Rosenfeld Review Podcast The Rosenfeld Review Podcast (Rosenfeld Media)

Dan Hill is the director of the Melbourne School of Design at the University of Melbourne, and author of Dark Matter and Trojan Horses: A Strategic Design Vocabulary and Designing Missions. And he’s the opening speaker at the inaugural Designing with AI conference, where he’ll be presenting “Designing for the Infrastructures of Everyday Life”.

Like it or not, AI is a growing part of our infrastructure—not just the infrastructure of our phones, our computers, and the internet—but that of our physical world. It’s increasingly used to support the very fundamental systems that maintain our cities, hospitals, utilities, and educational systems. On some levels, this is cause for concern. After all, we’ve seen other implementations of AI (think riding-sharing services) that have not lived up to their promise but have instead aggravated some of the problems they sought to address.

Dan is a big-picture guy with an ability to draw principles from history and other sectors. He understands that utilizing AI is inevitable. The challenge is recognizing the interconnectedness of our various systems and working together to build infrastructures that truly create better life experiences for all.

What You'll Learn from this Episode:
- The many facets of infrastructures
- How AI is currently being used and how it might be used in the future to support our infrastructures
- Why ride-sharing is not exactly an AI model worth repeating
- Why the Japanese and Finnish models work well in those environments but aren’t necessarily transferable to more diverse cultures
- Why quality of life will only improve with a more holistic, integrated design approach

Quick Reference Guide
0:37 - Introduction of Dan
3:49 - AI as infrastructure
8:30 - How AI might be used to further support infrastructure systems
12:09 - Will the impact of AI actually make life better?
18:59 - Plug for Managing Priorities by Harry Max. Get 15% off!
20:15 - The metaphor of designing looking through a lens and technology’s impact on the material world
26:16 - Helpful models – the Japanese and Finnish cultures
31:52 - Dan’s gift to the audience

Resources and Links from Today's Episode:
Dark Matter and Trojan Horses: A Strategic Design Vocabulary by Dan Hill https://www.amazon.com/Dark-Matter-Trojan-Horses-Vocabulary/dp/0992914639/
Managing Priorities: How to Create Better Plans and Make Smarter Decisions by Harry Max https://rosenfeldmedia.com/books/managing-priorities/
Designing with AI Conference, June 4-5 https://rosenfeldmedia.com/events/futures/
Smoke and Ashes: Opium’s Hidden Histories by Amitav Ghosh https://www.amazon.com/Smoke-Ashes-Opiums-Hidden-Histories/dp/0374602921

In the latest episode of the Rosenfeld Review, Lou sits down with social scientist Tricia Wang, coiner of the term “thick data,” and formerly a partner at Sudden Compass. Tricia is passionate about research and AI. She envisions massively improved research outcomes and opportunities for researchers, but only if researchers take the lead in incorporating AI into their work. Rather than seeing themselves as “users” of AI tools, researchers must work as AI’s “shapers,” serving as its senior partner.

Tricia’s vision is to cease the fear-mongering surrounding the subject of AI and instead embrace the amazing opportunities for growth and better work by becoming active in the control of AI’s future.

What You'll Learn from this Episode:
- The truth about the potential for AI use in research and the gift that it actually is
- The difference between a “user” and a “shaper” in the digital age
- The importance of taking an active role in the development of AI in the future
- How being an asset class dehumanizes us as people

Quick Reference Guide:
[0:16] - Lou’s introduction of Tricia Wang
[2:52] - Tricia discusses our future and how we talk about AI
[3:49] - Thoughts on the narrative of fear-mongering we have in the West about AI
[5:47] - The relationship between humans and AI
[5:59] - A new framework: users vs shapers
[9:07] - The problem with taking on a passive role with a technology unlike anything we have ever seen
[11:06] - People who use AI successfully are active shapers
[15:33] - Info on Advancing Research 2024
[17:23] - How users, shapers, and AI affect the field of research
[20:42] - The existential question of what it really means to be a researcher
[31:28] - Tricia’s advice concerning using AI in research
[35:07] - Tricia’s gift for the audience
[38:34] - Tricia wants to hear from you

Resources and Links from Today's Episode:
Tricia Wang https://www.triciawang.com/
Sudden Compass https://www.suddencompass.com/
James Bridle, Ways of Being: Animals, Plants, Machines: The Search For A Planetary Intelligence https://www.amazon.com/Ways-Being-Machines-Planetary-Intelligence/dp/0374601119
Brett Christopher, Rentier Capitalism: Who Owns the Economy, And Who Pays For It?
https://www.amazon.com/Rentier-Capitalism-Owns-Economy-Pays/dp/1788739728
Advancing Research 2024 https://rosenfeldmedia.com/advancing-research/2024/

In the latest episode of the Rosenfeld Review, Lou sits down with Neil Barrie, the co-founder and CEO of TwentyFirstCenturyBrand, to delve into the intriguing intersection of brand building, culture, and user experience research. Neil, an outsider in the realm of user research, brings a fresh perspective from the world of brand research; you can hear more from him at the Advancing Research 2024 conference in New York City, March 25-26.

