My big flop
One of the projects I cared most about was a massive flop.
I called it the User Shoes program, a way for me and my fellow product managers to visit consumers in their homes each month.
It was ethnographic-research lite, where the objective was to expand our perspective by seeing how real people were using our products in the real world.
Knowing the corporate politics of the situation, I invited our sister brand to include a team member in the pilot program.
What a mistake.
She...
Avoiding overcorrection when things get messy
I’ve been ruminating over the critical distinction between “letter of the law” and “spirit of the law” - the literal vs. the intent - because as we witness the world’s most powerful democracy floundering, it’s clear that the systems and institutions Americans have relied upon for their democracy to function have at least one striking flaw.
They are predicated on the assumption that those in power will do what’s best for their people - and that...
