Podcasts about interviewing users

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Best podcasts about interviewing users

Latest podcast episodes about interviewing users

Design Downtime
Steve Portigal Loves Creative Writing

Design Downtime

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 24, 2025 29:35 Transcription Available


Here comes the literary trope of the “interview podcast”, when Steve Portigal joins us to talk about his journey into creative writing. Known for his non-fiction books on user research, he shares how he discovered a passion for writing fiction during the pandemic when he hit a personal wall, and enrolled in a creative writing course. Steve talks about balancing clarity with ambiguity, learning that not every reader needs to understand every reference, and his exploration of different writing styles and formats, from short stories about eccentric small-town characters to linked short stories about alien invasions.Guest BioSteve Portigal (he/him) is an experienced user researcher who helps organizations to build mature user research practices. He is the author of Interviewing Users: How To Uncover Compelling Insights (now in a second edition, including an audiobook version) and Doorbells, Danger, and Dead Batteries: User Research War Stories. He's also the host of the Dollars to Donuts podcast.Steve is also generously offering a discount on his book. Use discount code DOWNTIME for 10% off of Interviewing Users when purchased from Rosenfeld Media. The discount code is good for the next 30 days, and you can also find this information in the show notes. LinksSteve's book, Interviewing Users (2nd Edition): https://rosenfeldmedia.com/books/interviewing-users-second-edition/.Use promo code DOWNTIME for 10% off when purchased from Rosenfeld Media. The discount code is good for the next 30 days.Steve's website: https://portigal.com/Steve's books: https://portigal.com/books/Steve's podcast, Dollars to Donuts: https://portigal.com/podcast/Steve on LinkededIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/steveportigal/CreditsCover design by Raquel Breternitz.

Design Better Podcast
Steve Portigal: The art of interviewing users

Design Better Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 16, 2024 58:47


There's an art to interviewing customers. It's so much harder than just asking a few people some questions. If we're not careful, bias can throw off our findings. And sometimes the most salient information that may inform the next generation of your products can slip by even the most seasoned researchers. Few people have mastered interviewing users as well as our guest today—author and independent research practitioner Steve Portigal. Steve's just released a second edition to his popular book, Interviewing Users, that expands upon the principles and techniques introduced in the first edition, and provides guidance for conducting user research remotely. It's essential stuff for anyone in UX. Find the full show notes, transcript and more on our Substack: https://designbetterpodcast.com/p/steve-portigal Bio Steve Portigal is an experienced user researcher who helps companies harness the strategic power of insights. Steve has interviewed hundreds of people, including families eating breakfast, hotel maintenance staff, probiotic distributors, rock musicians, home-automation enthusiasts, credit-default swap traders, business school professors and radiologists. His clients are leaders in telecommunications, banking, media, energy and eCommerce. He is the author of two books: The classic Interviewing Users: How To Uncover Compelling Insights and new, Doorbells, Danger, and Dead Batteries: User Research War Stories. He's also the host of the Dollars to Donuts podcast, where he interviews people who lead user research in their organizations. *** Premium Episodes on Design Better This ad-supported episode is available to everyone. If you'd like to hear it ad-free, upgrade to our premium subscription, where you'll get an additional 2 ad-free episodes per month (4 total). Premium subscribers also get access to our monthly AMAs with former guests, ad-free episodes, early and discounted access to workshops, and our new enhanced newsletter The Brief that compiles salient insights, quotes, readings, and creative processes uncovered in the show.   Upgrade to paid *** Visiting the links below is one of the best ways to support our show: Zeplin: Few things frustrate designers quite as much as seeing the UI they've meticulously designed, botched when built out. But Zeplin can help you make every design-to-dev handoff efficient and accurate so you nail every release on time and on budget. Design Better listeners can get their first month of the Basic Plan free. Just go to zeplin.io and use code DESIGNBETTER to get your first month of the Basic Plan free. Greenlight: Years ago, Aarron and Eli set up their kids with Greenlight, a debit card and money app made for families. Their allowance is automatically deposited into their account and is divided into three buckets: spending, saving, and giving. With Greenlight's investing tools, we've helped our kids learn how to invest in stocks and mutual funds and they can see those investments grow. Sign up for Greenlight today and get your first month free: http://greenlight.com/designbetter Babbel: Babbel's quick 10-minute lessons are hand-crafted by over 200 language experts to help you start speaking a new language in as little as 3 weeks. Here's a special, (limited time) deal for our listeners: Right now get up to 60% off your Babbel subscription by visiting http://babbel.com/designbetter. Rules and restrictions may apply. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

ENLIVEN, with Andrew Skotzko
Steve Portigal: Improving your user research process

ENLIVEN, with Andrew Skotzko

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 28, 2024 74:19


Steve Portigal is a veteran user research leader and consultant who helps companies mature their research practices. He's the author of Interviewing Users, a classic in the field, and the host of the design leadership podcast Dollars to Donuts. In this conversation, we explore:• how to use creative practices to develop your voice as a leader and storyteller• how to be a smart consumer of research findings when you aren't an expert in the craft of research• one simple question leaders can ask to set their organizations to make the most of research• and how to create the conditions for high-impact, effective creative work in your team—Topics discussed(10:21) Experimenting with writing and finding one's voice(15:47) Feedback model: GASP - goals, attempts, successes, possibilities(19:53) Workshops, creativity, and self-doubt(27:06) Embrace authenticity, find your unique facilitation style(28:10) Appreciating different approaches, understanding executives' skepticism(34:37) Engage with compassion(39:29) Research is essential for informed decision-making(49:01) Compassion and reflection are crucial for leaders(50:48) Create a safe learning space for engagement(56:03) Assessing code quality and marketing effectiveness(01:00:39) Research raises questions, timing and deployment important(01:10:31) Stay fascinated with the world around you—Links & resources mentioned• Send episode feedback on Twitter @askotzko , or via email• Steve Portigal: website, LinkedIn• Book: Interviewing Users• Podcast: Dollars to Donuts—Related episodes• #3 Christina Wodtke: Unleashing potential with extraordinary teams• #62 Sahil Lavingia: Independent Thinking & Pricing at Gumroad—Books• Interviewing Users• Don't Make Me Think—Other resources• Great User Research (for Non-Researchers)• When to Use Which User-Experience Research Methods• Nielsen: Why You Only Need to Test with 5 Users This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com

Product Thinking
Episode 177: The Evolution of User Research: A Conversation with Steve Portigal, Author of Interviewing Users

Product Thinking

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 26, 2024


In this episode of the Product Thinking podcast, host Melissa Perri celebrates the updated ten-year anniversary edition of Interviewing Users with author Steve Portigal. Steve explains what has changed in those ten years, and why this was a necessary update.

UX Podcast
Interviewing users with Steve Portigal

UX Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later May 30, 2024


S02E18 (#328). Over ten years have passed since the first edition of Steve Portigal’s legendary book Interviewing Users was released. Together with Steve, we reflect on how user research has evolved during the past decade, and how the importance of user research in order to understand people and their needs is still crucial.

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UI Breakfast: UI/UX Design and Product Strategy
Episode 280: User Interviewing Techniques with Steve Portigal

UI Breakfast: UI/UX Design and Product Strategy

Play Episode Listen Later Mar 8, 2024 50:30


Ready to learn tricks of the trade from professional user researchers? Our guest today is Steve Portigal, user research consultant and author of Interviewing Users. You'll learn how to prepare for a user interview, what your interview guide should contain, behavior cues to look out for, and more.Podcast feed: subscribe to https://feeds.simplecast.com/4MvgQ73R in your favorite podcast app, and follow us on iTunes, Stitcher, or Google Podcasts.Show NotesInterviewing Users — Steve's bookCheck out Steve's websiteDollars to Donuts — Steve's podcastConnect with Steve on LinkedInUse the code UIBREAKFAST to get 20% off the book from Rosenfeld MediaThis episode is brought to you by UC San Diego. Thinking about diving into the dynamic world of UX design, but not sure where to start? Explore UC San Diego Extended Studies' UX Design Certificate. Master essential skills to build a standout portfolio that will help you land your dream job. Enroll today in Principles of UX and get 10% off as our listener. Head over to DiscoverUX.ucsd.edu and use code DISCOVERUX to apply the discount.Interested in sponsoring an episode? Learn more here.Leave a ReviewReviews are hugely important because they help new people discover this podcast. If you enjoyed listening to this episode, please leave a review on iTunes. Here's how.

