How cross-disciplinary collaboration led to an award-winning watsonx submission
Speaker • New Collar Think Tank • September 2023
Out of the 23,000 teams that formed to compete in IBM’s company-wide watsonx challenge, my team's submission won first place (Chairman's Award, selected by IBM CEO Arvind Krishna). The New Collar Think Tank invited us to unpack the teamwork and strategy behind our submission, including:
• How our small but agile team achieved alignment in a sea of ideas and priorities
• Strategies for blending design and user research with other disciplines in solution ideation
• A peak "under the hood" of our solution
• Tips for crafting persuasive narratives and pitches that can win over even the toughest critics
This talk gave me the opportunity to reiterate that great outcomes are achieved when diverse, empowered teams come together and are guided by the user as their north star.
Turning Problems into Possibilities with Design Thinking
Speaker + Workshop Facilitator • Texas Library Association Conference • April 2023
What do libraries and Design Thinking have in common? People. Design Thinking provides a structured way to identify the needs and wants of library patrons, staff, or community members; to prioritize efforts based on highest impact; and to incorporate feedback and reflection. I designed this “learn by doing” workshop to provide participants with a practical framework for solving even the most difficult problems by keeping a laser focus on the people who are impacted.
User Experience Research ACROSS THE PRODUCT LIFE CYCLE
Guest Lecturer • University of Texas at Austin — ITD 380 Design Thinking • February 2023
Crafted a 90-minute, activity-based lecture to introduce graduate students to User Experience Research. Topics included what UX Research is, how it fits in with Design Thinking and product design, an overview of a UX Researcher’s typical process, and how to incorporate user research into their semester-long projects.
Creating a Compelling Research Playback through Storytelling
Guest Lecturer • University of Texas at Austin — ITD 370 Design Thinking • November 2022
To help prepare students for their final playbacks (the pinnacle of their semester-long research projects), I shared storytelling best practices, provided tangible examples of what makes a compelling presentation, and provided tips for overcoming stakeholder skepticism. The course, Advanced Design Thinking, is a partnership between IBM and UT Austin's Center for Integrated Design.
from Sensemaking to action
Guest Lecturer • University of Texas at Austin — ITD 370 Design Thinking • October 2022
To help guide students through their semester-long research projects, I shared best practices for moving from raw data to actionable insights, reviewed a variety of synthesis and analysis methods, and provided my top tips for making sense of your data as a team. The course, Advanced Design Thinking, is a partnership between IBM and UT Austin's Center for Integrated Design.
A behind-the-scenes look at purchasing IBM Software
Co-Presenter • IBM Service Design Guild • September 2022
My colleague and I presented how we leveraged a Service Design approach to identifying opportunities for increasing IBM Security software purchases. We discussed our process in creating a service blueprint to map out the end-to-end buying journey from both the buyer and seller perspectives, including how we earned the trust and sponsorship of executives and brought traditionally siloed teams together.
Interviewing 101: Mastering the Fundamentals
Guest Lecturer • University of Texas at Austin — ITD 370 Design Thinking • August 2022
To help prepare students for their semester-long projects, I reviewed interviewing best practices, provided tangible examples from my own experience, explained where interviewing fits into the end-to-end user experience research process, and shared tips for overcoming common obstacles. The course, Advanced Design Thinking, is a partnership between IBM and UT Austin's Center for Integrated Design.
Interviewing 101: Mastering the Fundamentals
Presenter • IBM Patterns Design Bootcamp • August 2022
No matter how long you’ve been in the field, it’s always a good practice to revisit the fundamentals. Whether you’re new to interviewing or eager to perfect your skills, join Nico as she breaks the method down into small chunks and offers practical tips for success.
Kano model in 5 minutes
Speaker • IBM Turtle Talks • July 2022
In the first-ever edition of IBM’s “Turtle Talks,” a speaker series by and for UX researchers, I gave a lightning talk on using the Kano method to prioritize your product’s roadmap.
Design’s impact throughout the product life cycle
Presenter + Organizer • IBM Systems Transformation Talk • April 2021
In the spirit of “zooming out,” I led a talk on the impact of design throughout the product lifecycle, with a focus on how Product Managers, UX Researchers, and Designers can more tangibly collaborate, align goals, and avoid duplication of efforts. After my presentation, I invited several Product Management + Design pairs from IBM Quantum and IBM Z to share examples of their collaboration in action.
Ask Me Anything (Career ama)
Speaker • IBM Patterns Design Bootcamp • February 2021
Program organizers invited me to participate in an AMA where early-career hires asked me and two colleagues questions about what it’s like to be a User Experience Researcher at IBM.
Using the Kano model to prioritize your product roadmap
Guest Speaker • IBM Istanbul Research Guild • October 2020
During this presentation, I shared how I used the Kano method to guide my team and product stakeholders through questions such as, "How would our customers feel if this feature were not included in our product?" and "How do we go beyond satisfaction, into delight?" for an upcoming product release.
Practical application of Enterprise Design Thinking in Systems
Panelist • IBM Systems Design Summit • September 2020
There are unique challenges that shape the application of Enterprise Design Thinking (EDT) within IBM Systems, stemming from its heavy focus on hardware. I was invited to share how I have leveraged the EDT framework to activate my team and drive human-centered outcomes for our products, OpenBMC and eBMC, within the context of Cognitive Systems.