HCI Insiders

More about our guest:

Dr. Trond Nilsen, a researcher, entrepreneur, and community organizer focused on XR technologies and game design with applications in health and education.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/trondnz/

https://gix.uw.edu/people/trond-nilsen/

-------------- Timeline -------------

0:00 Introduction

2:06 Road from a graduate student in game, Augmented Reality & education to teaching at University of Washington, Seattle

5:05 Curriculum design & reflections on teaching AR/VR

6:54 Discussing the challenges people new to VR face with the technologies and the tools.

11:19 Difficulties in building a VR course for a diverse student group 

13:27 How Trond got into the fields of Game Design and AR/VR

23:37 Trond’s understanding of Human-Computer Interaction  & connections between HCI and game design; the “WOW effect” of VR

27:57 Projects on education & health

33:32 Challenges of keeping up with the field of AR/VR; advantage of networking and teaching.

39:51 To know about the WHAT and the WHY behind each technology and why this matters in the workplace 

46:32 Challenges faced by the AR/VR industry and some exciting future trends

58:03 Discussing Apple Vision Pro: barriers, limitations and outlooks 

63:02: Advice for people interested in AR/VR

这期节目有幸邀请到微软Senior Product Designer June来分享她从建筑转行交互的学术经历，在北美做Product Designer的职场晋级之路，还有她做留学和求职社群的创业之路。希望这期分享能给大家一些启发！

👥 更多链接：

UX Pie: https://www.uxpie.com/

现在报名使用优惠码HCI INSIDERS可以享受100-500美金不等的优惠哦～

⌚️时间线Timeline:

0:00 start

1:45 June的自我介绍

3:13 为什么最开始选择进入建筑行业？又因为什么而离开？

8:38 是契机让June了解到人机交互领域？

9:24 为什么选择去华盛顿大学UW Seatt;e读二硕

11:24 建筑背景的影响

14:40 对于读硕的建议**

15:56 怎么看待交互行业内卷现状 & 转行建议**

20:37 SAP & TikTok工作经历和成长

25:56 Design Manager职位的感想

28:07 Junior，Senior Designer以及Design Lead的差异

31:08 关于Title与升职**

34:11 关于准备ToB项目**

36:14 Design Consultant & UXPie介绍

39:15 June心目中UX Designer最需要培养的能力**

41:08 回顾过去，给20岁自己的建议

42:56 关于交互设计的未来

Learn more about Prof. Xin Xiangyang

LinkedIn: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/xiangyang-xin-28b0872/⁠

Website: ⁠⁠https://www.xxyinnovation.com/⁠

This episode will talk about Prof. Xin sharing more about his experience and Strategic Thinking in Design, Continuing with us to dive into Prof. Xin's academic journey.

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Timeline: 

00:00 Start

00:30 How Prof. Xin understands the def of design, it’s not just about product and service 

10:09 Think of the strategy behind the product and think of how we can design

11:45 Why did Prof. Xin pivot to multi-field to try and error (e.g., mechanical engineering, art,  philosophy, design), and how did he keep his passion

16:54 Suggestion for all the designers: read news and care about other people

18:57 Suggestion for those who are anxious about getting a job and internship

26:23 Prof. Xin Ph.D. research & advice for those who are interested in social science

33:16 What are the most critical skills and qualities that designers should pursue

Learn more about our guest:

LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/xiangyang-xin-28b0872/

Website: ⁠https://www.xxyinnovation.com/

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We're excited to welcome Professor Xin Xiangyang. Professor Xin is a distinguished professor and doctoral supervisor at Tongji University and the founder of XXY Innovation, a consultancy firm specializing in design thinking and strategic consulting. And I used to work at XXY Innovation as a design consultancy intern.

With a Ph.D. in Design Philosophy from Carnegie Mellon University and an impressive background, Professor Xin has made significant contributions to emerging fields such as interaction design, user experience, service design, and design strategy. He has developed important theories and methods such as the "Five Elements of Interaction," "Behavioral Logic," and "Design Butterfly Effect."

Professor Xin has made his mark in the field of interaction design by organizing international conferences, receiving numerous honors for his research, judging prestigious design competitions, and offering consultancy services to prominent organizations like P&G, the United States Postal Service, and Huawei.

