In this episode, we talk to Siri Johansson, who is currently designing at Spotify in Stockholm. Siri is a Swedish Interaction Designer who prior worked in various positions at IDEO London (and other locations) and studied MFA Interaction Design at the renowned Umea Institute of Design in the very north of Sweden. Before deciding to go into IxD she was already working as a full-time Industrial Designer in Sweden which led us to the topic of the intersection of Interaction and Industrial Design. We talk about how both fields can learn from each other, her learnings in the transition and how being interdisciplinary and open can be highly beneficial as a designer to drive things forward. In addition, we also touch on the difference between consultancy/agency and in-house when talking about her role at Spotify and the how design is positioned there.

We talk with Cheryl Platz, a pioneer in the area of AI-driven Voice User Interface Design and one of the first designer on the Amazon Echo System. We talk about the design process of designing the very first interactive voice experiences. Furthermore we learn about her experiences at Microsoft where she worked on both B2C and B2B solutions: Ranging from the Azure Product to AI in-car systems. These days she is driving positive change and impact through design as a Principal Designer at Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. In addition she is also running her own design consulting venture Ideaplatz, takes roles as an Actor and speaks at conferences around the world.

The conversation happened before Cheryl left Microsoft and joined the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.