Andy Budd co-founded pioneering UX design agency Clearleft. After leading and growing that company, he became an advisor, VC, and coach. He’s now written a book on how early stage startups can benefit from good design. That is the focus of our conversation.See full show notes:https://theinformed.life/2024/11/03/episode-152-andy-budd/

Karen McGrane describes herself as a “UX multi-hyphenate”: information architect, content strategist, technical communicator, accessibility advocate, and more. She’s co-founder of Autogram, a content management and design system consultancy, and author of two classic books on content strategy. In this conversation, we focus on how AI might affect content management on the web.See full show notes:https://theinformed.life/2024/10/20/episode-151-karen-mcgrane/

Scott Berkun is the bestselling author of nine books on design, innovation, remote work, and more. His most recent book, Why Design Is Hard, is the second of a pair on why design makes a difference and how designers can best go about it. That is the focus of today’s conversation.See full show notes at:https://theinformed.life/2024/10/06/episode-150-scott-berkun/

Tamsen Webster describes herself as “part message designer, part English-to-English translator, and part magpie.” She is also a consultant and author who helps leaders enact large-scale change. Her latest book, Say What They Can’t Unhear, explains how to drive lasting change through effective communication. That is the focus of our conversation.See full show notes at:https://theinformed.life/2024/09/22/episode-149-tamsen-webster/

Dr. Luc Beaudoin is the co-founder and CEO of CogSci Apps, the developers of a brilliant Mac productivity tool called Hookmark. He is also an adjunct professor at Simon Fraser University and author of two books on using cognitive science to improve productivity.In this conversation, we discuss the origins and philosophy of Hookmark, the concept of ubiquitous linking and how it improves productivity, the importance of deep focus for knowledge work, how to reduce friction in information managem...

Chris Risdon is a Senior Staff Designer at eBay. Chris describes himself as an interaction designer that tends to look through a service design lens. Alongside his co-author Patrick Quattlebaum, Chris wrote Orchestrating Experiences, which is an excellent guide to the practice of service design. In this conversation, we unpack service design: what it is, how it benefits organizations, and how it might be changing in light of new technologies like AI.See full show notes at:https://theinformed....

Jodi Forlizzi is the Herbert A. Simon Professor of Human-Computer Interaction at the School of Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon University. Dr. Forlizzi has a distinguished career as a service designer, researcher, design leader, and academic. In this conversation, we discuss the changing role of design in the face of disruptive new technologies such as AI.See full show notes at:https://theinformed.life/2024/08/11/episode-146-jodi-forlizzi/

Greg Petroff is a renowned executive design leader. He’s built and led design teams for companies like GE, Google, Compass, and Cisco. In this conversation, we discuss the state of design and how designers can have more relevance in today’s changing environment.See full show notes at:https://theinformed.life/2024/07/28/episode-145-greg-petroff/

My guests today are Colin Eagan and Jeffrey MacIntyre. Although they work for different companies, Colin and Jeffrey share a common focus: how information technologies might offer more personalized experiences. They co-authored an article on the subject for A List Apart and Jeffrey gave an excellent presentation based on that material at this year’s IA Conference, which led to this interview.See full show notes at:https://theinformed.life/2024/07/14/episode-144-colin-eagan-jeffrey-macintyre/

Harry Max is an executive player coach with a long trajectory in Silicon Valley. Through his consultancy, he helps senior leaders and their teams realize their visions by zeroing in on pragmatic solutions to complex challenges. And on that note, Harry’s written a new book, called Managing Priorities, that teaches leaders how to do just that.You can buy Harry’s book from Rosenfeld Media. Use discount code INFORMED20 for 20% off until July 30, 2024.Disclaimer: I received a copy of Harry’s book ...

Stéphanie Walter is a UX researcher and designer based in Luxembourg. She’s prolific in sharing useful information via social media and her newsletter. Recently, she co-founded a new project, called Neurospicy, to bring more awareness to issues of neurodiversity in design. Neurospicy has evolved since we recorded this conversation, but as you’ll hear, organic evolution is part of Stéphanie’s approach.See full show notes at:https://theinformed.life/2024/06/16/episode-142-stephanie-walter/

Rachel Price is a Principal Information Architect at Microsoft and teaches Information Architecture at the School of Visual Concepts in Seattle. She was a guest on The Informed Life in 2019, discussing the role of structure in improvisation. Today’s conversation focuses on a subject that’s on a lot of information architects’ minds: how to responsibly design AI-powered systems.See full show notes at:https://theinformed.life/2024/06/02/episode-141-rachel-price/

Emily Campbell is a design leader and advisor. She brings thoughtfulness and depth to producing business results through design and helping designers develop their careers as they fulfill that mission. Like me, Emily is deeply interested in AI. She’s developing an emergent pattern language for working with AI, and that is the subject of our conversation.See full show notes at:https://theinformed.life/2024/05/19/episode-140-emily-campbell/

Chris Aldrich has the most multi-disciplinary resume I’ve ever seen, with a background that includes biomedics, electrical engineering, entertainment, genetics, theoretical mathematics, and more. Chris describes himself as a modern-day cybernetician, and in this conversation we discuss cybernetics and communications, differences between oral and literary cultures, and indigenous traditions and mnemonics, among many other things.See full show notes at:https://theinformed.life/2024/05/05/episod...