Join us as we explore Professor Xin's groundbreaking work and gain insights into the future of HCI and design.

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Topic Covered:

00:00 Introduction

02:40 More on Prof. Xin’s design education experiences

04:00 Reflections on past & current design education in China

08:05 Reasons for starting another reform; re-positioning of global design education

15:11 Reasons for looking beyond products and services in design education

19:47 Talks about XXY Innovation & comment on China-US business & social context

22:20 Organizational advice for companies (vision, strategy and decision-making) & examples

28:09 Projects that made transformative impacts (healthcare, tourism, desert business, etc)

欢迎大家来到新一期HCI Insiders！这期节目我们有幸邀请到Spotify的产品设计师Minjun Chen。Minjun毕业于华盛顿大学西雅图的MHCI+D专业，她的求学和工作都经历过诸多转折。本科毕业于中央民族大学中文系的Minjun为何选择来美国读教育科技的硕士？又是什么契机让她接触到产品设计并决定去华盛顿大学攻读HCI硕士呢？辗转于硅谷多家知名公司担任产品设计师的Minjun是怎样准备求职的呢？让我们快来听听她的回答吧！

关于Minjun:

⁠https://www.minjundesign.com/⁠

⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/minjunc/⁠

⁠https://www.youtube.com/@minjunux⁠

Timeline: 

00:00 Introduction

02:15 始于Apple iPod Touch的设计师梦想，以及从高中到硕士近十年的逐梦历程

12:10 过去的教育和实习经历对Minjun如今做product designer的影响

15:30 给正在犹豫转行HCI的同学的建议：“不要想着快速成功，这条路并没有那么容易。”

19:11 Minjun毕业这几年，因为身份问题而不得不转辗多家科技公司的心酸经历：“第一次被裁员之后我猜意识到，没有一份工作是永恒的，自我提升才是最重要的。平时有意识地积累和准备作品集素材，找工作的时候就不会慌了。”

27:50 Minjun分享了关于设计师如何快速学习和上手专业领域完全不同的项目的经验：“解决复杂问题的能力是异曲同工的。带着好奇心，多问多看。其实学习新domain knowledge的过程也是自我成长的过程，这也是我感觉做设计师最有意思的地方。”

31:53 初级设计师如何在职场利用工作机会快速成长：“主动找机会提高自己的弱项，多请教组里其他设计师，以及一定要和design manager进行career conversation，告诉manager你需要什么机会，想达到什么目标。一定不要自己闷头做，要多和product manager以及engineer交流。”

37:00 Solo designer更需要一个有经验的mentor来给自己一些design input和feedback

39:58 面试的流程、准备，以及心态的重要性：“每次面试到后来感觉就跟楼下大爷唠嗑一样，聊得嗨了，可能反而因为放松会讲很多。一定不能特别紧张而支支吾吾，面试多了就不紧张了。”

48:10 Minjun开始做YouTuber的原因，制作过程中面临的挑战，以及未来的计划

52:06 华盛顿大学西雅图 (UW Seattle) HCI+D的就读体验分享

55:45 在这么多公司做过各种类型的产品，也和各种风格的团队合作过，Minjun觉得产品设计师最重要的、最需要下功夫重点培养的能力有哪些？

58:48 假如时光倒流，Minjun会给20岁出头的自己说什么？

01:03:12 在Minjun看来，交互设计的未来会是怎样的？

Learn more about our guest.

Anchi’s Portfolio: https://www.anchihsin.com/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anchihsin/

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終於迎來了我們第一期中文節目！今天邀请到的來賓是Mavis之前在設計顧問公司的同事Anchi，現在他在美國加州 Apple擔任Product Designer。Anchi 之前在設計顧問公司擔任UX Designer，負責許多B2B, B2C 的專案。 Anchi會和我們分享他的求學經歷、在設計顧問公司和產品公司的差異分享，在蘋果上班的設計趣事！

今後我們會陸續邀請在海外闖蕩設計師和各地的教授分享他們的工作經驗和求職求學故事，並分別來賓的母語調整用中文或是英文採訪，敬請期待後續的更新！

We finally welcome our first Mandarin episode! Today's guest is Anchi, who used to work with Mavis at a design consulting company. He is now a Product Designer at Apple in California. Anchi was a UX Designer at the design consulting company, responsible for many B2B and B2C projects. Anchi will share his study experience, the differences between design consulting and product companies, and fun design stories from working at Apple!

