Podcast appearances and mentions of jeff leitner

In this episode, hosts Lee-Sean Huang and Giulia Donatello sit down with Jeff Leitner, the co-founder of UX for Good, architect of Norm Design, and a partner to organizations ranging from the US State Department and NASA to Harvard Medical School. Together, they unpack the core ideas behind his Summer 2026 Stanford Social Innovation Review article, "The Science of Norm Design," exploring why smart, well-funded initiatives fail roughly 70% of the time. Jeff shares his extensive experience studying the "invisible architecture" of social environments. He offers a critical challenge to the design industry, inviting practitioners to look past boilerplate briefs and standard user research to systematically uncover and design for the unwritten rules that dictate human behavior.In This EpisodeHere is the section trimmed down by 25% for a faster, punchier read, with all text formatted in plain text:The definition of norm design. Jeff defines norm design as an essential layer built on top of traditional research to uncover a group's informal, unwritten rules. Because every solution lands within a complex social ecosystem, these hidden dynamics ultimately dictate whether a design succeeds or fails. The 70% organizational failure rate. Stagnant for decades, the standard failure rate for organizational change is famously high. The uncomfortable reality is that most interventions fail because they inadvertently obey the exact same unwritten rules as the problems they are trying to fix. The New Orleans musicians' paradox. Partnering with UX for Good to help local musicians, who average $24,000 a year, the team found that standard financial literacy training routinely failed. A norm-based approach revealed that musicians viewed asking for tips as humiliating. By bypassing the ask and adding a tipping line directly to club receipts, they successfully transferred thousands of dollars to bands. Unwritten rules vs. employee manuals. Social norms are rarely documented. To find a company's true constraints, Jeff suggests asking employees what they would tell a best friend over drinks about "how the place really works," rather than what's printed in the onboarding manual. The structural empathy trap. While designers champion empathy, leaning too deeply into a user's perspective can cause researchers to absorb the same invisible constraints that the target group can't see, effectively blinding the designer to the overarching social norms. Empathy vs. compassion in Rwanda. At the Kigali Genocide Memorial, the team challenged the default industry strategy of showing horror to inspire action. Brain research shows that witnessing suffering floods our pain circuits, causing distress, fatigue, and shutdown. By profiling ordinary heroes, they engaged the brain's compassion networks to cultivate the will to act. How success derailed NASA. Jeff discovered that 100% of interviewed NASA staff anchored their operational norm to JFK's 1962 "Moonshot" speech. However, waiting for a singular political figure to rally the public blinded the agency to the modern reality of private spaceflight, turning a historic triumph into a systemic roadblock. ResourcesThe Science of Norm Design by Jeff Leitner (Stanford Social Innovation Review) – https://ssir.org/articles/entry/the-science-of-norm-designLeitner Studio Official Website – leitnerstudio.com UX for Good Nonprofit – uxforgood.org Cracking the Code of Change by Nitin Nohria and Michael Beer, the original source of the 70% failure rate of change initiatives (Harvard Business Review)  – https://hbr.org/2000/05/cracking-the-code-of-changeAIGA Design Podcast Feedback and Voicememos – podcast@aiga.org 

A thank you for listening to Goodniks from creator, Jeff Leitner.

In our finale episode we ask our Goodniks two questions that feel impossible to answer, yet they are uniquely qualified to speak to them. One, does the work you do make you a good person? Two…you'll just have to listen to find out. Listen in podcast form wherever you listen to podcasts: https://pod.link/1615577319 For more information visit goodniks.org

In Episode 9, we talk to our Goodniks about what they might have told their younger selves. What did their younger selves need to know about doing good work in the world? For more information visit goodniks.org

In Episode 8, we hear how our Goodniks convert the worst moments in their lives into good work in the world. When faced with tragedy and trauma, how do they remain hopeful and even use their trauma as a catalyst of their work or to recommit to their work? For more information visit goodniks.org

In episode 7, we talk to our Goodniks about who keeps them going. We hear stories about the people who light their way and give them strength. For more information visit www.goodniks.org

In Episode 6, we unpack the internal struggles, the personal sacrifices, and the external pressures that our Goodniks confront as they do good in the world. What do they have to give up to do this work? For more information visit goodniks.org

Jeff Leitner is a social innovator who works with governments, institutions, foundations, corporations, and NGOs to solve problems that matter. His new podcast is Goodniks. ---Leave Zak your advice by calling 844-935-BEST---IG: @bestadviceshowhome: bestadvice.show See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In Episode 5, we talk to our Goodniks about what happens when they finish their current good work in the world. What do they do after they've made a particular dent in the Universe? And who are they after they cross that bridge?