Neil emphasizes the need for researchers to adopt a cultural lens when designing product experiences. Drawing from his extensive experience working with influential brands like Airbnb, Bumble, Headspace, and others, Neil suggests that by understanding and leveraging wider cultural factors, researchers can break free from the incremental nature of product development and create more memorable, distinctive, and influential brands.

The conversation touches upon the "wind tunnel effect," where products and services, much like cars in the 90s, risk becoming efficient but less distinctive. Neil argues that by paying attention to cultural factors and experiences, researchers can uncover breakthroughs that go beyond the interchangeable norms of the industry.

Neil’s insights highlight the transformative potential of cultural understanding in user research, offering researchers a valuable lens to navigate the ever-evolving landscape of product experiences.

What You'll Learn from this Episode:
- The importance of adopting a cultural lens in user research to achieve breakthroughs
- The concept of the "wind tunnel effect" and its impact on product development
- Examples from brands like Pinterest, showcasing the power of cultural understanding in shaping user experiences
- The dialogue mapping technique for evaluating how brands communicate certain themes and how people perceive them

Quick Reference Guide:
[0:11] - Lou’s introduction of Neil Barrie
[3:03] - A discussion on the wind tunnel effect in research
[4:24] - Frameworks for understanding culture
[5:41] - Examples from Pinterest
[11:29] - Plug for Advancing Research 2024
[13:23] - The tools of a brand strategy expert
[17:18] - One challenge, multiple perspectives
[19:29] - Reconciling disconnects in research
[22:00] - The qualities needed for this type of research
[24:13] - Neil’s gift for the audience

Resources and Links from Today's Episode:
Advancing Research 2024, New York City, March 25-27, 2024 https://rosenfeldmedia.com/advancing-research/2024/
A Colorful View From the Top – a book featuring candid interviews with luminaries of color who made it to the top in various fields. https://www.amazon.com/Colourful-View-Top-Twenty-One-Extraordinary/dp/1408715791/
The Deluge by Stephen Markley https://www.amazon.com/Audible-The-Deluge/dp/B0B4YTWP7K/

Author, researcher, speaker, and frequent Rosenfeld Review guest Steve Portigal joins Lou for a chat on the state of the user research industry – where we’ve been, where we are, and where we’re headed. If the field of research was once a lonely desert, today it’s a jungle. It was once a field where researchers could get lost and forgotten. Today, the field is teaming with life—so much so that you could get eaten alive.

Gleaning lessons from the past, Steve doesn’t want us to forget the desert. But he has no desire to return there.

In his chat with Lou, they look back, and they look ahead. They discuss shifts in community and networking, and how research agencies are being replaced by in-house research teams. Finally, the two discuss Steve’s role in the upcoming, in-person Advancing Research conference in Queens, New York.

What you’ll learn from this episode:
How the world of user research has evolved over the last 25 years from a widely-respected industry expert
How the research industry has shifted from agency-based work to in-sourcing
About Steve’s work, career, and books
About the upcoming, in-person Advancing Research Conference
About Steve’s role in past Advancing Research Conferences

Quick Reference Guide:
[0:00:29] Introduction of Steve
[0:02:50] “Dog fooding”, preparation, and collaboration that happens before conferences
[0:09:30] Comparing the user research field and community now to how it was 25 years ago.
[0:16:22] The evolution of networking, connections, and community
[0:23:09] Shifts and pivots Steve has seen over the last 25 years in the user research field
[0:30:32] Writing it down and moving on
[0:35:13] Plug for Advancing Research Conference, including Steve’s role
[0:36:27] Steve’s gift for listeners

Resources and links from today’s episode:
Steve Portigal’s Rosenfeld Media books: https://rosenfeldmedia.com/people/steve-portigal/
Advancing Research Conference (March 25-27): https://rosenfeldmedia.com/advancing-research/2024/
Steve’s website: https://Portigal.com
The Wok: Recipes and Techniques by J. Kenji Lopez-Alt: https://www.amazon.com/Wok-Techniques-J-Kenji-L%C3%B3pez-Alt/dp/0393541215

We hear a lot about diversity, equity, and inclusion, but you probably haven’t heard it like this. Nigerian-born Victor Udoewa, service design lead at the Centers for Disease Control's Office of Public Health Data, Surveillance, and Technology, brings a beautiful perspective that challenges current research methodologies.