Understanding Users
62. How do you uncover the most compelling insights when interviewing your users?: Author Steve Portigal

Understanding Users

Play Episode Listen Later Mar 4, 2024 66:52


Steve Portigal is an experienced user researcher who helps organisations to build more mature user research practices. He is principal of Portigal Consulting, and the author of two books: Doorbells, Danger, and Dead Batteries and Interviewing Users, the second edition of which is now out. He's also the host of the Dollars to Donuts podcast.  In this episode, Steve and I discuss the latest edition of his classic book 'Interviewing Users'. Some highlights from this episode: > 05:20 - How user research has evolved in the last 10 years and the genesis of the second edition of the book > 11:00 - Remote research and the impact of COVID  > 17:22 - Developments in user research tooling > 23:40 - Emergence of ResearchOps as a career path  > 31:40 - Navigating challenges in running user research > 39:37 - Steve's own key takeaway from the book  > 45:11 - Feedback loops and ways of building rapport with users > 50:35 - The joy and privilege of researching and learning  > 57:25 - The impact of AI on research as a discipline I hope you will find plenty here that's thought-provoking to consider in the context of your own work :)   And there's a SPECIAL LISTENER OFFER: until 4 March 2024, you can purchase Steve's new book with a 20% discount here with the code understandingusers. :)  Thanks for listening! Mike Green @ Researchable FULL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT HIGHLIGHTS TRANSCRIPT    

The Product Manager
How to Master User Interviews To Build More Lovable Products

The Product Manager

Play Episode Listen Later Jan 24, 2024 39:34 Transcription Available


Ever wondered what it takes to unearth the most compelling insights from a user interview?In this episode, Hannah Clark is joined by Steve Portigal—User Research Consultant & Author of Interviewing Users: How to Uncover Compelling Insights (2nd Edition)—to discuss the nuance involved in conducting user interviews, how to ask follow-up questions, and tips to manage unexpected responses.

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Experiencing Data with Brian O'Neill
135 - “No Time for That:” Enabling Effective Data Product UX Research in Product-Immature Organizations

Experiencing Data with Brian O'Neill

Play Episode Listen Later Jan 23, 2024 52:47


This week, I'm chatting with Steve Portigal, who is the Principal of Portigal Consulting and the Author of Interviewing Users. We discuss the changes that prompted him to release a second version of his book 10 years after its initial release, and dive into the best practices that any team can implement to start unlocking the value of data product UX research. Steve explains that the key to making time for user research is knowing what business value you're after, not simply having a list of research questions. We then role-play through some in-depth examples of real-life experiences we've seen from both end users and leadership when it comes to implementing a user research strategy. Thhroughout our conversation, we come back to the idea that even taking imperfect action towards doing user research can lead to increased data product adoption and business value.  Highlights/ Skip to: I introduce Steve Portigal, Principal of Portigal Consulting and Author of Interviewing Users (00:38) What changes caused Steve to release a second edition of his book (00:58) Steve and I discuss the importance of understanding how to conduct effective user research (03:44) Steve explains why it's crucial to understand that the business challenge and the research questions are two different things (08:16) Brian and Steve role-play a common scenario that comes up in user research, and Steve explains an optimal workflow for user research (11:50) The importance of provocation in performing user research (21:02) How Steve would handle a situation where a member of leadership is preventing research being done with end users (24:23) Why a consultative approach is valuable when getting buy-in for conducting user research (35:04) Steve shares some of the major benefits of taking imperfect action towards starting user research (36:59) The impact and value even easy wins in user research can have (42:54) Steve describes the exploratory nature of user research and how to maximize the chance of finding the most valuable insights (46:57) Where you can connect with Steve and get a copy of v2 of his book, Interviewing Users (49:35) Quotes from Today's Episode “If you don't know what you're doing, and you don't know what you should be investing effort-wise, that's the inexperience in the approach. If you don't know how to plan, what should we be trying to solve in this research? What are we trying to learn? What are we going to do with it in the organization? Who should we be talking to? How do we find them? What do we ask them? And then a really good one: how do we make sense of that information so that it has impact that we can take away?” — Steve Portigal (07:15) “What do people get [from user research]? I think the chance for a team to align around something that comes in from the outside.” – Steve Portigal (41:36) On the impact user research can have if teams embrace it: “They had a product that did a thing that no one [understood], and they had to change the product, but also change how they talked about it, change how they built it, and change how they packaged it. And that was a really dramatic turnaround. And it came out of our research, but [mostly] because they really leaned into making use of this stuff.” – Steve Portigal (42:35) "If we knew all the questions to ask, we would just write a survey, right? It's a lower time commitment from the participant to do that. But we're trying to get at what we don't know that we don't know. For some of us, that's fun!" – Steve Portigal (48:36) Links Interviewing Users (use code DATA20 to get 20% off the list price): https://rosenfeldmedia.com/books/interviewing-users-second-edition/ Personal website: https://portigal.com Publisher website: https://rosenfeldmedia.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stRosenfeld Mediaeveportigal/  

Rock n' Roll Research Podcast
Episode #105: Steve Portigal - User Research Expert, Author, Rolling Stones Enthusiast

Rock n' Roll Research Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Jan 19, 2024 37:35


Steve Portigal of Portigal Consulting has been doing User Research since the days our software all came in a box. He has written a seminal book on the topic, “Interviewing Users: How to Uncover Compelling Insights,” recently released in a 2nd edition available through Rosenfeld Media.Steve shares his journey from the nascent years of user research through today and his take on where user research is headed. We discuss his book and how studying creative writing has informed his approach. Steve also tells the story of building a community of Rolling Stones enthusiasts – pre-World Wide Web! - that is still alive and kicking (just like Keith Richards).[Visit rosenfeldmedia.com to find Steve's book and use the code ‘rocknroll' for a 20% discount m/]

Global Product Management Talk
471: How product managers best interview users

Global Product Management Talk

Play Episode Listen Later Jan 9, 2024 35:00


Global Product Management Talk is pleased to bring you the next episode of... Product Mastery Now with host Chad McAllister, PhD. The podcast is all about helping people involved in innovation and managing products become more successful, grow their careers, and STANDOUT from their peers. About the Episode:  As a product person, you know or at least have heard how important it is to talk with customers. Also, if you are not a complete newb, you also know you can't simply ask the customer what they want. Instead, what do you ask them—how do you conduct a customer interview? We are about to find out from the go-to person on customer interviews, Steve Portigal. Rich Mironov, past guest and CPO of CPOs, said that Steve is the go-to veteran for field research and interviewing users. Steve is an experienced user researcher and consultant who helps organizations to build more mature user research practices. He's also the host of the Dollars to Donuts podcast, where he interviews people who lead user research in their organizations. His work has informed the development of professional audio gear, wine packaging, medical information systems, design systems, video-conferencing technology, and music streaming services. You may already be familiar with Steve's highly regarded book Interviewing Users: How to Uncover Compelling Insights. He has recently updated this book, creating the second edition.

GreenBook Podcast
92 — Beyond the Surface: Navigating the Depths of User Research with Steve Portigal

GreenBook Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Jan 8, 2024 42:53 Transcription Available


What does it take to turn conversations into compelling user insights?In this engaging episode of the Greenbook Podcast, esteemed user researcher and author Steve Portigal joins us to discuss his book "Interviewing Users: How to Uncover Compelling Insights." He delves into the evolution of user research, highlighting the critical distinction between business challenges and research questions, and the importance of adapting to societal shifts such as the rise of remote user research. Steve shares invaluable insights and practical tools from his book that aid researchers in effectively capturing and analyzing data, and emphasizes the significance of driving impactful research across organizations. Use the code Greenbook for 20% off of your copy of his book!You can reach out to Steve on LinkedIn. Many thanks to Steve for being our guest. Thanks also to our producer, Natalie Pusch; and our editor, Big Bad Audio.Mentioned in this episode:Free registration for IIEX Health here: https://hubs.ly/Q02fNTWC0

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The World of UX with Darren Hood
Episode 188: Talkin' Shop w/Steve Portigal

The World of UX with Darren Hood

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 20, 2023 71:08


In this episode, Darren talks shop with Steve Portigal, a noted UX consultant and the author of Interviewing Users: How to Uncover Compelling Insights and Doorbells, Danger, and Dead Batteries: User Research War Stories. During the session, Steve also provided a discount code for his book when purchased through Rosenfeld Media.Check out the new World of UX website at https://www.worldoux.com.Visit the UX Uncensored blog at https://uxuncensored.medium.com. #ux#podcasts#cxofmradio#cxofm#realuxtalk#worldofux#worldoux#talkinshop

The Informed Life
Steve Portigal on Writing, part 2

The Informed Life

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 17, 2023 37:07 Transcription Available