In the future, we will continue to invite designers working overseas and professors from various places to share their work experiences and job-seeking/study stories. Depending on the mother tongue of the guest, we will produce more episodes by using Mandarin or English. Please look forward to the following updates!

—--------------------------------------------------------------

Topic Covered: 

00:00 Introduction

00:35 Anchi 個人成長背景和工作經驗

02:37 設計顧問公司和In house 公司的差異，建議新鮮人可以去顧問公司試試看

09:26 設計顧問公司如何訓練設計師的情商 

12:09 做to B 和 to C 的產品差異，在作品集呈現上又有什麼樣的差異呢？

18:06 設計顧問公司和 in house 公司的設計流程差異

27:29 完整的設計系統(Design System)是設計師很重要的法寶：減少溝通成本，加快工作流程

33:42 蘋果和美國公司面試流程，有哪些小細節需要注意

42:38 CCA (Califorinia College of the Arts) Interaction Design 的求學體驗：深入探討人的行為模式，是我最喜歡的地方

52:02 畢業後回頭看，在學校可以培養的最主要技能：思維方式、設計方法、看事情的角度和問對的問題

54:12 大學畢業前夕，如何準備作品集和作品集製作技巧

01:01:12 Anchi 短中長期的規劃

Learn more about our guest:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/raelinmusuraca/

Website: https://raelin.me/

------------------------------

We're very excited to have Professor Raelin Musuraca in this episode. With a background in interaction design, marketing, and journalism, Raelin has extensive experience in leveraging human-centered research and design methods to help companies improve their customer experience and increase revenue. She is currently an Assistant Professor at Carnegie Mellon University, Human-Computer Interaction Institute, and also owns her own design consulting company, Raelin Research. During her career, she has worked with various companies, helping them to develop a deep understanding of their customers through research and design. We are eager to learn more about her unique perspectives on human-centered design and customer experience.

In fact, Professor Raelin was the inspiration behind this podcast program. We had lunch in March where she gave us valuable advice on networking by reaching out to professionals, professors, and TAs around us. Her words stuck with me for a long time — “People love to talk about themselves!” 

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Topic Covered:

00:00 - Introduction

02:10 - What motivated you to start teaching at CMU after two decades of industry experience? Can you tell us more about your decision to switch career paths and what motivated you to become a professor now?

04:36 - As someone who has spent time in both industry and academia, how has your industry experience shaped your teaching approach and focus? Will you share your past industry experience/projects with the class while you are teaching? 

05:33 - Why Raelin doesn't like the word “soft skill”, as those are the most important skills. Can these skills be tested in behavior questions interviews? 

08:38 - Do you have any memorable moments or challenges in teaching?

10:23 - What aspect of teaching do you find the most rewarding/valuable? 

11:48 - Now let’s move on to the career side. We saw on your profile that your bachelors degree was in journalism, but then you got your master in professional writing and eventually launched your career in creative leadership. We are wondering how you made those transitions and why?

17:17 - Why would you want to get a job at big tech companies like Google? Think more about how you want to contribute to the world. One direction is to reflect on how we can make impacts beyond the screens and improve other people’s lives through technology.

18:30 - We found marketing and service design an important part in your experience. How can having a marketing mindset benefit UX designers or researchers? Do you think aspiring UX practitioners like us need to train our marketing mindset intentionally?

24:20 - We found out you also worked in banking industries and retail industries before. What is the difference between working with them, and are they using different user methodologies?

30:28 - Could you tell us more about Raelin Research LLC and why you decided to start your own design consulting company?

33:00 - What advice do you have for students interested in pursuing a career in design and research?

37:13 - What skills do you think are most essential for success in this field?

40:42 - What do you see as the future of design and research, particularly in the context of emerging technologies?

43:22 - This is a question we ask all of our guests on the show: If you could go back and speak to your younger self in your 20s, what advice or message would you give to yourself?

Learn more about our guest:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/linda-wagner-9714641/

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In this conversation, we're excited to welcome our special guest, Linda Wagner, who has had an impressive career transitioning from in-house roles at companies to academia. As an accomplished educator and innovator, Linda brings extensive experience in interdisciplinary learning, curriculum development, and program leadership to her current position as Director of Academic Programs for the Master of Science in Technology Innovation (MSTI) and the UW Global Innovation Exchange (GIX).