Victor introduces the notion of the pluriverse, emphasizing that people inhabit different worlds with unique ways of being and knowing. He draws attention to the diverse perspectives that shape people's beliefs and understanding, emphasizing the importance of acknowledging and bridging these gaps.

He also uses a tree as a metaphor, in which the roots are ways of being, the trunk ways of knowing, and the branches and leaves are methodologies and methods. The metaphor suggests that inclusive research should not just focus on the green parts of the tree but what’s underneath the surface, getting to the very roots of being.

Recognizing the limitations of mainstream research toolkits and critiquing methodologies grounded in Western ways of being, Victor proposes that truly inclusive research goes far beyond having diverse teams study diverse audiences.

This episode is just a taste of Victor’s talk at the upcoming in-person Advancing Research Conference, “Beyond Methods and Diversity: The Roots of Inclusion.”

What You'll Learn from this Episode:
- The Pluriverse Concept: The idea that the world comprises multiple realities, ways of being, and existences
- Standpoint Theory: The idea that individuals at the bottom of a social hierarchy possess a knowledge that is inaccessible to those at higher levels
- Victor’s Tree Metaphor: Roots symbolize ways of being, the trunk represents ways of knowing, and branches and leaves denote methodologies and methods
- Radical Participatory Research: Allowing research to emerge organically from the ways of being of the community involved

Quick Reference Guide:
[00:10] Meet Victor Udoewa
[02:16] About Victor’s talk at Advancing Research
[04:26] The pluriverse and asymmetry of knowledge
[11:20] Social hierarchy, ways of being, and methodology
[12:52] The tree metaphor - getting to the roots
[22:20] Research starting with a way of being
[26:47] Cultural individualism on research
[33:02] Victor’s gift for listeners

Resources and Links from Today's Episode:
Songlines by Bruce Chatwin https://www.amazon.com/Songlines-Bruce-Chatwin/dp/0140094296
Decolonizing Methodologies by Linda Tuhiwai Smith https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/decolonizing-methodologies-9781786998125/
Advancing Research 2024 https://rosenfeldmedia.com/advancing-research/2024/

Harry Max is an executive coach, consultant, and hands-on product design and development leader. He’s also the author of the forthcoming Managing Priorities: How to Create Better Plans and Make Smarter Decisions.

For individuals, teams, and organizations, from managing things, people, places, rules, activities, and projects, Harry’s new book Managing Priorities gets to the heart of how we prioritize and make and implement decisions, whether one-off or events that happen on a regular basis.

Harry uses DEGAP, a design-thinking framework that he says he didn’t invent but discovered, to explain how successful organizations and leaders set, implement, and execute priorities. DEGAP closes the gap between a current state and a desired state:
D - decide
E - Engage (commit to the process)
G - gather (collect information and items to prioritize)
A - arrange (sort and create frameworks)
P - prioritize

Harry and Lou also discuss the importance of flexible thinking (a superpower of designers) when it comes to prioritization, communication, and implementation.

What you’ll learn from this episode:
- How Harry went from technical writer to designer to executive coach to SXSW speaker to author
- What DEGAP is, why it makes a difference when dealing with prioritization, and how Harry discovered it
- Why DEGAP is like a design-thinking framework
- The unique prioritization challenges designers face
- The unique gifts designers bring to addressing prioritization

Quick Reference Guide
[0:00:26] Introduction of Harry
[0:01:59] A discussion on prioritization
[0:04:27] Orders of prioritization
[0:07:39] Distinguishing priorities of the individual, team, and organization – DEGAP
[0:12:26] More about DEGAP at the individual and organizational levels
[0:15:39] Advancing Research 2024, March 25-27
[0:17:13] Review of Harry’s career path
[0:23:47] Unique prioritization challenges for designers
[0:26:25] Harry’s gift for the listeners

Resources and links from today’s episode:
Managing Priorities: How to Create Better Plans and Make Smarter Decisions by Harry Max
Advancing Research Conference 2024 https://rosenfeldmedia.com/advancing-research/2024/
4000 Weeks: Time Management for Mortals by Oliver Burkeman https://www.amazon.com/Four-Thousand-Weeks-Management-Mortals/dp/0374159122
Oliver Burkeman’s Maestro course https://www.bbcmaestro.com/courses/Oliver%20Burkeman/time-management