Creative Confidence Podcast

IDEO U

IDEO’s Creative Confidence Podcast shares candid conversations with creative leaders, changemakers, and innovators navigating today’s most pressing challenges. Through real-world stories and insights, we explore how to lead with creativity, build resilient teams, and drive innovation. Grounded in IDEO’s 40 years of expertise in design thinking and innovation, each episode offers inspiration and practical tools for audacious leaders at every stage of their careers. Hosted by Mina Seetharaman, Head of New Ventures at IDEO, the podcast brings a human-centered lens to the complexities of making more courageous futures. Discover more at IDEOU.com. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  1. How to Use AI For More Human-Centered Research: Hannah Rosenfeld

    1 DAY AGO

    How to Use AI For More Human-Centered Research: Hannah Rosenfeld

    AI is changing what it means to be a researcher. But most teams are only using it one way—to go faster. In this episode, Hannah Rosenfeld, Executive Design Researcher at IDEO, shares a framework for using AI intentionally across your research process: not just to move faster, but to see more, ask bigger questions, and do things you couldn't do before. Hannah teaches these ideas and more in IDEO U's new course, Human-Centered Research with AI. If this conversation resonates, the course is where you can go deeper and apply the framework to your own work. The first cohort starts May 21 at ideou.com. Related Resources: Hannah Rosenfeld on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hannah-rosenfeld-86805940/ Human-Centered Research with AI — IDEO U Course: https://www.ideou.com/products/human-centered-research-ai Read the episode recap on the IDEO U blog: https://www.ideou.com/blog In This Episode: (02:16) AI Doesn't Change the Principles of Good Research — It Expands the Definition (05:04) A Framework for Using AI in Research: The Intersection of Speed and Scale (09:28) Mode 1: Widen Your Aperture — Use AI to Take In More (13:01) Mode 2: Notice Nuance — Use AI to See Deeper, Not Just Wider (19:49) Why Bias Isn't the Problem — Unexamined Bias Is (21:23) Mode 3: Challenge Your Assumptions — Use AI to Interrogate Your Thinking (27:50) The Case for Productive Friction — Why Speed Can Work Against You (29:54) Mode 4: Immerse Yourself in Data — Use AI to Bring Your Thinking to Life (32:41) Building a Living Research Brain Your Team Can Query for Months (38:00) How to Sum Up the Framework: Strategic Use Cases, Not Just Efficient Ones (40:53) The Skills AI Can't Replace: Why Human Judgment Matters More, Not Less (43:10) Q&A: Moving from AI-Generated Patterns to Human-Centered Decisions (43:50) Q&A: Can AI Turn a Non-Researcher into a Serious Researcher? (45:14) Lightning Round: Hannah on Asking Better Questions, Fewer Things, and Perpetual Stew __________ Get episode recaps and register for free live podcast events at ideou.com/podcast. Build your creative problem-solving skills with IDEO U's online courses in human-centered design, AI, leadership, and more at ideou.com. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    51 min
  2. 6 Patterns for Building Organizational Agility: Clay Parker Jones

    15 APR

    6 Patterns for Building Organizational Agility: Clay Parker Jones

    Most organizations don’t fail because their ideas are wrong. They fail because the systems underneath those ideas aren’t designed to support them. In this episode, Mina Seetharaman speaks with Clay Parker Jones, Director of Organizational Design at Airbnb and author of Hidden Patterns, about six things you can do to build a more agile, adaptable, and human-centered organization. Related Resources: Hidden Patterns, by Clay Parker Jones: https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Hidden-Patterns/Clay-Parker-Jones/9781637748589  Clay’s website and pattern library: https://www.cpj.fyi/  Designing for Change online course with IDEO U: https://www.ideou.com/products/designing-for-change  Read the episode recap on the IDEO U blog: https://www.ideou.com/blog __________ Get episode recaps and register for free live podcast events at ideou.com/podcast. Build your creative problem-solving skills with IDEO U's online courses in human-centered design, AI, leadership, and more at ideou.com. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    1hr 3min
  3. How Great Teams Leverage Tension as a Source of Innovation: Daniel Coyle (Replay)

