Natalie Hanson, Ph.D.

Speaking & Writing

Building what scaling companies need next.

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Presentations

Talks and conference presentations on product strategy, user experience, organizational design, and applied anthropology.

  • Themes in Ethnographic Research

    Fjord’s design researchers asked me to share an anthropologist’s perspective on ethnographic inquiry in business. I answered with the themes I look for — kinship and power, ritual, language, material culture. Read More ->

  • Humanizing Business Technology

    I attended the The Qualitative Report’s Fourth Annual Conference at the end of this week.  I enjoyed listening and learning to many of the sessions, and on Saturday morning I presented the Closing Plenary.  In addition to sharing a bit about my own personal and professional journey, I also had a chance share my thoughts about the… Read More ->

  • Ethnography / PAMA

    This week I had the opportunity to present as part of a Lunch and Learn panel entitled Ethnography: Understand and Shape your Brand Experience for the Philadelphia chapter of the American Marketing Association (PAMA). Here is a description of the event from PAMA: The difference between a successful product launch, and one that falls short…or… Read More ->

  • Ethnography: Understand and Shape your Brand Experience

    Panel Abstract The difference between a successful product launch, and one that falls short … or fails is often an “ah-HA! moment” during its design and packaging. For nearly a decade some of the biggest brands have taken the inside track to market dominance—and that track rolls right through the user’s home, office or worksite.… Read More ->

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Podcasts & Press

Podcast appearances and interviews on building product organizations, the anthropologist-as-operator, and what it takes to scale.

  • Sharing & Communicating User Research

    This blog post is a transcript of a podcast / interview I did earlier this year with Zack Naylor, the CEO of Aurelius. Among other things, we discussed what makes for effective interdisciplinary collaboration, and why it’s so important. Read More ->

  • The Path to UX

    Last Fall I was elected a Principal and partner at ZS.  It was such an honor to be recognized by the firm in that way.  During their first year, each newly elected Principal is featured in our internal newsletter.  My profile was published last week; I’m sharing a slightly redacted version here.  Read More ->

  • Think Big Thoughts

    In 2006, I was interviewed by Spencer Ante at BusinessWeek for an article they called The Science of Desire.  The article focused on the ways ethnographic research was being used to shape an understanding of customers.  I was quoted in one of the sidebars (top left box in the image below). At the time, I… Read More ->

  • 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 ->

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Academic Writing

Peer-reviewed papers, conference proceedings, and theoretically grounded writing at the intersection of organizational anthropology, design, and technology.

  • Cultivating moral jazz

    Overview A couple of years ago I was a member of Creative Good’s UX Councils, and I had a chance to hear Barry Schwartz present a keynote based on the insights from his book Practical Wisdom. He is also the author of bestseller Paradox of Choice. That presentation continues to inform my thinking and the… Read More ->

  • Forget willpower

    As people start the traditional making and breaking of New Year’s resolutions, willpower seems to be at top of mind for many.  I have been ruminating on what I want to accomplish this year, and how I’ll put the right steps in place to get there.  I’m sure many of you have been doing the… Read More ->

  • Talent Management

    In my dissertation research, I explored the different mechanisms of control at work within the corporate context. I took advantage of my insider access as a corporate employee to describe and analyze varied of business practices and deconstruct them from an anthropological point of view. I looked at everything from employee communications, to budgeting, to… Read More ->

  • Sustaining Stories

    Abstract Ethnographers, in a sense, play the role of story creators and storytellers.  For “in-house” ethnographers engaged in the long-term work of making sense of and contributing to organizations, a challenge emerges: discovering and managing the retrospective and prospective meaning of their storytelling. The narratives produced in these contexts – and the fieldwork from which… Read More ->

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Building what scaling companies need next.

© 2026 Natalie Hanson