Archive for dee studio (486j)
Studio Update
November 24th, 2010 • dee studio (486j)
It was interesting to hear from every group in today’s session. Unfortunately due to time constraints each presentation felt so rushed that it was hard for me to really grasp what each group was trying to do. As a result the quality of feedback suffered.
The “go further” advice that was given out today seems like it would have been useful a few weeks ago, when we could have ample time to adjust. Now we are just a week from presenting and it is a little late to start making big changes.
Pare it down
November 17th, 2010 • dee studio (486j)
Perhaps this would have been a good topic to discuss in class – principals for selecting the best ideas among many. I imagine a number of other groups are going through this process now.
As this project is so open-ended, and little has been done in this area that we can see, it is tempting to try to take it on all at once and produce a completely polished product. We’ve really blown up our project, we’ve come up with a number of good ideas that we can see being implemented together – incentives, ways to display information, connecting the individual to the community.
Now we face the reality that we cannot cover all of those ideas well given our time constraints. It is time to focus on a few key ideas.
Connections, part two
November 12th, 2010 • dee studio (486j), marketing (296)
As I continue to work on the Pulse/AMS project for the d-studio (486J) I’ve noticed a number of other marketing connections.
Our idea is basically an interface that informs you of the energy consequences of the food-related decisions you make in the Student Union Building (altering the shopping experience). Clearly anyone can use it right away, but what segment should we target as we introduce it?
As we are introducing something new, we need to first focus on the innovators: the sustainability-minded individuals that frequent the Student Union Building. Perhaps the same type of people who frequent Sprouts.
In order to accelerate diffusion to the early adopters and the majority, we need to ensure that the system we design is compatible, visible, easy to use, and provides some sort of advantage.
Going forward
Survey/focus group people in Sprouts in order to get feedback.
Go through our proposal so far in order to ensure it meets as many of the diffusion requirements as we can.
Drawing connections
October 26th, 2010 • dee studio (486j), marketing (296)
As the term progresses I keep seeing strong connections between 296 and the d-studio (486J). This became quite evident over the past few days, when I began considering our next project for the studio working with Pulse Energy, AMS Catering and the new SUB.
We have been given quite a bit of lee-way with defining the scope of our project, so in order to frame the project in my head I began to write, draw and color. I began with a question:
What does energy monitoring enable?
The way I see it, energy monitoring supplies information so that we may change our behaviour. Whose behaviour are we looking to change with this project? The Catering department’s, or its customers’? And what behaviour specifically?
Catering’s energy intensiveness seems to be determined by 3 things: the efficiency of their equipment, their processes and the types of food they prepare. The move to the new SUB means all new equipment, and they have been working to improve the efficiency of their processes for the move. Of course, monitoring could help further improve Catering’s efficiency but it seems that Pulse has already developed, or is currently developing, many solutions for the business side of the equation.
For me, framing the problem around the consumer seems more open and interesting. The consumer determines what food is prepared by Catering, so if we can influence their purchasing behaviour we can lower energy consumption.
What determines their purchasing behaviour? Recall: Consumer behaviour.
1. Psychological factors (needs/motives, attitudes, lifestyle, learning, perception)
2. Social factors (family, reference groups)
3. Situational factors (purchase situation, shopping situation, temporal state)
4. Marketing mix (product, price, promotion, place)
The decision making process: Identify need -> Search for information -> Evaluate alternatives -> Purchase -> Post purchase
Where can Pulse monitoring fit in?
It seems obvious that by presenting information to consumers (while purchasing) would affect the shopping situation. Assuming the information is well presented, it could also affect the consumer’s temporal state, and their attitudes (particularly the cognitive, and perhaps the affective portions) through learning.
We can also assume that monitoring may affect price, as it provides Catering with more accurate cost information.
Further questions
What specifically does the decision making process look like for Catering’s segment? What type of information will resonate with them the most, and what is the best way to present it to them?
Johnny Bunko
October 17th, 2010 • 1 comment dee studio (486j)
Dan Pink should sound familiar to those in the d-studio. An excerpt from A Whole New Mind was assigned reading, and we’ve talked about him briefly in class. He has a great TED talk about workplace incentives.
This book is a fun read, perfect for anyone at Sauder thinking about what they want to do when they graduate. Its the first business manga, and you’ll zip right through it. Don’t let it fool you, there are some good lessons in here.
1. There is no plan
2. Strengths, not weaknesses
3. It’s not about you
4. Persistence trumps talent
5. Make excellent mistakes
6. Leave an imprint
I’ll leave it up to you to fill in the blanks. Highly recommended.
Stupid simple drawings
October 14th, 2010 • 1 comment dee studio (486j)
It was flattering to hear how well the visuals for our presentation went over with the guest panel. And they were designers!
While they may have looked “stupid” it really took a lot of time to narrow down what the key ideas were, and how to visually represent those without any excess noise. I Sharpie’d through many sheets of paper before I was able to come up with sketches that clearly represented the main point we were trying to get across.
The process also helped inform the content of the presentation. As I began sketching we only had discussed a rough outline for our presentation. Given that guideline I was able to experiment with many different ways to communicate our ideas, each opening up new avenues for exploration. Each different visual representation also had a slightly different verbal representation, so it was really a matter of selecting the combination that would be most effective especially given the tight time constraints.
