Presentations
Talks and conference presentations on product strategy, user experience, organizational design, and applied anthropology.
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Women Talk Design
I had the opportunity to serve on a panel in Chicago with some other talented women in design, including Kathi Kaiser of Centralis, Tanarra Schneider of Accenture, and Mick Champagne of Digitas. We answered questions from our moderator and also from the audience. It was a fun and engaging way to meet others from the… Read More ->
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Collaboration by Design
In the opening keynote for UX Camp Chicago, I spoke integration and amplification. How do we deepen our focus on interdisciplinary collaboration, in order to deliver better experiences and – ultimately – better business outcomes. Read More ->
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Humanizing Business with Stories
During the first week of April, I had the opportunity visit Smith College, where I did my undergraduate degree. I was there to talk to Anthropology majors, speak to a Methods class (Anthropology with a sprinkling of Design Thinking), and deliver a public lecture. It was great to be back on campus and interact with the… Read More ->
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AAA16 – Design Anthropology
My AAA 2016 talk on design anthropology in software — why building for real users takes social scientists and designers working alongside the engineers, not guessing. Read More ->
Podcasts & Press
Podcast appearances and interviews on building product organizations, the anthropologist-as-operator, and what it takes to scale.
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TagTalkTribe interview
It’s clear Natalie’s “build-it-from-scratch” spirit never took a coffee break. From steering engineering teams and scaling organizations from zero to 300 people (not a typo) to pioneering new paradigms in women’s health – she’s made a habit of leaving legacies, not just LinkedIn endorsements. Read More ->
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Interview with Brave UX
This blog post is the transcription of a podcast I did with Brendan Jarvis in early February. He’s done a number of interview with senior folks in the field, and they are definitely worth a listen! You can find Brave UX on all the major podcasting platforms, and also on YouTube. I’ve done many of… Read More ->
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Fairygodboss interview
Who better to lead User Experience than an anthropologist? Meet Natalie Hanson. She’s a Principal at ZS, where she provides human-centered strategy, research and design for clients. In addition to a master’s and Ph.D. in Anthropology, she also has a master’s in Whole Systems Design. She’s the sponsor of Pride@ZS, the company’s LGBTQ+ Employee Resource… Read More ->
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Research as a Vehicle for Organizational Transformation
In this Rosenfeld Review conversation, I trace my path from anthropology to leadership with Lou Rosenfeld — and why the growth opportunity for senior researchers is driving organizational transformation, not perfecting a method. Read More ->
Academic Writing
Peer-reviewed papers, conference proceedings, and theoretically grounded writing at the intersection of organizational anthropology, design, and technology.
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Farsighted
Recent publications in behavioral economics (Blink, How We Decide, Thinking Fast and Slow) are largely lab-based studies. But reality is messier – key business decisions often have multiple complex considerations, and they are made by a small or medium-sized multi-disciplinary group. Johnson argues that we are better at considering the consequences of our actions than… Read More ->
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An Uneasy Truce
Over the past few decades, much has been written about the ways in which project teams bring technologies to market. In this context, social scientists typically partner with specialized designers to bring their research and new concepts to life in a way that is consumable by a variety of team members, including engineers and data… Read More ->
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Collaboration by Design
In the opening keynote for UX Camp Chicago, I spoke integration and amplification. How do we deepen our focus on interdisciplinary collaboration, in order to deliver better experiences and – ultimately – better business outcomes. Read More ->
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Interview with ‘This Anthro Life’
Today we talked with Natalie about how software is a product of culture, the state of enterprise UX today, and how she goes about selling research in the enterprise space. We also dig into the fact that research might not always be perfect or live up to your expectations or desires. Finally, we touch on… Read More ->