In Episode 4, we ask our Goodniks about what went especially right as they were doing good in the world. Were there signs along the way that they were on the right path? And where did they find the validation they needed to keep going? For more information visit goodniks.org

In Episode 3, we ask our Goodniks about the limits they come up against as they're doing good in the world. What miscalculations and missteps have they made? And how are they able to make peace with what they can't fix? For more information on our Goodniks, visit: www.goodniks.org

Today's guest is Jeff Leitner Jeff Leitner has 30 years of experience supporting proposals, capture, and business development across the public sector. Currently Vice President of Consulting for Red Team Consulting, he leads the company's proposal, capture, and growth strategy consulting practice, working with Red Team’s clients and consultants. He also leads the company’s proposal best practices and develops and delivers proposal training. Jeff earned his Bachelor of Science in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Michigan, so he is literally a rocket scientist. He is active in the Colorado Chapter of APMP and regularly presents at APMP conferences and delivers webinars to APMP members. Jeff is known for his dry, witty humour. In his spare time, he enjoys spending time with his two teenage children and passionately protesting environmental destruction, civil rights injustices, animal cruelty, and gun culture. In this episode, we will discuss Jeff's Early life Rocket scientist studies IBM career Red Consulting journey Views on best and least about consulting?Leadership views Sailing Few fun questions After you survive the apocalypse, what will your job be?If you had the power to shrink anything and take it with you, what would you do with it?If you were invisible for 12 hours, what would you do?If you had to be renamed after one of the planets in the solar system, which would you pick?If you were the captain of a pirate ship, what would you name your ship? And what would your title be?If you were attending a Halloween party, what would your costume be and why?What kind of secret society would you like to start?If you could be any male/female sports star, who would you be?Which is more difficult? Raising teenagers or running proposals?Get to know the rocket scientist turned softest bid leader with strongest passion in environment and society, Jeff Leitner. Red Team Consulting Website : https://redteamconsulting.com

Shirley Collier, President of Scale2Market and host of the Growth Masters Federal podcast discusses changes in federal procurement practices since the COVID-19 crisis with Jeff Leitner, VP of Consulting for Red Team Consulting. For more information, contact us: getinfo@scale2market.com or visit our website.

“As the astronauts are tethered to the spaceship [so] they can float out in space, I have to be tethered to something or I will lose my mind. And what I'm tethered to is habit - I have to ground somewhere. So, I ground in my family and habits.” Jeff Leitner is the guy the UN calls when they don’t know what to do. Get it? Now imagine diving into a conversation with this incredible human being! In this podcast, Jeff plunges us into a thoughtful and honest conversation about the purpose and meaning of habits and how we can have great impact with just little daily investments that can improve the quality of your life and those you love.A leading researcher, writer, and speaker on unwritten rules, Jeff is the co-author of See Think Solve: A Simple Way to Tackle Tough Problems and has worked for the UN, U.S. Department of State, NASA, Harvard Medical School, TED, Dalai Lama Center for Peace + Education, and The GRAMMY Foundation, just to name a few.In this episode you'll hear about:Habits that help you recuperate and the importance of doing something to recuperate from -- otherwise it becomes an excess.Habits that improve the quality of your life over time: Like all investments, one small action one day doesn’t amount to much but do this for 20 years and the payoffs could be unimaginable.Habits that create impact in the world requires being who you are and investing in the small things that matter to you. Plus:Having trouble innovating and taking risks in your life? Maybe you can ask yourself: What am I tethered to that can allow me to float in the space of uncertainty?And:Feeling anxious in the face of uncertainty? Breaking your routine might mean you’ve violated a healthy habit, which makes you more anxious on your spacewalk.Until next time! Be curious, be inspired, simplify the way…Jeff Leitnerwww.jeffleitner.comwww.unwrittenlabs.com

Jeff Leitner believes that if we want to create a new future together we have to start by uncovering the unwritten rules. Unwritten rules are remarkably powerful, informal suggestions about how we’re expected to behave in social settings. They're the single biggest influence on our daily behaviors, setting the norms for how we interact with each other. Change starts by discovering the unwritten rules all around us. Tune into this episode of the Business Model Sandbox podcast to hear Saul Kaplan and Jeff Leitner explore the evolution of social innovation and how to discover the power of unwritten rules to enable transformation change that matters.