With a rich background in design, product, and business strategy, Linda has significantly influenced GIX's interdisciplinary programs. Her career has focused on the synergy between business, technology, and design, offering valuable perspectives on working in-house at companies like Microsoft and in design consultancy roles.

Join us as we explore Linda's journey, her thoughts on interdisciplinary learning, the innovative projects from the Global Innovation Exchange, and her experiences in diverse roles within the corporate and academic worlds.

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Topic Covered:

0:00 - Introduction

2:37 - Overview of the MSTI program at the University of Washington & Linda’s roles

9:38 - Difference between MSTI and some other HCI-related programs at UW

13:42 - Linda’s thoughts on the field and career inspirations back when she started graduate school in 1997

19:06 - Reasons behind Linda’s switch from industry to academia: “from shipping products to shipping people”

23:40 - Linda’s work experience with design consultancy: “For me, once I learned something, I’m no longer interested in repeating over and over again and perfecting it. I want to learn something new.”

29:16 - Conversations on so-called “soft skills” and the importance of having empathy

30:28 - Linda’s work experience at Microsoft

35:46 - The challenges Linda faced at Microsoft and how she overcame them

41:03 - The impact of Linda’s Microsoft experience on her perspective in teaching

44:07 - Linda’s suggestion on essential skills for success in the field of HCI

49:27 - Talking deeper into AI, emerging technologies, and designers’ responsibilities

55:43 - Linda’s suggestions for herself back in her 20s: “Follow your passions and figure out how to make it happen.”

Learn more about our guest:

https://anna.zone/

https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=m9KnomIAAAAJ&hl=en

------------------------------

Jason and Clara have had the pleasure of getting to know Anna quite well, as we have been working on an independent study project together, with Anna serving as their advisor. Anna is an energetic, talkative, and joyful person with whom to converse. Despite having known each other since February, we hadn't had the chance to sit down and discuss their personal experiences and thoughts on HCI.

As we looked into Anna's academic journey, which included transitions from Spain, France, public policy, and now to human-computer interaction and virtual reality, we became increasingly curious about her restless journey. Anna never stops exploring new fields and firmly believes that it's never too late to pursue one's interests. Her words are great for soothing the anxiety we feel during this difficult time of job hunting, and to think about the more essential things that drive us into the field. Just keep the initial enthusiasm, and worry less about the outcome. After all, there's no right or wrong path! Without further ado, here is their conversation with Anna!

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Topic Covered: 

00:00 - Introduction

01:00 - Anna’s journey before transiting to human-computer interaction (HCI)

05:50 - How Anna’s previous experience influenced her research in HCI

07:28 - The reason why Anna chose to pursue a Ph.D. degree but not MS

10:26 - Anna’s doctoral research focus 

12:30 - Interest-driven versus practical planning while doing doctoral research - Research through play! 

14:54 - Anna’s suggestions to prospective Ph.D. students

16:50 - Teaching assistants experiences at CMU

19:37 - Recommended courses at CMU

23:37 - How did Anna pick up her interests in VR/AR

33:20 - Anna’s thoughts and reflections on career and academic stress and pressure

36:00 - Anna’s suggestions for herself back in 20ish: “You were trying to figure things out, and that’s good. Enjoy your 20s, don’t be too serious. Don’t be too hard on yourself. Just trying different things. And there’s no right or wrong path.”

Welcome to the HCI Insiders Show! 👋

We're students from Carnegie Mellon University, Human-Computer Interaction Institute and University of Washington, Master of Science in Technology Innovation. Clara and Jason have an architectural design background, and Mavis studied international business, but we all made the switch to HCI and have our sights set on becoming product designers in the future.

Get ready for an exclusive look into the world of human-computer interaction with HCI Insiders! Join top professors of HCI and product designers as they share their insider tips and tricks for landing your dream job, preparing for interviews, and creating unforgettable user experiences. Whether you're a junior designer or a seasoned pro, HCI Insiders is the ultimate podcast for UX design career success. So tune in, buckle up, and get inspired by the incredible stories and insights of our HCI Insiders!

And we'll see you in the next episode!