Steve Portigal is an independent user research consultant. He is the author of Interviewing Users and Doorbells, Danger, and Dead Batteries. Steve and I both have new books, so we thought it'd be fun to compare notes on writing non-fiction. In this, the second of two episodes on the subject, we focus on the process of writing. If you haven't done so already, listen to our previous conversation, which focused on our motivations.Show notesSteve PortigalSteve Portigal - LinkedInPortigal ConsultingInterviewing Users: How to Uncover Compelling Insights (2nd edition) by Steve PortigalDoorbells, Danger, and Dead Batteries: User Research War Stories by Steve PortigalDuly Noted: Extend Your Mind Through Connected Notes by Jorge ArangoLiving in Information: Responsible Design for Digital Places by Jorge ArangoInformation Architecture for the Web and Beyond by Louis Rosenfeld, Peter Morville, and Jorge ArangoScrivenerTinderboxThe Informed Life episode 99: Mark Bernstein on TinderboxFreeform on the App StoreShitty First Drafts by Anne Lamott (PDF)Jack Kerouac - WikipediaThe Informed Life episode 2: Gretchen Anderson on WritingShow notes include Amazon affiliate links. We get a small commission for purchases made through these links.If you're enjoying the show, please rate or review us in Apple's podcast directory:https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-informed-life/id1450117117?itsct=podcast_box&itscg=30200

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The Informed Life
Steve Portigal on Writing, part 1

The Informed Life

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 3, 2023 39:03 Transcription Available


Steve Portigal is an independent user research consultant. He is the author of Interviewing Users and Doorbells, Danger, and Dead Batteries. Steve was previously on the show last year, talking about research skills. This conversation is a bit different: both of us have written new books, and we thought it'd be fun to compare notes about the process. We decided to split our conversation into two parts. This episode focuses on the motivations for writing, and the second part will focus on processes.Show NotesSteve PortigalSteve Portigal - LinkedInPortigal ConsultingInterviewing Users: How to Uncover Compelling Insights (2nd edition) by Steve PortigalDoorbells, Danger, and Dead Batteries: User Research War Stories by Steve PortigalThe Informed Life ep. 92 - Steve Portigal on Research SkillsLouis RosenfeldInformation Architecture for the Web and Beyond by Louis Rosenfeld, Peter Morville, and Jorge ArangoBloggerThe Informed Life ep. 118 — Maggie Appleton on Digital GardeningMaggie AppletonAbout Face: The Essentials of Interaction Design (4th edition) by Alan Cooper, Robert Reimann, David Cronin, and Christopher NoesselWrite Useful Books by Rob FitzpatrickObsidianBuilding a Personal Knowledge Garden (Information Architecture Conference 2022 workshop)Show notes include Amazon affiliate links. We get a small commission for purchases made through these links.If you're enjoying the show, please rate or review us in Apple's podcast directory:https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-informed-life/id1450117117?itsct=podcast_box&itscg=30200

One Knight in Product
Making Sure You Make an Impact through User Research (with Steve Portigal, User Research Consultant & Author ”Interviewing Users”)

One Knight in Product

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 2, 2023 45:35


Steve Portigal is an experienced user researcher and author of two books, "Interviewing Users" and "Doorbells Danger, and Dead Batteries". Steve is a passionate advocate for the value of user research, and ensuring that people can find out compelling insights from their users. He's recently re-released a 10th-anniversary edition of "Interviewing Users", and we spoke about some themes from the book and how to make an impact with user research. Episode highlights:   1. Some people are still wary of user research, or think they don't need it, but it remains as important as ever It can be tempting for founders to think they know exactly what they need, rely on feedback from customer-facing teams, or not speak to anyone until they've already built the thing they want to build. Feedback from sales teams and founders is an incredibly important vector, but should only be the start of the discussion never the end. 2. Continuous discovery and point-in-time research both have a place in a researcher's armoury There are methodological constraints to continuous research, alongside the difficulty of finding the time and buy-in to do it but, on the other hand, it can be incredibly impactful to have rapid research tightly coupled to the product team. On the other hand, well-planned up-front research can still help you to find truly disruptive insights for your company. Do both! 3. We all have cognitive biases - we should accept that and be honest with ourselves about their effects People look at the word "bias" and worry about the negative connotations, but "bias" just represents how our brains are wired. Cognitive biases will affect how we interview people, and we should do our best to counteract their effect and improve on getting better (even if we're not perfect). 4. The best research has a tangible impact rather than being research for research's sake It can be a heavy burden to bear if all of your well-planned and well-executed research ends up having no effect on decision-making at all. It's important not to get downhearted, and work out ways to build actionable, accessible repositories to enable your stakeholders to make the best decisions possible. 5. There are a lot of similarities between good user research and improv We don't need to be able to create 45-minute plays off the cuff, and knowing when to stick to our interview plans and when to deviate from the script, enables us to get to the real generative insights that we need from our users and find out what we don't know we don't know. Buy "Interviewing Users (2nd edition)" "Interviewing people is a skill that most professionals who do research assume they already possess. But not everyone knows how to ask questions well. Expert researcher Steve Portigal updates his classic Interviewing Users to provide fresh guidance on interviewing techniques, as well as new content. This edition includes a new foreword by Jamika D. Burge and features two new chapters: one about analysis and synthesis and sharing research results, and another about ensuring that your user research efforts will have an impact on your organization. There are seven new short essays (we call them sidebars) from guest contributors. Plus, you'll find updated examples, stories, and tips for leading interviews, and new sections about bias, remote research, ResearchOps, planning research, and research logistics. You'll move from simply gathering data to uncovering powerful insights about people." My listeners can get 20% off with promo code KNIGHT on the Rosenfeld Media website. This code is valid until 21st December, 2023. Alternatively, check it out on Amazon. Contact Steve You can catch up with Steve on LinkedIn or visit Portigal.com.

UX Research Geeks
Steve Portigal | Exploring UX Research: The Second Edition of 'Interviewing Users' | Season 3 #5

UX Research Geeks

Play Episode Listen Later Nov 29, 2023 41:19


In this episode of "UX Research Geeks," Tina interviews Steve Portigal, an acclaimed user experience researcher and author. They discuss the updated second edition of his book "Interviewing Users."  Steve talks about the challenges of revising his book, highlighting changes in the user experience research field, including new focuses like cognitive biases, the rise of remote research practices, and the development of research operations as a profession. He also addresses the shift towards in-house research teams and the democratization of user research.  The conversation underscores the importance of evolving skills and adapting to the dynamic nature of user research, with Steve's book serving as a guide for both experienced researchers and newcomers to the field.

Content Strategy Insights
Steve Portigal: Interviewing Users

Content Strategy Insights

Play Episode Listen Later Nov 15, 2023 30:57


To conduct a good research-focused interview, you need to cultivate a professional interviewing mindset. Steve Portigal has been doing this for years, and he has written a book to help other researchers and designers conduct better interviews. Now in its second edition, Interviewing Users: How to Uncover Compelling Insights, covers interviewing techniques, of course, but also research best practices, how to document your work, and how to make sense of your discoveries. https://ellessmedia.com/csi/steve-portigal/

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Rosenfeld Review Podcast
Creating Insights through Analysis and Synthesis with Steve Portigal

Rosenfeld Review Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 10, 2023 35:59


Believe it or not, Steve Portigal's UX research classic Interviewing Users came out ten years ago, back in 2013. A few things about user research have changed since then, to put it mildly, so we at Rosenfeld did two things: we convinced Steve to write a second edition (coming out October 17), and to join us on the Rosenfeld Review to discuss all the things that have changed. In addition to being an author, Steve is a user researcher, consultant, and teacher. He helps companies grow their businesses, culture, and brands by interviewing users. He also helps companies build more mature in-house research practices. Having been on both sides of the interviewing process – as both interviewer and interviewee – Steve can empathize with both roles. Over the last decade, he has seen user research evolve from a focus on consumer products to company culture and supportive technologies in the B2B space. Effective research, in addition to data gathering, involves analysis and synthesis. Steve defines analysis as breaking bigger things into smaller things and synthesis as putting what was broken down back together into a new framework, or insight. This is where the magic of research happens. A chapter dedicated to the art of analysis and synthesis is one of the profound additions to this latest edition of his book. What you'll learn from this episode: - About Interviewing Users and what's new in the second edition - About Steve's work as a researcher, author, and consultant and how his work has shifted over the last decade - Changes in the research field and why most of us are researchers to one degree or another, even if it's not in your title or job description - How analysis and synthesis are different and why both are needed for insights - About the “We already knew that” response many researchers get and what it really means Quick Reference Guide [0:00:19] Introduction of Steve Portigal [0:04:30] Experience on both sides of the interview process [0:08:06] Shifts in language and jargon Steve has noted over the last decade [0:12:13] The evolution of user research – less with consumers and more within businesses or B2B [0:15:10] Speculation on where the leading edge of user research will be – or perhaps more importantly, who will be doing it – in another 10 years [0:19:02] Rosenfeld Media Communities [0:21:17] What's new in the 2nd Edition version of Interviewing Users – analysis, synthesis, and insights [0:28:38] “We already knew that” phenomenon that researchers often encounter [0:32:20] Steve's gift for listeners Resources and links from today's episode: Interviewing Users (2nd edition) by Steve Portigal https://rosenfeldmedia.com/books/interviewing-users-second-edition/ Doorbells, Danger, and Dead Batteries: User Research War Stories by Steve Portigal https://rosenfeldmedia.com/books/user-research-war-stories/ “How-to with John Wilson” on HBO https://www.hbo.com/how-to-with-john-wilson