In the end I think it was right to cut out all of the unnecessary details out of our initial presentation in order to make it more understandable for everyone. Given that everyone had a strong handle on our proposal right away, we had lots of time to discuss the finer details during the discussion session which followed.
To use Don’s analogy, we tried to throw one ping pong ball at a time.
Whats your signal to noise ratio?
Exit Bike Kitchen, enter assignment 5. From the limited information Ron and Moura disclosed today, it looks exciting.
Design thinker
October 13th, 2010 • dee studio (486j)
What did I learn from this activity? Mostly that IDEO is a heck of a company. You can get lost on their website, it is full of great resources.
With regard to the exercise, it is really interesting to see how momentum really plays a key part in idea generation and brainstorming. Early on Moura touched on how it is important to keep the energy in the room up during sessions like these. Our team hit a couple road bumps, and some of us were not really familiar with each other, but it was important to keep pushing so we could turn off the critical voice in order to generate some good ideas. I found the same thing working on a project in a different team: at first everyone was a little quiet with the ideas, but once we forced the first two ideas they came flowing and we filled a page in no time.
One problem I had with the exercise: when you receive points based on your ability to “judge” ideas, you are basically getting points for being the most like all of the other teams. Perhaps this is the only way to award points given the dynamic of this game, but really the goal should not be to think like everyone else. This does not make a good judge. Often the most innovative, and perhaps the best, ideas are not going to appeal to everyone initially.
If the idea does appeal to everyone initially? Perhaps its not innovative enough.
Pursuit of Perfection
October 6th, 2010 • dee studio (486j)
Last week Hugo posed a question that was along these lines:
“How do I know when to stop iterating a physical product. When do I release it?”
Immediately I remembered Guy Kawasaki’s The Art of the Start (great book). Guy suggests that you get the product immediately to market, then fix, ship, fix, ship.
Seth Godin often encourages people to ship, ship, ship. Fail often, learn, and keep shipping.
Do it, do it better. Iterate, critique, iterate.
The only way to know if what you are doing is working is to get it out there. In the long run this process is more important than just a great first version. Imagine how long it would have taken Apple to come up with its current line of MacBooks, without having released the previous editions?
Interestingly enough, we spend most of our school lives going all-in on all of our assignments. There is no room for this process, just achieve perfection by the deadline.
Bonus cookie
Also from The Art of the Start: Guy’s 10/20/30 rule for presentations. Simply:
10 slides
20 minutes
30 point font
This is specifically for VC pitches, but it works basically everywhere. For everyone who thinks 8 slides is not enough for 3 minutes, Guy thinks you only need 2, maximum.
To help get you there
Garr Reynold’s Presentation Zen
Week 4: On Blogging
October 1st, 2010 • dee studio (486j)
Start blogging!
So not everyone has started blogging regularly. When I first heard I’d have to write two blog posts a week (one for 296, one for 486J) I was a little disappointed. Two more things to do each week on top of all the regular course work? And what am I supposed to write about anyway?
But now that I’ve put out a few posts I am enjoying it. The process of writing a blog requires you to organize your thoughts in a way you may not normally do mentally. A couple times I’ve started writing a post with a clear argument and purpose in my head, and once I’ve reviewed my ideas in writing I’ll see it in a new light and completely change direction. In the end I feel I have a much stronger understanding of the topic.
I find subjects come much easier once you get into the swing of it, too.
So just get writing. Silence your critical voice for a second and iterate. It’s not like anyone’s going to read it anyway.
Unless you get profiled in class. Then you’ll get critiqued!
What did I learn from Wednesday’s class?
I need to be more prepared to present my work at any time. Though I feel that I bombed the presentation part, I was quite pleased with the discourse afterward. I found it much easier to think and recall facts and insights when asked questions or given direct feedback. When Moura put up the canvas it was like I was seeing it for the first time – “Bike Kitchen? What?” It is always interesting to get up in front of the class and I look forward to doing it again soon.
The Back of the Napkin
September 29th, 2010 • dee studio (486j)
Premise
Problems are complex, pictures are clear. You can use a picture, or series of pictures, to help understand or solve any problem.
Our brains can recognize patterns, and other precognitive visual attributes, in images instantaneously. This allows for a more comprehensive understanding of the data and relationships than any equally detailed written description. Since our “low level” mental capacity takes care of the basic relationships right away, our “upper level” mental capacity is reserved for “seeing” things that are not present in the picture – solutions or ideas.
Sound simple?
Don’t be fooled – it’s not. Once you start reading you’ll see it is difficult to do effectively.
This book shows you exactly which pictures to draw, in almost every circumstance. It goes far beyond simple bar charts, into portraits, maps, flowcharts and multi-variable plots. And it includes the SQVID, a visual thinking exercise guaranteed to turn any problem you have on its head – 10 different ways.
Highly recommended for anyone interested in visual thinking. To those who are not so convinced about this approach to problem solving, you’ll be satisfied to know there is a great deal of analysis you must go through before you actually start drawing. And it is designed to be read in one sitting!
Available in the David Lam Library.
Memorable quote:
Drawing our pictures is going to be harder than expected for the artistically gifted … and it’s going to be easier than expected for the “I’m not visual” crowd.
What is it helpful for?
Case studies, analysis, presentations, decision making.
Further reading
Unfolding the Napkin by Dan Roam
Now You See It by Stephen Few