Turian Tales | Glimpses of the Emerging | Issue 4
Issue 4 | In this issue of Turian Tales
Infusing Design Culture | Masterclass in Megatrends and Strategic Foresight | How to Build a Great UX Research Team | Hindsight Bias and Flipping a Coin | Gen Z and its Implications on the Luxury Market
As we look into the emergent reality, organizational culture would remain one of the top priorities in face of the rapid change. A lot of companies are making concentrated efforts by fusing in creativity to instill an innovation mindset with institutionalizing ‘failure’ as part of its DNA. The debacle of the Amazon Fire phone is a great example of how failure can be embraced in organization culture.
Bezos shows a better way to handle failure by being willing to quickly let go of the ones that don't work instead, following a portfolio approach. It's the opposite of how leaders often confront failure. They continue to devote energy and resources to bad ideas that end up dragging down their team and their business (world knows the case of Nokia). It is easier said than done, as organizations continue to tread a fine line between short-term goals versus the long-term foresight. There are plausible ways through which organizational culture can be built upon. This is where Design Thinking, as a methodology comes to the fore.
The theme of this newsletter edition is based on the interplay between Design Thinking and the world of Megatrends and Strategic Foresight. Do read and let us know your thoughts.
Until next time, stay safe!
Team Turian Labs
Launch of Masterclass in Megatrends and Strategic Foresight
We at Turian Labs, have been tracking the emerging megatrends for more than a decade and megatrend-based future strategy has been a central part of the services we offer. As the world gradually emerges from the shadow of the pandemic, it has taught innumerable lessons to individuals and businesses alike. The need for futures thinking is not an option anymore.
We are excited to partner with MIT ID Innovation to offer a unique "Masterclass in Megatrends and Strategic Foresight" which is focused on leveraging our expertise in Megatrends and helping individuals build the skill of strategic foresight. The course is scheduled for April 17, 2021. We hosted a teaser for this program on the 27th of February through a rapid megatrends sprint which immersed the participants in the world of futures thinking.
You can catch a replay of the session here - Masterclass launch
Infusing Design Culture
Design Thinking now is a whole new discipline which the purists/designers snigger at and new practitioners swear by it. The key is not to confuse Design Thinking with Design. It enables organizations to ask the right questions, by keeping the user needs (articulated + unarticulated) at the center.
The question is how can organisations integrate Design culture as they prepare for the emergent reality. These aspects were discussed in a freewheeling conversation between George Supreeth (Partner @ Ideasutra) and Manoj Kothari (Chief Design Strategist @ Turian Labs) as part of our last D’IVE session.
You can catch the replay of the session here or read an article by Sajid Khetani which was triggered by this conversation.
Read it here - ‘Infusing Design Culture'
Building a Great UX Research Team
How to build a great qualitative research/ UX Research team? This is a constant question which we keep on getting asked by our clients and peers alike. Manoj Kothari has experience of over a decade and a half in building, scaling, and managing research practice has put together a framework that can be applied to knowledge-centric project teams across the board.
Read it here - Framework for building a great UX research team
Hindsight Bias and Flipping a Coin
As individuals grow and experience various situations across the spectrum, it automatically updates their beliefs with new information, alongside existing information. How many times have you reacted with the statement “I knew it all along”? This is known as hindsight bias. Sajid Khetani shares “flipping a coin” as an approach to improve the efficacy of decision-making and he means it in earnest.
Read it here - Hindsight bias & Flipping a coin
Gen Z and its Implications on the Luxury Market
Luxury is no longer about exclusivity. Gen Zers are now reshaping the idea of luxury with their evolving digital habits and ethical concerns. Luxury brands are now shifting their marketing strategies to cater to this new consumption behaviour. While this has opened up numerous possibilities, the luxury market has been democratized. Kritanya has outlined the Gen Z characteristics and how they impacted the construct of the luxury market by making it more accessible and affordable.
Read it here - How are Gen Zers democratizing the concept of luxury?
The Tale Piece | Quick nuggets
1. UX Research tip of the season
Diary Study is a great method to understand user behaviour over a period for any digital or physical product. One can get great insights on factors that help user engagement and retention. However, it does not help in understanding the core drivers of behaviour for the value proposition for the product/service. For that IDIs or ethnographic interactions is the method to use.
2. NBU fact you can use
Simplification is always one goal that every product designer and product manager likes to have. When it comes to NBUs (Next Billion Users), one may be tempted to overdo this. Often we have found that some amount of complication, unexplained modality retains the user's attention as it engages them in problem-solving and hands out a win.
3. India strategy essential
As we enter the 5th year of the 4G led digital revolution, India now has ~650 mn internet users. India’s rural areas driving its digital revolution, with a 45% growth in internet penetration in 2019 as compared to urban India’s 11%. As more and more new internet users (NIUs) are expected to experience the internet for the first time in the coming years, there is a need to fine-tune the definition of a consumer, moving beyond the traditional socio-economic criteria.
4. A peek into the future
The first-ever commercial space hotel, Voyager Station, aims to open by 2027. Accommodating 280 guests and 112 crew members, the project is being planned by Orbital Assembly Corporation, a construction company. "We're trying to make the public realize that this golden age of space travel is just around the corner. It's coming. It's coming fast," said Blincow, the founder of the company.