DesignTeam
Are we really doing research? With Steve Portigal | Good Morning UX

DesignTeam

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 23, 2022 45:37


We usually have this life training to ask questions, but it doesn't make us researchers, to be honest. Especially when we are talking about learning from users, customers, stakeholders, etc. As designers and researchers, we have this kind of “power” to help companies to avoid mistakes, bad ideas, and guesses. It has been becoming a huge differential in the industry of digital products, but to really take advantage of this ability is important to have some points in perspective. This show will pass through some questions like: Are we doing research well with a real impact on the business? How a designer can be prepared to do it in the real world, in a short time but with quality? Is there a difference between leaders with research or design backgrounds? For this, we invited Steve Portigal a researcher who has interviewed hundreds of people and with a huge experience working in telecommunications, banking, media, energy, and e-commerce industries. He is the author of some important books and host of the Dollars to Donuts podcast. He helps companies to think and act strategically when innovating with user insights. —---------- The past year we decided to start this new project called Good Morning UX, an extension of another show called Bom Dia UX, with such special-international guests. Actually, we invited a lot of professionals who are references for us and that have so much history in our industry. Follow Portigal on these links: https://portigal.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/steveportigal/ https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/dollars-to-donuts/id956673263 https://medium.com/@steveportigal Portigal's book: Interviewing Users: How to Uncover Compelling Insights (English Edition) https://amzn.to/3aDsf5S Doorbells, Danger, and Dead Batteries: User Research War Stories (English Edition) https://amzn.to/3P5uYEr Related Links: https://vimeo.com/174801774 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ApLf47S4Xjg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uK5RJMeZqkQ https://www.userzoom.com/blog/interview-steve-portigal-on-user-research-war-stories/ ----------------------------- This is the Bom Dia UX, a live show produced and launched on the Design Team channel every Wednesday at 7 am, in the Brazilian time zone. Follow us: Rodrigo Lemes Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rodrigolemes Twitter: https://twitter.com/rodrigolemes Rafael Burity Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rafaelburity Twitter: https://twitter.com/rafaelburity Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/rafaelburity

The Informed Life
Steve Portigal on Research Skills

The Informed Life

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 17, 2022 33:33 Transcription Available


Steve Portigal is a consultant who helps organizations build more mature user research practices. He's the author of Interviewing Users: How to Uncover Compelling Insights and Doorbells, Danger, and Dead Batteries: User Research War Stories. He's also the host of the Dollar to Donuts podcast about research leadership. In this conversation, we discuss the skills required for conducting successful interviews with users.Show notesSteve Portigal (portigal.com)Steve Portigal (linkedin.com)Portigal ConsultingInterviewing Users: How to Uncover Compelling Insights by Steve PortigalDoorbells, Danger, and Dead Batteries: User Research War Stories by Steve PortigalDollars to Donuts podcastDale CarnegieDunning-Kruger effectShow notes include Amazon affiliate links. I get a small commission for purchases made through these links.

amazon danger dollar donuts doorbells steve portigal interviewing users research skills uncover compelling insights
Nodes of Design
Nodes of Design#67: User Interviews by Steve Portigal

Nodes of Design

Play Episode Listen Later May 22, 2021 37:57


Steve Portigal helps companies to think and act strategically when innovating with user insights. Over the course of his career, he has interviewed hundreds of people and helped many organisations to understand their users. He’s also the Dollars to Donuts podcast host, where he interviews people who lead user research in their organizations. He is also the author of two famous titles - Interviewing Users: How to Uncover Compelling Insights & Doorbells, Danger, and Dead Batteries: User Research War Stories. He has been a keynote speaker on various occasion like CHI, IxDA, Lift, SXSW, UIE, UPA, UX Australia, UX Hong Kong, UX Lisbon, and WebVisions. In this episode, Steve shared wonderful insights on user interviews and why we do user interviews in design; we then discussed the framework of interviews using which we can gain great insights from users and few tips on actively listening and note-taking during interviews. In the latter part, steve recommended five do's and don'ts that designers/researchers must avoid while doing user interviews. We then concluded the show by steve recommending few tips on how could we combine all the insights and convey them into a narrative across teams that can create an impact. Takeaways - What are user interviews, Meaning of insights, Combining insights to narrate a story. Books by Steve - https://portigal.com/books Dollars to Donuts - https://portigal.com/podcast Resources shared by Steve Portigal The organization’s design research maturity model-Chris Avore The Secret Life of Groceries: The Dark Miracle of the American Supermarket - Benjamin Lorr It Chooses You - Miranda July Communicating the New: Methods to Shape and Accelerate Innovation - Kim Erwin Thank you for listening to this episode of Nodes of Design. We hope you enjoy the Nodes of Design Podcast on your favourite podcast platforms- Apple Podcast, Spotify, Google Podcasts and many more. If this episode helped you understand and learn something new, please share and be a part of the knowledge-sharing community #Spreadknowledge. This podcast aims to make design education accessible to all. Nodes of Design is a non-profit and self-sponsored initiative by Tejj.

IoT Product Leadership
039: How to build robust user-research practices with Steve Portigal

IoT Product Leadership

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 23, 2021 50:45


Understanding user’s needs continues to be one of the top challenges for enterprise and industrial product leaders. And although the practice of user research has been around for a while, most of the information out there seems to focus on B2C products. This is why I’m very excited to be joined by Steve Portigal joining us on the show today! My guest today is Steve Portigal, an experienced user researcher, author, and consultant who helps organizations build more mature user research practices. In our conversation, Steve shares how he approaches B2B research and we discuss the complexities of doing user research in a B2B context, the challenges of getting access to users, the need to focus on understanding customers’ pain (as opposed to only focusing on usability), and how to influence your organization to conduct more research. Steve also shares his advice on how to build a practice that encourages ongoing user research. This is a very important episode that no product leader should miss!   Episode Details: Build more mature user-research practices with Steve Portigal: “If you’re just testing the usability and not the desirability or the usefulness, then you’re not going to uncover the fundamentals flaws that may exist in those initial assumptions.” — Steve Portigal   About Steve Portigal: Steve Portigal is a consultant who helps organizations to build more mature user research practices. Over the past 20 years, he has interviewed hundreds of people, including families eating breakfast, hotel maintenance staff, architects, radiologists, home-automation enthusiasts, credit-default swap traders, and rock musicians. His work has informed the development of mobile devices, medical information systems, music gear, wine packaging, financial services, corporate intranets, videoconferencing systems, and music accessories.   Steve is the author of two books, Interviewing Users: How to Uncover Compelling Insights and Doorbells, Danger, and Dead Batteries: User Research War Stories. Additionally, he is the host of the podcast, Dollars to Donuts.   Topics We Discuss in this Episode: Steve’s career background and the work he does today as an experienced user researcher What a user researcher does and why it is important Invaluable tips for user researchers Why companies struggle to understand their customers’ challenges How a company can become more user-centered How to enable a culture that empowers everyone Why you may want to bring on a user researcher or an external expert The nuances of being a team player and contributing to the success of the company How to challenge baseline assumptions in order to move forward and grow as a company The differences between B2C and B2B user research The challenges of user research (and how to overcome them) Why user research is not only incredibly invaluable but needs to be figured out for your company Why culture is critical to research How to support leaders in helping transform the organization’s mindset into a customer-centric culture Proactive vs. reactive research   Product Leader Tip of the Week: Keep in mind, user research is a skill. You can read about it, take classes, listen to podcasts, but you also have to practice.   Practice can include: knowing when to do research, knowing what research to do, how to go about actually doing the research, learning how to leverage the research that you’ve done, and learning how to help others understand the research.   And be sure to give yourself the chance to get better. All of this takes time. Be compassionate and understand that research is not just binary; there are many, many facets of it.   To Learn More About Rob Tiffany: Steve Portigal’s Website Podcast: Dollars to Donuts Interviewing Users: How to Uncover Compelling Insights, by Steve Portigal Doorbells, Danger, and Dead Batteries: User Research War Stories, by Steve Portigal   Related Resources: com/Template — Download Daniel’s free IoT Product Strategy Template here!   Want to Learn More? Sign up for my newsletter atcom/Join for weekly advice and best practices directly to your inbox! Visit com/Podcast for additional information, show notes, and episodes. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts so you don’t miss out on any of my conversations with product and thought leaders!

