs is ... [ Read the full story ... ]
Do I listen to what I say I do?
December 21, 2009, 8:55 pm – Anyone who studies behavior knows that what people say is not what they do. More evidence reported in the NY Times shows that what people report listening to isn't what they actually listen to. [ Read the full story ... ]
Do I listen to what I say I do?
December 21, 2009, 8:55 pm – Anyone who studies behavior knows that what people say is not what they do. More evidence reported in the NY Times shows that what people report listening to isn't what they actually listen to. [ Read the full story ... ]
Visualizing You.... leveraging the internet to break down your name
October 2, 2009, 4:02 pm – This shows 3 iterations of "Wendy Castleman". It is a pretty cool visualization from MIT:It combines all of the data on the internet related to your name and creates a "digital DNA map". It seems to change every time I do it... and it combines me... [ Read the full story ... ]
Visualizing You.... leveraging the internet to break down your name
October 2, 2009, 4:02 pm – This shows 3 iterations of "Wendy Castleman". It is a pretty cool visualization from MIT:It combines all of the data on the internet related to your name and creates a "digital DNA map". It seems to change every time I do it... and it combines me... [ Read the full story ... ]
Author: Jan Schmiedgen | Last modified: September 29, 2015