Natalie Hanson Summary of EUX16
In June 2016, I attended the second annual Enterprise UX conference. I was energized both by the presenters and by the ensuing dialogue! I met many people leading teams and/or doing work that was very similar to what my teams do, so I am looking forward to attending the conference again this year. It is scheduled for June 8-9 at the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco, in the Innovation Hangar. Workshops will precede the conference on June 7th.
Following the 2016 conference, I shared a seven-slide summary of my EUX takeaways with colleagues here at work, and I thought there might be value in sharing them more broadly as well. This one was stuck in WordPress drafts for some reason, so consider this post a gentle reminder that #EUX17 is only six months away. 🙂
Opening keynote speaker Greg Petroff reminded us that new technologies are rapidly changing what is possible; we have to be cognizant of these shifts as we imagine new solutions.
Petroff went on to say that the growing momentum towards component-based architecture should enable us to turn our attention to what we build and why.
Fredrik Matheson reminded us that in an effort to get to market quickly, we often make solutions harder for our users than they need to be.
Multiple talks (by Nathan Curtis and Dawn Ressel, among others) focused on the need to create sophisticated design systems that enable consistency and establish cross-functional understanding.
In the past few years, a growing number of design firms and UX consultancies have been acquired by larger companies. The only way we’ll acquire and keep talent is by providing the right internal culture, and by ensuring our teams have the right work and opportunities to keep them engaged as they grow. I found the approach shared by Adam Cutler from IBM (shown below) to be particularly thoughtful and compelling.
A number of speakers spoke of the importance of measuring the value and impact of the work we’re doing. Only 23% of companies who are committed to a better Customer Experience can do that today.
UX and Design are increasingly associated with innovative growth. Thus, as leaders we have the responsibility to enable that growth by amplifying awareness and understanding beyond the borders of our own teams. Maria Giudice’s presentation along these lines – specifically her focus on amplifying our collective impact – was the most compelling one of the conference for me, based on where I am with the evolution and maturity of my current team.
I hope you enjoyed this brief summary of the 2016 Enterprise UX Conference. The program website has a link to presentation videos and the official sketchnotes. The videos are on the Rosenfeld Media YouTube channel, and you can also find and download all the slides on Slideshare.
I’d welcome your feedback on my reflections, and hope to see you in San Francisco later this year.
Natalie Hanson 