Brave UX with Brendan Jarvis

Why should researchers stop focusing on problems and start focusing on people? What is important for user researchers to know about bias (their bias)? And why does Steve have a museum of foreign groceries in his home? In this episode we take a deep-dive with Steve Portigal into how he thinks about research, the struggles he sees internal research teams going through, and how he's adapting to changes in the industry.   Steve is one of the most experienced, effective and well known user researchers on the planet. In his 20+ years as Principal of Portigal Consulting, he has run research studies - interviewing hundreds of people - for organisations such as eBay, Hewlett-Packard, Microsoft, Nike, PayPal, and Sony. Steve's a regular blogger and podcaster, as well as the author of two widely praised books on user research - “Interviewing Users” and “Doorbells, Danger, and Dead Batteries”.    ======   Find Steve here:   LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/steveportigal/ Website: https://portigal.com/ Blog: https://portigal.com/blog/ Medium: https://medium.com/@steveportigal Twitter: https://twitter.com/chittahchattah   Listen to Seve's podcast - Dollars to Donuts:  https://portigal.com/podcast/    Treat yourself to a copy of Steve's books…   Interviewing Users: How to Uncover Compelling Insights https://bit.ly/2YVPEG9   Doorbells, Danger, and Dead Batteries: User Research War Stories https://bit.ly/2MwhxCs   ====== Thank you for tuning in! If you liked what you saw and want more ...   ... please leave us a review on Apple Podcasts (or wherever you listened).   You can also follow us on our other social channels for more great UX and product design tips, interviews and insights!   LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-space-in-between/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thespaceinbetw__n/   ======   Host: Brendan Jarvis https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanjarvis/

Learning with Belvista Studios
How to Conduct Successful User Interviews to Get the Information You Need (Episode 5) | How to Become an Instructional Designer

Learning with Belvista Studios

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 21, 2020 6:21


In this episode we provide guidance on how to conduct successful user interviews to get the information you need. Here are the resources mentioned: - Danzico, L. (2010). User Interview Techniques [PowerPoint slides]. Retrieved from https://www.slideshare.net/edanzico/user-interview-techniques - Farrell, S. (2016). Open-Ended vs. Closed-Ended Questions in User Research. Retrieved from https://www.nngroup.com/articles/open-ended-questions/ - Henry Ford Learning Institute. (2009). Using Interviews in Design Thinking for Innovation Classes. Retrieved from https://dschool old.stanford.edu/groups/k12/wiki/98b45/attachments - Interaction Design Foundation. (2017). How to Conduct User Interviews. Retrieved from https://www.interaction-design.org/literature/article/how-to-conduct-user-interviews - Portigal, S. (2013). Interviewing Users. Rosenfeld Media. - https://creatorhub.belvistastudios.com/courses/human-centred-design-playbook IF YOU LIKE THIS EPISODE, PURCHASE OUR HUMAN-CENTRED DESIGN—THE ULTIMATE KIT HERE: https://creatorhub.belvistastudios.com/courses/hcd-ultimate-kit

Design Thinking 101
Understanding Customers: Research, Insights, and Storytelling with Steve Portigal — DT101 E48

Design Thinking 101

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 23, 2020 57:47


Steve Portigal is the Principal of Portigal Consulting and an experienced user researcher who helps companies harness the strategic power of insights. He is the author of Interviewing Users: How to Uncover Compelling Insights. He also wrote Doorbells, Danger, and Dead Batteries: User Research War Stories. We talk about interviewing people, customer research, and storytelling with Dawan Stanford, your podcast host. Show Summary Steve started out in Human Computer Interaction (HCI), in the days before the World Wide Web and before the formal idea of user experience (UX) existed. He had a brief exposure to design as a profession through an article about industrial product design, and to the idea of bringing together people from many different disciplines to collaborate and create solutions to problems via another article about a project trying to determine how best to find a way to demarcate dangerous locations, like nuclear waste sites. These ideas planted seeds leading to his interest in design. Steve graduated with his Masters in HCI, had a summer internship in Silicon Valley, and eventually found a job in an industrial design consultancy to work on what was essentially proto-UX design with their software. At the same time, this company was exploring ideas surrounding ethnographic research and the idea of uncovering product opportunities, and Steve managed to apprentice himself with the team, where he learned about organizing and finding connections within data. He also had the opportunity to develop his initial interviewing skills, which he continued to hone as he started his own consultancy focused on user research. Steve was one of the first people in the early 90's to develop design processes for user experience and research. We talk about Steve's excitement for and interest in spending more time with stakeholders within a client's organization. He has learned why a stakeholder's perspective is essential in relation to the success of a project. He talks about creating “learning-ready” moments, how he helps people have these moments, and how learning and sharing the journey of learning affect learning retention. Listen in to learn: How Steve and others developed the design processes in the early stages of user experience and research  How Steve's skills, interests, and the work he does for his clients has evolved over the years When Steve knows he's found a great client Why he believes that learning together is when change can happen Why understanding stakeholders gives better results with clients Being able to embrace realistic expectations of what you can accomplish    Our Guest's Bio Steve Portigal is an experienced user researcher who helps companies to think and act strategically when innovating with user insights. Based in the San Francisco Bay Area, he is principal of Portigal Consulting and the author of two books: the classic Interviewing Users: How To Uncover Compelling Insights and, Doorbells, Danger, and Dead Batteries: User Research War Stories.   He's also the host of the Dollars to Donuts podcast, where he interviews people who lead user research in their organizations. Steve is an accomplished presenter who speaks about culture, innovation, and design at companies and conferences across the globe.   Show Highlights  [02:09] Steve talks about his origin story and his introduction to the ideas of design and user experience.  [06:15] Steve's first job at an industrial design consultancy. [08:15] Steve's apprenticeship with the team exploring a nascent practice in what was basically user experience.  [09:58] Many companies were exploring and experimenting with these new ideas around user research in the 90s, and how that led to the development of best practices and processes around the work. [13:05] Steve's litmus test for a new client. [13:37] How Steve's role and work started to shift and change. [15:40] The way in which Steve sets up expectations with new clients and spending time with the stakeholders in a client's organization. [16:20] The value in spending as much time with stakeholders as with users to gain a deep understanding of their motivations and perceptions. [19:03] Repetitive patterns and questions Steve sees with clients. [22:28] Using storytelling to help explain concepts and share information, and to help move clients through shared experiences and discussions. [24:04] Separating the value of the research from any action that may take place. [28:15] The importance of the “Why” of user research. [30:39] How Steve's practice has evolved and the scope of his work today, now that many companies have in-house user research and design teams. [35:05] Steve's specialized “master classes” for design teams. [38:52] What Steve wishes everyone knew about user research and what you can do with it, both personally and organizationally. [41:24] Steve's reflections on a few of his learning experiences. [44:55] His experience with one of the experts he used in his consulting work. [48:35] What Steve might add to a new book about interviewing users and UX, should he decide to write one. [54:00] Where you can find out more about Steve and his work.   Links Portigal Consulting Steve Portigal on LinkedIn Steve Portigal on Medium Steve Portigal on Twitter Find Out More About Steve's Books Dollars to Donuts Episode 30: Laith Ulaby of Udemy Dollars to Donuts Episode 27: Colin MacArthur of the Canadian Digital Service         Other Design Thinking 101 Episodes You Might Like   Problem Spaces, Understanding How People Think, and Practical Empathy with Indi Young — DT101 E6   Public Sector Design + Outcome Chains + Prototyping for Impact with Boris Divjak — DT101 E26   The Evolution of Teaching and Learning Design with Bruce Hanington — DT101 E39         ________________   Thank you for listening to the show and looking at the show notes. Send your questions, suggestions, and guest ideas to Dawan and the Fluid Hive team. Cheers ~ Dawan   Free Download — Design Driven Innovation: Avoid Innovation Traps with These 9 Steps   Innovation Smart Start Webinar — Take your innovation projects from frantic to focused!

