Natalja Laurey is an anthropologist, ethnographer, and innovation strategist based in Amsterdam. She works at Strategy Makers, where she helps organizations navigate innovation through the tools of anthropology — observation, immersion, and a deep curiosity about why people do what they do.

What We Cover

• Natalja's journey from academic anthropologist to innovation strategist
• What ethnography is and why it's more powerful than user interviews
• How Natalja conducted her study at Fjord (acquired by Accenture)
• What liminality means and why innovation is a liminal process
• Why designers are "liminal beings" — and why that matters
• The connection between the hero's journey and the role of the designer

Timestamps

00:00 – Introduction: in-between fields and identities
02:00 – Natalja's background: from anthropology to innovation
06:00 – Why innovation is a people process, not just a method
08:00 – Ethnography at Fjord: studying designers from the inside
14:00 – What ethnographers actually do: tools and methods
22:00 – What is liminality? The concept explained
28:00 – Designers as liminal beings and guides through uncertainty
34:00 – The hero's journey and the role of the mentor

Key Takeaways

1. Ethnography reveals what user interviews miss. Interviews capture what people say — ethnography captures what they actually do. Observing people in context produces richer insight than any survey.
2. Innovation is a liminal process — and that discomfort is normal. The in-between state innovators experience has a name, a history, and a body of knowledge around how to navigate it. Recognizing this reduces the panic.
3. Designers are not the hero — they're the guide. The real skill isn't generating ideas, it's creating the conditions in which other people can generate ideas and move through discomfort.

Resources & Links Mentioned

• "Design Thinking Coming of Age" (HBR, 2015 — referenced in episode)
• Strategy Makers: strategymakers.nl
• Fjord (design and innovation consultancy, acquired by Accenture)

Where to Find Natalja Laurey

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/search/results/all/?keywords=Natalja+Laurey+ethnography

Where to Find Yaniv Corem
Link in bio: sleek.bio/yanivcorem
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/yanivcorem

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