#6 - Building Products That Don't Cause Emotional Trauma with Laura Klein

01/30/19 • 41 min

Algorithms don’t always handle “edge cases” well, and the people who design them can have too broad a definition of edge case—stillbirths, miscarriages, and other life tragedies are actually relatively common.

So how do the people who are responsible for building things, often many many people for any given human experience, design for the possibility of unexpected outcomes? That is to say, for real life?

This week on the podcast, Erin and JH talked to Laura Klein about building products that consider user's real life situations more thoughtfully. Sometimes, big tech does things that actually end up emotionally harming users. How do we do better?

Highlights

[3:50] We ask the big question. Why do bad things happen?

[6:56] The hippocratic oath for researchers.

[11:15] The consequences of short-term thinking.

[12:41] Everyone makes mistakes, and we can learn from everyone else’s mistakes too.

[18:56] Is the designer morally responsible for the actions of the product?

[24:43] How do you make a difference as an individual?

[33:25] The difficulty of separating yourself from some of the big companies

[36:32] We’re all gonna die, how does tech deal with that? (hint, not well)

[40:21] We wrap up. Laura’s not mad, she’s just disappointed.

About Our Guest

Laura Klein is the Principal at Users Know and the author of UX for Lean Startups and Build Better Products. She hosted her own popular UX podcast with Kate Rutter, What is Wrong with UX?, which goes best with cocktails.

So how do the people who are responsible for building things, often many many people for any given human experience, design for the possibility of unexpected outcomes? That is to say, for real life?

Highlights

[3:50] We ask the big question. Why do bad things happen?

[6:56] The hippocratic oath for researchers.

[11:15] The consequences of short-term thinking.

[12:41] Everyone makes mistakes, and we can learn from everyone else’s mistakes too.

[18:56] Is the designer morally responsible for the actions of the product?

[24:43] How do you make a difference as an individual?

[33:25] The difficulty of separating yourself from some of the big companies

[36:32] We’re all gonna die, how does tech deal with that? (hint, not well)

[40:21] We wrap up. Laura’s not mad, she’s just disappointed.

About Our Guest

Previous Episode

#5 - Collaboration Between UXR and Stakeholders with Holly Hester-Reilly

If there’s anyone who can link stakeholders to the awesome power of user research, it’s Holly Hester-Reilly.

Holly is a champion of research that is connected to every member of organizations; research that reaches across teams and unites companies towards a common product goal.

Highlights

[3:55] How research falls away from growing companies

[7:12] Creating change even if you’re not at the top of the pyramid

[9:15] Giving stakeholders options to help them make decisions

[11:33] Creating snapshots of your sessions

[13:30] Avoiding bias in your research presentations

[17:23] Who to invite to your kickoff workshop

[19:07] Are there certain roles or org structures that inspire better research environments?

[24:25] Why stakeholders may not be using your research the way you expect them to

About Our Guest

Holly Hester-Reilly is a die-hard New Yorker and user advocate. She worked in the NYC startup scene for ten years before starting H2R Product Science, which helps companies of all shapes and sizes embrace user insights.

Next Episode

#7 - Making User Testing Fast, Fun, and Accessible with Laura Powell

Try to think of each user as a new friend, and you want to learn about them. Don’t get nervous — relax! It’s just nice to create the sense that you’re having a conversation with someone. You’re listening to what they’re saying and flowing with what they say, not just reading a list of questions.

JH and Erin talk to Laura Powell about making user testing easy and fun for users and for companies. She’s just wrapped up her 9th User Test Fest, this time in Austin, TX, and was excited to chat with us about all things user testing.

Highlights

[3:18] Drunk User Testing becomes User Test Fest
[8:20] Do people get meaningful insights out of this kind of testing?
[9:53] Plan and rehearse for your testing
[18:25] You can always do more research
[22:50] Testing is a great way to get your team excited about the product again

About our guest
Laura is a self-proclaimed Specialized Generalist who helps companies get it together. She's worked on everything from user research to marketing strategy to organizational process and all of the fun in between. Clients include Appcues, MIT Media Lab, VETTA, Bow Market Somerville, Metaplane.