Design Thinking 101
Understanding Customers: Research, Insights, and Storytelling with Steve Portigal — DT101 E48

Design Thinking 101

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 23, 2020 57:47


Steve Portigal is the Principal of Portigal Consulting and an experienced user researcher who helps companies harness the strategic power of insights. He is the author of Interviewing Users: How to Uncover Compelling Insights. He also wrote Doorbells, Danger, and Dead Batteries: User Research War Stories. We talk about interviewing people, customer research, and storytelling with Dawan Stanford, your podcast host. Show Summary Steve started out in Human Computer Interaction (HCI), in the days before the World Wide Web and before the formal idea of user experience (UX) existed. He had a brief exposure to design as a profession through an article about industrial product design, and to the idea of bringing together people from many different disciplines to collaborate and create solutions to problems via another article about a project trying to determine how best to find a way to demarcate dangerous locations, like nuclear waste sites. These ideas planted seeds leading to his interest in design. Steve graduated with his Masters in HCI, had a summer internship in Silicon Valley, and eventually found a job in an industrial design consultancy to work on what was essentially proto-UX design with their software. At the same time, this company was exploring ideas surrounding ethnographic research and the idea of uncovering product opportunities, and Steve managed to apprentice himself with the team, where he learned about organizing and finding connections within data. He also had the opportunity to develop his initial interviewing skills, which he continued to hone as he started his own consultancy focused on user research. Steve was one of the first people in the early 90’s to develop design processes for user experience and research. We talk about Steve’s excitement for and interest in spending more time with stakeholders within a client’s organization. He has learned why a stakeholder’s perspective is essential in relation to the success of a project. He talks about creating “learning-ready” moments, how he helps people have these moments, and how learning and sharing the journey of learning affect learning retention. Listen in to learn: How Steve and others developed the design processes in the early stages of user experience and research  How Steve’s skills, interests, and the work he does for his clients has evolved over the years When Steve knows he’s found a great client Why he believes that learning together is when change can happen Why understanding stakeholders gives better results with clients Being able to embrace realistic expectations of what you can accomplish    Our Guest’s Bio Steve Portigal is an experienced user researcher who helps companies to think and act strategically when innovating with user insights. Based in the San Francisco Bay Area, he is principal of Portigal Consulting and the author of two books: the classic Interviewing Users: How To Uncover Compelling Insights and, Doorbells, Danger, and Dead Batteries: User Research War Stories.   He's also the host of the Dollars to Donuts podcast, where he interviews people who lead user research in their organizations. Steve is an accomplished presenter who speaks about culture, innovation, and design at companies and conferences across the globe.   Show Highlights  [02:09] Steve talks about his origin story and his introduction to the ideas of design and user experience.  [06:15] Steve’s first job at an industrial design consultancy. [08:15] Steve’s apprenticeship with the team exploring a nascent practice in what was basically user experience.  [09:58] Many companies were exploring and experimenting with these new ideas around user research in the 90s, and how that led to the development of best practices and processes around the work. [13:05] Steve’s litmus test for a new client. [13:37] How Steve’s role and work started to shift and change. [15:40] The way in which Steve sets up expectations with new clients and spending time with the stakeholders in a client’s organization. [16:20] The value in spending as much time with stakeholders as with users to gain a deep understanding of their motivations and perceptions. [19:03] Repetitive patterns and questions Steve sees with clients. [22:28] Using storytelling to help explain concepts and share information, and to help move clients through shared experiences and discussions. [24:04] Separating the value of the research from any action that may take place. [28:15] The importance of the “Why” of user research. [30:39] How Steve’s practice has evolved and the scope of his work today, now that many companies have in-house user research and design teams. [35:05] Steve’s specialized “master classes” for design teams. [38:52] What Steve wishes everyone knew about user research and what you can do with it, both personally and organizationally. [41:24] Steve’s reflections on a few of his learning experiences. [44:55] His experience with one of the experts he used in his consulting work. [48:35] What Steve might add to a new book about interviewing users and UX, should he decide to write one. [54:00] Where you can find out more about Steve and his work.   Links Portigal Consulting Steve Portigal on LinkedIn Steve Portigal on Medium Steve Portigal on Twitter Find Out More About Steve’s Books Dollars to Donuts Episode 30: Laith Ulaby of Udemy Dollars to Donuts Episode 27: Colin MacArthur of the Canadian Digital Service         Other Design Thinking 101 Episodes You Might Like   Problem Spaces, Understanding How People Think, and Practical Empathy with Indi Young — DT101 E6   Public Sector Design + Outcome Chains + Prototyping for Impact with Boris Divjak — DT101 E26   The Evolution of Teaching and Learning Design with Bruce Hanington — DT101 E39         ________________   Thank you for listening to the show and looking at the show notes. Send your questions, suggestions, and guest ideas to Dawan and the Fluid Hive team. Cheers ~ Dawan   Free Download — Design Driven Innovation: Avoid Innovation Traps with These 9 Steps   Innovation Smart Start Webinar — Take your innovation projects from frantic to focused!

UX Cake
Bias Is The Context We're In

UX Cake

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 4, 2019 32:24


Ep 40: Since I started asking users questions as part of my design process over 20 years ago, I’ve often asked myself, how could I ask better questions. Am I asking the right questions? What bias am I bringing into the interaction? As we progress in our research practice and go beyond the 101 lessons like avoiding leading questions, asking questions that are open-ended, leaving silence in the spaces to allow participants to talk more, learning to interpret actions and expressions not just words… those are all important, that’s where we start, but how can we go beyond that. at some point we might begin to look inward as researchers, and the part we as individuals are playing in the outcome, our biases, assumptions, our own values and life experiences.Who better to have this conversation with, I asked myself, than Steve Portigal, an author and expert on the subject of asking questions. Steve wrote the book Interviewing Users which is a great place to start for those who are newer to asking users questions, and he also wrote Doorbells, danger and dead batteries, with stories from practiced user researchers that deals with some of these questions of bias. We had a great conversation with lots of great advice for researchers at any level.Linked in https://www.linkedin.com/in/steveportigal/Medium https://medium.com/@steveportigalSteve’s Dollars to Donuts podcast https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/dollars-to-donuts/id956673263Twitter https://twitter.com/steveportigalAbout Steve PortigalSteve Portigal helps companies to think and act strategically when innovating with user insights. His work has informed the development of professional audio gear, wine packaging, medical information systems, design systems, videoconferencing technology, and music streaming services. He’s also the host of the Dollars to Donuts podcast, where he interviews people who lead user research in their organizations. Steve is an accomplished presenter who speaks about culture, innovation, and design at companies and conferences across the globe.STEVE'S BOOKSInterviewing Users: How to Uncover Compelling InsightsDoorbells, Danger, and Dead Batteries: User Research War StoriesFROM THE SHOWPurchase the Cognitive Bias Codex InfographicSlack channels:Go to this GREAT list of slack channels for UX including UXR********If you enjoy this podcast, there are some really simple ways you can help us: follow us on twitter - like and reshare our postssubscribe to the newsletter for updates and bonus contentshare this episode, or any of our episodes, with a friend. rate & review us on Apple Podcast or iTunes on desktop!Listen Apple | Spotify | Google | WebsiteConnect with UX Cake!uxcake.co | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Linked In See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Happy Market Research Podcast
Ep. 228 - Steve Portigal - Trends in User Experience & Market Research, and How They are Driving Success

Happy Market Research Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 3, 2019 44:59


My guest today is Steve Portigal, Founder of Portigal Consulting. Established in 2001, Portigal Consulting helps organizations bring insights about their users into their design and development processes. Additionally, he has also authored two books: "Doorbells, Danger, and Dead Batteries: User Research War Stories," and "Interviewing Users: How to Uncover Compelling Insights." And, Steve hosts Dollars to Donuts which has 24 episodes with remarkable guests including head of User Experience Research at Pinterest, Airbnb, Mailchimp, Goldman Sachs, and IBM. Find Steve Online: LinkedIn Website: portigal.com Find Us Online:  Social Media: @happymrxp LinkedIn Website: happymr.com This Episode’s Sponsor:  This episode is brought to you by HubUx. HubUx reduces project management costs by 90%. Think of HubUx as your personal AI project manager, taking care of all your recruitment and interview coordination needs in the background. The platform connects you with the right providers and sample based on your research and project needs. For more information, please visit HubUx.com. [00:00] On Episode 228, I'm interviewing Steve Portigal, founder of Portigal Consulting, but first a word from our sponsor.  [00:11] This episode is brought to you by HubUx.  HubUx is a productivity tool for qualitative research.  It creates a seamless workflow across your tools and team.  Originally, came up with the idea as I was listening to research professionals in both the quant and qual space complain about and articulate the pain, I guess more succinctly, around managing qualitative research.  The one big problem with qualitative is it’s synchronous in nature, and it requires 100% of the attention of the respondent. This creates a big barrier, and, I believe, a tremendous opportunity inside of the marketplace.  So what we do is we take the tools that you use; we integrate them into a work flow so that, ultimately, you enter in your project details, that is, who it is that you want to talk to, when you want to talk to them, whether it’s a focus group, in-person, or virtual or IDI’s or ethnos; and we connect you to those right people in the times that you want to have those conversations or connections – Push-Button Qualitative Insights, HubUx.  If you have any questions, reach out to me directly. I would appreciate it. Jamin@HubUx.com    [01:36] Hi, I'm Jamin, and you're listening to the Happy Market Research Podcast. My guest today is Steve Portigal, founder of Portigal Consulting.  Established in 2001, Portigal Consulting helps organizations bring insights about their users into their design and development processes. Additionally, he has authored two books: Doorbells, Danger and Dead Batteries, User Research War Stories. I actually am ordering that one as soon as we are off this call. It's on my list of things to do today, by the way, and then I've already ordered the Interviewing Users - How to Uncover Compelling Insights. Holy Moly, that is going to be super interesting.  And Steve hosts what is now my number one listened to podcast for the last two weeks. In fact, I've got a six-hour or eight-hour road trip coming up this Wednesday. All the episodes are downloading. I believe I'm going to be caught up at the end of that road trip. He's got 24 episodes with remarkable guests, including head of user-experience research at Pinterest, Airbnb, MailChimp, Goldman Sachs, IBM, and the list goes on. Steve, it is an honor to have you on the Happy Market Research Podcast today. Thank you.  [02:47] I'm happy to be here.  [02:48] I'd like to start out with a quick kind of assessment of, from your point of view...  You grew up in a different area than the Bay Area. Tell us a little bit about your parents, your upbringing, and how that informed who you are today and what you're doing.  [03:03] Yeah, I was raised by a single parent. My mom raised me and my sister in southern Ontario.