    1 APR

    How Great Teams Leverage Tension as a Source of Innovation: Daniel Coyle (Replay)

    Tension on your team isn’t always a problem to solve. In fact, it’s often a signal you’re doing meaningful work. In this replay episode, bestselling author Daniel Coyle (The Culture Code) shares how the most successful teams channel friction into forward motion, instead of avoiding it. Drawing on research and real-world examples from places like Pixar, the Navy SEALs, and professional sports, Daniel breaks down how tension can become a powerful source of energy, learning, and innovation. In this conversation, you’ll learn: Why conflict and disagreement are essential for high-performing teams The key moments that shape team culture early on How vulnerability builds trust (and why leaders need to go first) A simple framework for turning tension into productive experimentation How storytelling helps reinforce and scale strong team behaviors This episode offers practical ways to rethink how your team approaches friction. If this topic resonates, explore more episodes on healthy friction and creative tension with guests like Ben Swire, Mike Peng, Heather Currier Hunt, Takashi Wickes, and Bob Sutton. Related resources: The Culture Code, by Daniel Coyle: https://danielcoyle.com/the-culture-code/  Cultivating Creative Collaboration online course with IDEO U, taught by IDEO CEO Mike Peng: https://www.ideou.com/products/cultivating-creative-collaboration  Read the episode recap on the IDEO U blog: https://www.ideou.com/blogs/inspiration/how-great-teams-leverage-tension-as-a-source-for-innovation __________ Get episode recaps and register for free live podcast events at ideou.com/podcast. Build your creative problem-solving skills with IDEO U's online courses in human-centered design, AI, leadership, and more at ideou.com. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    42 min
  4. What Gets In the Way of Trust on Teams: Q&A with Ben Swire

    20 MAR

    What Gets In the Way of Trust on Teams: Q&A with Ben Swire

    There are many hidden barriers to building trust on teams, and sometimes we don’t see them until something breaks down. In this episode of the Creative Confidence Podcast, Mina Seetharaman sits down again with Ben Swire—co-founder of Make Believe Works and author of Safe Danger—for a practical Q&A on what actually gets in the way of trust on teams. Drawing on his experience designing team experiences for organizations around the world, Ben answers questions from the Creative Confidence community. Why does trust break down even on high-performing teams? What makes feedback feel risky? How do you create space for honest conversation without forcing vulnerability? And what can leaders do in the moment when trust starts to erode? Related resources: Safe Danger, by Ben Swire Make Believe Works – Unique team building that actually makes an impact. Cultivating Creative Collaboration online course with IDEO U, taught by IDEO CEO Mike Peng Read the episode recap on the IDEO U blog: ideou.com/blog __________ Get episode recaps and register for free live podcast events at ideou.com/podcast. Build your creative problem-solving skills with IDEO U's online courses in human-centered design, AI, leadership, and more at ideou.com. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    44 min
  5. Building Risk-Taking Teams: Ben Swire

    5 MAR

    Building Risk-Taking Teams: Ben Swire

    Team building often feels like a necessary evil. Leaders know it matters, but too often it feels awkward, forced, or disconnected from real work. In this episode of the Creative Confidence Podcast, Mina Seetharaman speaks with Ben Swire, co-founder of Make Believe Works and author of Safe Danger, about what actually builds trust, psychological safety, and creative collaboration on teams. Ben introduces the concept of “safe danger”—the emotional sweet spot between comfort and fear—where teams feel secure enough to take risks, practice vulnerability, and grow together. He explains why most team building fails, why psychological safety is not the same as comfort, and why risk-taking is a muscle that teams need to practice before the stakes are high. If you’re a leader who wants to encourage better ideas, stronger trust, and an innovation culture, this episode offers practical tools and mindset shifts you can use immediately. To go deeper, explore IDEO U’s course and subscribe to the Creative Confidence Podcast for more conversations with today’s most thoughtful creative leaders. Related resources: Safe Danger, by Ben Swire Make Believe Works – Unique team building that actually makes an impact. Cultivating Creative Collaboration online course with IDEO U, taught by IDEO CEO Mike Peng Read the episode recap on the IDEO U blog: ideou.com/blog __________ Get episode recaps and register for free live podcast events at ideou.com/podcast. Build your creative problem-solving skills with IDEO U's online courses in human-centered design, AI, leadership, and more at ideou.com. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    57 min
  6. Playful Thinking Under Pressure: Q&A with Cas Holman & Michelle Lee