Dave Gray describes himself as a possibilitarian. He focuses on helping people and teams realize their creative potential. Dave the author of several influential books, including Liminal Thinking and Gamestorming, which he co-authored with Sunni Brown and James Macanudo. He also founded the pioneering visual thinking company XPLANE. In this conversation, we discuss how to move beyond mental models that constrain us to open up new possibilities.Show notesDave GrayDave Gray - LinkedInThe Connec...

Nikki Anderson is an independent user research consultant, instructor, author, and speaker. Nikki uses her background in education and psychology to mentor people and organizations on the value of user research. And now, she’s written a book to help them build up their research operations. That’s the focus of our conversation today. Show notes Nikki AndersonImpact: A complete guide to creating a user research practice at your organization by Nikki AndersonUser Research AcademyUser Research...

Michael Anton Dila describes himself as a “designer of conversation” and someone with a passion for starting things. Among the things he’s started are ventures in online learning, co-working, and mobile technology. He’s also held several leadership roles in an elite innovation unit in the U.S. Department of Defense. In this conversation, we discuss his latest initiative, Oslo for AI, which seeks to design better processes for governing artificial intelligence. Show notes Michael Anton...

Dave Elfving is an experience designer and educator. He spent eleven years at apple, where his last role was as Head of Interactive Strategy. These days, he’s my colleague teaching interaction design at the California College of the Arts. He’s also co-chairperson at Gray Area, a San Francisco-based nonprofit interdisciplinary cultural incubator. Gray Area is fostering fascinating work, and I wanted to discuss it with Dave. Show notes Dave Elfving - LinkedInaught.ioGray AreaRafael...

Joey deVilla describes himself as an experienced, engaging, accordion-playing, golden-voiced developer advocate looking for a new role. He’s had a long career in the technology space and writes about his experiences in two long-running blogs, The Adventures of Accordion Guy in the Twenty-First Century and Global Nerdy. Recently, Joey became one of the many people in tech who’s lost their job in the last couple of years. That is the subject of our conversation today. Show notes 🪗 Joey...

Elizabeth McGuane is a UX director at Shopify and the author of Design by Definition, a book about the impact of language in user experience. As you might imagine, that’s a subject I’m keenly interested in, so I was excited to speak with Elizabeth about it. Show notes Elizabeth McGuane - LinkedInElizabeth McGuane – MediumDesign by Definition by Elizabeth McGuaneShopifyIntercomEames chairsShow notes include Amazon affiliate links. We get a small commission for purchases made through these...

Pierluigi Dalla Rosa is an interaction designer at Humane, the makers of the AI Pin. But that isn’t the focus of our conversation today. Instead, we discuss novel computer interfaces in general, and interactive environments in particular. This is a subject that’s near to my heart, as it points to exciting possibilities for future digital experiences. Show notes pierdr - Pier’s websitePierluigi Dalla Rosa - LinkedInpier dr (@pierdr) - InstagramIxD Research (@ixdresearch) -...

Nathan Shedroff is an entrepreneur, author, speaker, and educator. Like me, he teaches at the graduate interaction design program of the California College of the Arts. This conversation focuses on his new book, A Whole New Strategy, which teaches strategic thinking. Show notes Nathan ShedroffDesign Strategy MBA - CCAA Whole New Strategy by Nathan ShedroffHenry MintzbergCharles EamesPorter’s five forces analysisSWOT analysisDouble Diamond (design process model) Regis McKennaAdobe...

This episode is a compilation of conversations from 2023. It’s not meant as a best-of collection, but an opportunity to highlight some themes that emerged during our conversations throughout the year. The episode is also an experiment, with the themes being curated partly by an AI. Cover photo by Waldemar Brandt on Unsplash. Show notes Episode 107: Michael Becker on Knowledge WorkEpisode 108: Carrie Hane on Content ModelsEpisode 110: Nicole van der Hoeven on ObsidianEpisode 111: Andy...

Steve Portigal is an independent user research consultant. He is the author of Interviewing Users and Doorbells, Danger, and Dead Batteries. Steve and I both have new books, so we thought it’d be fun to compare notes on writing non-fiction. In this, the second of two episodes on the subject, we focus on the process of writing. If you haven’t done so already, listen to our previous conversation, which focused on our motivations. Show notes Steve PortigalSteve Portigal - LinkedInPortigal...