狗熊有话说
318期 / 荐书:洞察人心的用户访谈 - Interviewing Users

狗熊有话说

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 12, 2019 57:36


用户访谈?我的工作不需要用户访谈啊?我十几年前刚开始入行做设计时,也这么想,但我后来发现,我错了。只要你的工作是为他人制造产品或是提供服务,你就需要了解你的用户,怎么了解呢?去现场和他们交谈,也就是进行用户访谈,是最有效的手段。Interviewing Users这本书,详细介绍了用户访谈的技巧、方法,书里的大量案例也非常有趣,能让读者活学活用,将用户访谈的效果最大化,获得更多有价值的信息。这期节目,咱们来聊聊Steve Portigal的著作:Interviewing Users。这本书的中文版名为《洞察人心:用户访谈成功的秘密》。 Who need to learn user interviewing skill? If your job is related to the product or service for people, you need to learn how to interview the people who use your product or service, in other words, your users. Designers, engineers, marketers, content creators...we all need to learn how to interview users and learn things from them. Interviewing Users provides many examples and case studies for you, which is great. 本期节目在末尾部分(41:00分钟时起)是我录制的英文书评音轨,内容基本和中文内容差不多,如果跳过也不影响整体收听。视频在我的YouTube频道发布,可以去订阅收看。地址在这里: https://youtu.be/_Wq19-fAGI0 封面在这里: https://i.imgur.com/Z0Nr2ae.png 本书Amazon 地址:https://www.amazon.com/Interviewing-Users-Uncover-Compelling-Insights/product-reviews/193382011X/ref=cmcrdpdshowalltop?ie=UTF8&reviewerType=all_reviews Steve的播客:https://portigal.com/podcast/ Steve的另外一本书:https://rosenfeldmedia.com/books/user-research-war-stories/ 关于: 【狗熊有话说】播客是由 大狗熊 于 2012 年创办的独立中文知识型播客节目,以阅读、科技、旅行和个人成长为主要话题内容,是 iTunes 中国区长期推荐播客,被苹果 iTunes 评选为「2013 年度精选最佳社会与文化播客」。 收听: 在苹果 Podcasts、Spotify、新浪播客、网易云音乐 、喜马拉雅FM 和 荔枝FM 等音频播客平台中可以搜索"狗熊有话说"并关注收听; 直接于【狗熊有话说】播客官网 voice.beartalking.com (http://voice.beartalking.com)在线收听; 在微信公号文章中可以直接点击音频按钮收听(微信中只能加入 30 分钟以内的音频,完整版请于上面的途径收听); 支持: 如果你认可大狗熊的节目,请向朋友们推荐这档节目,邀请朋友们关注公众号“狗熊有话说”; 您可以订阅大狗熊的邮件 (https://tinyletter.com/Beartalk),不定期收获好书解析、学习经验分享。 联系: 微 信:bearbigtalk(公众号) 网 站:beartalking.com (http://www.beartalking.com) 邮 箱:bear@beartalking.com (mailto:bear@beartalking.com) 微 博:@i大狗熊 (http://www.weibo.com/bearbig)

UX Cake
Recipe for Effective User Research

UX Cake

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 25, 2019 27:39


Are you committed to doing user research in order to design and build products and services that work well, solve real needs, and create engaging experiences? Chances are pretty good that if you produce user research in your work, at some point you will feel like your research is just not making the impact it should be. Or you may have trouble making a case for doing more research — and the number one way to get your organization on board with doing more research is to make sure the research that IS done is super effective. So, how can you get more effective?We spoke with expert researcher Danyell Jones, and she’s got a recipe for making research more effective for in-house teams. Danyell is a User Experience Research Lead at ZS Associates, a management consulting firm in Chicago, and she’s giving a talk at the upcoming Convey UX conference called A Recipe for In-house Research. We caught up with her recently where she was working from home while Chicago was in the middle of the Polar Vortex. Danyell Jones oversees and conducts research across 5 different verticals in the Software Development group at ZS Associates. Danyell works with teams to develop reusable and efficient processes for conducting and analyzing research while increasing the visibility of the research practice and user experience team. In addition to working in user research, Danyell teaches graduate-level classes in the HCI program at DePaul University as well as at the Illinois Institute of Art in the Web Design and Interactive Media department. She is also a runner, an avid reader, a Whovian, and a video game lover.Follow Danyell on Twitter @danyelljonesWondering how to ask better questions to avoid the mistakes we talked about? We recommend this book for every level of experience: Interviewing Users: How to Uncover Compelling Insights by Steve Portigal See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Tech for Good Live
Making Friends With… Steve Portigal

Tech for Good Live

Play Episode Listen Later Jan 28, 2019 60:00


Welcome to “Making Friends With…” - a new special series where the Tech for Good Live team sit down for an in-depth interview with someone who is doing exceptional work in the tech industry. In this episode, Bex and Jonny chat with user research extrordinaire Steve Portigal, author of Interviewing Users and Doorbells, Dangers and Dead Batteries. They talk about the role of the user researcher, the increasingly blurry line between design and research, design ethics, and Steve’s favourite stories from user researchers out in the field. We hope you enjoy the episode. Please drop us a review on iTunes, and if you’d like to hear more interviews and conversations like this, let us know who you’d recommend we interview. Send thoughts, suggestions and feedback on Twitter @techforgoodlive. Thanks!

This is HCD - Human Centered Design Podcast
Steve Portigal 'Symbolic Lab Coats, ASMR and Coke-Fueled Lap Dances: More User Research War Stories'

This is HCD - Human Centered Design Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Nov 6, 2018 47:12


Hello and welcome to another episode of This is HCD. I'm your host Chi Ryan, and in this episode, I'm speaking to researcher Steve Portigal. Steve is the Principal of Portigal Consulting and the author of two books: Interviewing Users: How to Uncover Compelling Insights, and Doorbells Danger and Dead Batteries: User Research War Stories. Based outside San Francisco, Steve helps companies to think and act strategically as a result of human insights. Steve has his own podcast, Dollars to Donuts, where he interviews people who lead user research in their organizations. Throughout his career, Steve has interviewed hundreds of people including families eating breakfast, hotel maintenance staff, architects, rock musicians, home automation enthusiasts, credit default swap traders, and radiologists. His work has informed the development of mobile devices, medical information systems, music gear, wine packaging, financial services, corporate internet and video conferencing systems. Wowsers - Steve has really done a lot of things! Exclusive discount The following 20% discount code for 'Doorbells, Dangers and Dead Batteries'. Expires on December 31, 2018: HCD2018 Resources Doorbells, Dangers and Dead Batteries Interviewing Users  Portigal Consulting Rosenfeld Media  Steve Portigal on LinkedIn  Vox Media  Dollars to Donuts podcast This is HCD is brought to you by Humana Design Follow This is HCD us on Twitter Follow This is HCD on Instagram Sign up for our newsletter Join the This is HCD Slack Channel Follow us on Medium   Support the show.