    18 FEB

    Playful Thinking Under Pressure: Q&A with Cas Holman & Michelle Lee

    How do leaders apply playful thinking at work when time is short and the stakes are high? In this Q&A episode of the Creative Confidence Podcast, host Mina Seetharaman is joined by play designer and author Cas Holman and IDEO Partner Michelle Lee to explore how a playful mindset holds up under real-world constraints. Building on their earlier conversation about why play matters at work, this episode focuses on what it looks like in practice: navigating tight timelines, creating psychological safety quickly, collaborating without losing your competitive edge, and leading in high-stakes environments like policy and healthcare. Through real stories and answers to listener questions, Cas and Michelle share practical ways leaders can make values-aligned decisions under pressure, design safety through structure, use constraints to fuel creativity, and model vulnerability to unlock better thinking.  Related resources: Playful by Cas Holman Creative Thinking for Complex Problem Solving online course with IDEO U, taught by Michelle Lee Full episode recap on the IDEO U blog __________ Get episode recaps and register for free live podcast events at ideou.com/podcast. Build your creative problem-solving skills with IDEO U's online courses in human-centered design, AI, leadership, and more at ideou.com. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    39 min
  7. How a Playful Mindset Leads to Better Work: Cas Holman & Michelle Lee

    4 FEB

    How a Playful Mindset Leads to Better Work: Cas Holman & Michelle Lee

    Play isn’t the opposite of serious work. Iit’s a leadership mindset that helps teams stay curious, creative, and effective under pressure. In this episode of the Creative Confidence Podcast, host Mina Seetharaman is joined by Cas Holman, play designer and author of Playful, and Michelle Lee, IDEO Partner and Executive Co-Managing Director, to explore how play supports better questions, psychological safety, and innovation at work. Drawing on Cas’s work designing open-ended play systems and Michelle’s experience leading teams at IDEO, they share practical examples of how playful thinking shows up in real organizations and why it leads to better outcomes. Related resources: Playful by Cas Holman Creative Thinking for Complex Problem Solving online course with IDEO U, taught by Michelle Lee Full episode recap on the IDEO U blog __________ Get episode recaps and register for free live podcast events at ideou.com/podcast. Build your creative problem-solving skills with IDEO U's online courses in human-centered design, AI, leadership, and more at ideou.com. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    51 min
  8. Leadership Philosophies in Practice & Building Creative Teams: Q&A with Mike Peng

    21 JAN

    Leadership Philosophies in Practice & Building Creative Teams: Q&A with Mike Peng

    IDEO CEO Mike Peng returns to the Creative Confidence Podcast to answer questions from listeners about modern creative leadership. Building on his previous episode, Mike goes deeper on how to lead creative teams when organizations resist change, how to reduce fear and build trust, what failure has taught him about leadership, and how to stay inspired in a fast-moving world. If you’re a leader trying to foster creativity, guide teams through complexity, or rethink what creative excellence looks like today, this listener-driven episode offers grounded advice, real stories, and clear perspective you can apply right away. __________ Get episode recaps and register for free live podcast events at ideou.com/podcast. Build your creative problem-solving skills with IDEO U's online courses in human-centered design, AI, leadership, and more at ideou.com. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    44 min
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About

IDEO’s Creative Confidence Podcast shares candid conversations with creative leaders, changemakers, and innovators navigating today’s most pressing challenges. Through real-world stories and insights, we explore how to lead with creativity, build resilient teams, and drive innovation. Grounded in IDEO’s 40 years of expertise in design thinking and innovation, each episode offers inspiration and practical tools for audacious leaders at every stage of their careers. Hosted by Mina Seetharaman, Head of New Ventures at IDEO, the podcast brings a human-centered lens to the complexities of making more courageous futures. Discover more at IDEOU.com. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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