This post was originally published May 21, 2018 in my Continuous Discovery newsletter. Lately I've been going back through various folders of things I've written (or started writing) but didn't do much with yet. I came across this conference talk submission from 2016. The submission didn't pan out but I still think about the framework …
Continue reading "Four Ways Creative Professionals Can Be “Right” [Continuous Discovery 03]"
If the last 5-10+ years in business have largely been about disruptive innovation, "software eating the world" and thinking about "every organization as a tech company," what kinds of narratives and themes will resonate when attitudes inevitably change (or even reverse)?
Because we don’t need another list of 50 books every UX designer or product manager must read. Every so often a new list of “books every UX designer must read” makes the rounds. They’re generally either super-long or seemingly arbitrary, or both. Too many seem to include every book the author has read or heard of. …
Using a Research Mindset to Save Time and Reduce Risk This post introduces the thinking behind our 1-day UX workshop on user research and strategy. (An earlier version appeared at res.im on May 26, 2016.) The greatest risk in any project isn’t going over budget, delivering late, or changing the scope. The greatest risk in any …
Spreadsheets let you do a lot very little technical ability. This example happens to be a fairly simple Masters pool, but most of these tips/tricks can be used for other sports — NHL & NBA playoffs start soon! — or for doing your own own data analysis, running your own league standings, etc. The winning picks.The Basics Setting the Rules …
Continue reading "How to run an automated sports pool in a spreadsheet"
There’s a place near ResIM’s office with notoriously terrible doors. Don’t get me wrong, I like this place. Some weeks I go there 2–3 times, maybe more. But the doors. Every time I go I feel a sense of mutual hostility. After roughly 15 years of frustration I finally learned that these doors are what …
Photo credit: Dyaa Eldin MoustafaPlans have a purpose, but I’m always afraid of being too constrained by them in research, strategy and design work. In academic research, plans help to ensure scientific rigor and secure funding, etc. In UX research, plans help manage expectations, coordinate teams, assure the bosses that we’re making good use of time …
#itsametaphor: the UX researcher reflecting on the efficacy of focus groups, and other important questions.Methods and tools aren’t the answer. When I moved into UX research at ResIM a little over a year ago it was cool to hate focus groups and surveys. It’s probably true that they’re used too often, or too often used instead …
Business gurus love buzzwords. One of the buzzwords that’s got a lot of attention in the past few years is “design,” or more specifically, “design thinking.” Even as an admirer of the principles behind design thinking, I expected the hype to peak in the late ’00s. But instead of fading it’s actually finding a wider …
Before I Get Into Rdio… Last week Sony announced the last-ever Betamax cassette will roll off the production line in March 2016 (which means someone, somewhere, has actually been using them all these years). Legend has it that Betamax was better than VHS. The reality is a bit more complicated. Original Betamax tapes were only an …
Brian Frank 
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