Journey to 7 Figures
How Garrett Moon Built CoSchedule into a 7 Figure SaaS

Journey to 7 Figures

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 18, 2018 36:55


In just five years, Garrett Moon has built CoSchedule from 0 to 7 figures in revenue, 9,000 customers, 1.5M monthly page views, and over 350k email subscribers. Listen to this episode to learn exactly how he did it. Topics Discussed in this Episode: [01:31] How Garrett started with his first agency and how far they got before moving forward with CoSchedule [04:37] The idea for CoSchedule and how they decided it was the product to move forward with [10:36] How they focused on getting customer feedback and understanding customers’ problems [14:17] What was their method of getting customer feedback? [15:28] What were their original SEO strategies? [17:12] What was their promotion strategy? [20:04] Launching the Actionable Marketing Podcast and how it has impacted their growth [23:22] What is their email list growth strategy and what were its drivers? [26:18] What were the 10X projects they released? [30:56] How they dealt with product changes and client base changes Key Takeaways: When you’re an agency and you have serviced customers, it’s really easy to leverage that relationship to get feedback on your software or to get them to buy it, and you kind of get this false sense of validation. When it comes to SaaS, you’re constantly adding more product. And as you make your product more complex and add more features, it becomes a better solution for larger customers. Development is never done. Your customers always need to see new features and they expect the software to get better and more powerful over time, not stay the same. The blog posts that drive traffic aren’t always the most valuable ones. And traffic isn’t always the best signifier of access to some customer segments. If you’re focused on two things, you’re not focused on anything. You can’t focus 100% on two things. Action Steps: Base your business decisions on growth velocity long-term versus just short-term happiness for certain customers. Be constantly focused on growth and moving upward. Learn to delegate and how to manage and trust people. Coach your talent to be good. Garrett said: “You have to learn to really understand the problem and then the emotional reasons that that user might buy a product versus ask them would they buy. It’s not even a real question because there’s so much emotion wrapped into buying, it’s just not a good place to start.” “The reality is that as your product changes and as your customer base changes, you have to make decisions or release features that you know are only going to help a certain set of users.” More from Garrett Moon: CoSchedule 10x Marketing Formula: Your Blueprint for Creating 'Competition-Free Content' That Stands Out and Gets Results by Garrett Moon Garrett’s Twitter: @garrett_moon Resources mentioned: Interviewing Users: How to Uncover Compelling Insights by Steve Portigal Actionable Marketing Podcast The Score Takes Care of Itself: My Philosophy of Leadership by Bill Walsh Sponsor link 14-day Free Trial to LeadQuizzes Thank you for listening! If you enjoyed this episode, subscribe to this podcast! And don’t forget to leave me a rating and a review on iTunes!

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The Conversation Factory
Building a Group Mind with Steve Portigal

The Conversation Factory

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 11, 2018 79:40


It's always such a pleasure to get to sit down with one of your heroes...and it's especially wonderful when they are just warm, wonderful people. Steve Portigal is a prominent author of two excellent books on user research ( Interviewing Users: How to Uncover Compelling Insights and Doorbells, Danger, and Dead Batteries: User Research War Stories,   linked below) and Steve also speaks prolifically on the conference circuit. And while he maintains a solo practice on the west coast, he somehow makes time to also give a lot of his knowledge away, blogging, podcasting...When I was coming up in the design world, Steve's writing was always clear and helpful. And when we first met, he was approachable and human. Steve is a model for the kind of design thought leader we need more of! Sitting down with Steve for this episode was an interesting risk, though. We ran into each other in SF and talked about the possibility of an episode grounded in a topic Steve is an expert in, but indirectly. Let me explain. Steve is a User Researcher, heart and soul. And he talks and writes about it, fluently. Facilitation is something that he *has to do* in order to bring people together. He's an extremely reflective practioner  about research, but about facilitation, less so. For me, it's fascinating to see that divide. I think there are a lot of people where facilitation is a means to an end. Steve illustrates something I coach people on often - you have to be your own kind of facilitator. I can be theatrical and energetic. Steve is more introverted and centered. My way of solving for group work isn't Steve's : he's adapted his own approach that feels natural and gets the job done. There are a few key insights I got out of this conversation that I want you to look out for: Treating Workshops as a series of games with clear rules and goals Steve breaks his time with groups up into "beats" or "scenes" just like an improv person would. Each scene has a focus, an outcome and rules. It breaks the time up and keeps energy moving. Narrow Ranking 0, 1, 2: If you're going to get participants to rank things solo before comparing, make the structure simple. 0 is meh, 2 is awesome. 1 is good. That's it. Too much granularity confuses things. Direct vs indirect facilitation Steve talks about comedic scolding of groups, pushing teams but using humor, vs letting them do their own thing, watching and listening…and stopping the room to call attention to something worthwhile that group is doing. One way might be called extroverted or direct facilitation  and the other introverted or indirect facilitation. Steve says that the extroverted practice of calling people out, using names is "not in my energy." Facilitation is about using what feels natural to you. Being conscious of your choices as a facilitator What are you doing, when? And is it working for you? Why or why not? What to absorb or drop? I know that facilitation is a means to and end for most people, but taking time to reflect on your practice can provide significant dividends The "chef's roll" of facilitation Bringing what you really need into the room. The tools make it go smoothly. Some people love 3 X 5 stickies, others want black, or manage color in other ways. I hate pop-up notes with an undying, smoldering passion. The tools matter. Insights generate energy and clarity by making things simple Steve tells a story about how one woman's insights infused the room with energy and clarity. My feeling is that insights pull multiple threads together, grouping complex behaviors into a simple narrative core. Is it the management of too many mental/narrative threads that's exhausting? And the reduction of threads that gives cognitive release? Expand the frame of your work Steve is a researcher, but he doesn't let his work stop there. He knows nothing will happen with the research unless he pulls the work forward into the org. Running ideation or concepting workshops can tip the energy of the team forward and shift the momentum Links: Steve on the Web Steve on Twitter Steve's Podcast: The Episode with EBay's Pree Kolari Interviewing Users Doorbells, Danger, and Dead Batteries: User Research War Stories Brian Eno's Oblique Strategies on WikiPedia and the App I use! (android) DSchool Facilitation Guide The McDonald's Theory      

Helping Sells Radio
Episode 60: Steve Portigal On Using A Classic Improv Game To Uncover More Customer Insights

Helping Sells Radio

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 27, 2017 30:47


Steve Portigal has interviewed everyone from high-finance traders to rock musicians, regular families to medical professionals, all in search of finding out how to make products better. "Great leaders are not territorial," he said in this episode of Helping Sells Radio. "They're looking for everything and anything that can help make their products better." In his book, Interviewing Users: How to Uncover Compelling Insights, Portigal starts off by stating that "you are not the user". That is, that interviewers are not the users of the product and so shouldn't be involved in the user research experience. "The whole purpose of the interview is to understand someone else's point of view, belief structure, the language they use, etc. in order to embrace their perspective," says Portigal. Get on the email list at helpingsells.substack.com

uncover customer insights improv games steve portigal interviewing users uncover compelling insights helping sells radio
Non Breaking Space Show
Steve Portigal — User Research War Stories

Non Breaking Space Show

Play Episode Listen Later Mar 7, 2017


Steve Portigal is the founder and principal of Portigal Consulting, a boutique firm that brings together user research, design and business strategy. Steve is the author of Interviewing Users: How to Uncover Compelling Insights and Doorbells, Danger, and Dead Batteries: User Research War Stories.

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Non Breaking Space Show
Steve Portigal — User Research War Stories

Non Breaking Space Show

Play Episode Listen Later Mar 7, 2017


Steve Portigal is the founder and principal of Portigal Consulting, a boutique firm that brings together user research, design and business strategy. Steve is the author of Interviewing Users: How to Uncover Compelling Insights and Doorbells, Danger, and Dead Batteries: User Research War Stories.

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Goodstuff Master Audio Feed
Non Breaking Space Show 109: Steve Portigal — User Research War Stories

Goodstuff Master Audio Feed

Play Episode Listen Later Mar 7, 2017


Steve Portigal is the founder and principal of Portigal Consulting, a boutique firm that brings together user research, design and business strategy. Steve is the author of Interviewing Users: How to Uncover Compelling Insights and Doorbells, Danger, and Dead Batteries: User Research War Stories.

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Getting2Alpha
Steve Portigal on active listening & leaving your world view at the door

Getting2Alpha

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 15, 2016 33:18


Steve Portigal a world-class expert in customer research, and the author of Interviewing Users, a practical handbook oh how to get the most value from customer interviews. In this podcast, Steve pulls back the curtain on his professional journey and shares powerful insights about who to talk with - and what to listen for - when you’re interviewing users.

Yours Productly
Steve Portigal on the Art of Interviewing Users

Yours Productly

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 6, 2015 69:38


Steve Portigal in this interview shares insights from his very popular book Interviewing Users: How to Uncover Compelling Insights. For all our listeners, there is a 20% discount on purchasing a copy of Steve’s book if you purchase through Rosenfeldmedia.com. Here's the link: http://rosenfeldmedia.com/books/interviewing-users

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33voices | Startups & Venture Capital | Women Entrepreneurs | Management & Leadership | Mindset | Hiring & Culture | Branding

33voices interviews Steve Portigal, author of Interviewing Users.

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