Welcome to a special edition of “What’s Next?” In this episode, you’ll hear Jan Johnson and Jeff Leitner discuss the unwritten rules of social norms at our 2018 global summit in Madrid, Spain. The opinions expressed in What's Next podcasts are not necessarily those of CoreNet Global.

What can modern art museums teach us about commemorating the Holocaust? And why is legislation not enough to stop human trafficking? What are some of the recurring patterns that help us innovate by shifting behaviors, crafting culture, and making systems change? In this episode of FoossaPod, David Colby Reed and Lee-Sean Huang talk with Jeff Leitner to explore these questions and to discuss the importance of looking at norms as a starting point for social innovation. Jeff has worked on social innovation projects in a range of sectors ranging from diplomacy, to healthcare, to education. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/foossa/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/foossa/support

LMS host Michael Meyer sits down with Jeff Leitner following his keynote speech at the LMA Northeast Conference in Philadelphia. Building on the themes of his keynote, he discusses how to spot opportunities to challenge existing norms and push firms' cultures forward.

In the same way that some people might dismantle a washing machine, Jeff dismantles social systems. He describes himself has having a pathology for dismantling social systems. Jeff argues that social norms, the unwritten rules of how people behave, are at the root of addressing complex challenges. We have a rich discussion about how we change social systems by using a scales metaphor. For Jeff and his colleagues, social norms are the key to addressing complex problems. For Jeff and his colleagues, the key to the scale is social norms. They break the scale down into six notes:Actors - people related to the problem. People who have a first or second-degree relationship to the problem.History - all the stories people tell about the problemLimits - formal rules related to a problem.Future - our presumptions about how the problem will unfold.Configuration - how the elements of the problem are arrangedParthood - every problem is part of larger more complex problems.Jeff and his colleagues argue that through these six notes, you can play any song in norms. In their approach, they identify and infuse deviance into systems rather than trying to reduce problems into identifiable projects. Jeff and is team are trying to disrupt how we address a complex problem.He and his team, really struggle with getting people away from inspiration and into the zone of problem-solving. For them, we have an inspiration crisis. They hold the view that most people are stopping short, at Design Thinking and inspiration. He acknowledges that people are doing the best they can with the tools they have been given. He and his team are working to change the story or tell a better story.Jeff has found that often in his work, he is often pushing people to think well beyond where they think they can. He argues that the best thinking happens when you move four dials.Passion - turn it down to low.Focus - turn it low and look for patterns versus details.Presumption - turn it down. Presumption refers to all the assumptions you bring into the work.Agency - you need to believe that you are the only person in the world that can solve this problem.Links relative to the podcast: The Greenhouse Model: https://www.amazon.com/dp/0692888055SDG's in ranked order: http://ghouse.org/2016/06/15/social-stability-model/

In the same way that some people might dismantle a washing machine, Jeff dismantles social systems. He describes himself has having a pathology for dismantling social systems. Jeff argues that social norms, the unwritten rules of how people behave, are at the root of addressing complex challenges. We have a rich discussion about how we change social systems by using a scales metaphor. For Jeff and his colleagues, social norms are the key to addressing complex problems. For Jeff and his colleagues, the key to the scale is social norms. They break the scale down into six notes:Actors - people related to the problem. People who have a first or second-degree relationship to the problem.History - all the stories people tell about the problemLimits - formal rules related to a problem.Future - our presumptions about how the problem will unfold.Configuration - how the elements of the problem are arrangedParthood - every problem is part of larger more complex problems.Jeff and his colleagues argue that through these six notes, you can play any song in norms. In their approach, they identify and infuse deviance into systems rather than trying to reduce problems into identifiable projects. Jeff and is team are trying to disrupt how we address a complex problem.He and his team, really struggle with getting people away from inspiration and into the zone of problem-solving. For them, we have an inspiration crisis. They hold the view that most people are stopping short, at Design Thinking and inspiration. He acknowledges that people are doing the best they can with the tools they have been given. He and his team are working to change the story or tell a better story.Jeff has found that often in his work, he is often pushing people to think well beyond where they think they can. He argues that the best thinking happens when you move four dials.Passion - turn it down to low.Focus - turn it low and look for patterns versus details.Presumption - turn it down. Presumption refers to all the assumptions you bring into the work.Agency - you need to believe that you are the only person in the world that can solve this problem.Links relative to the podcast: The Greenhouse Model: https://www.amazon.com/dp/0692888055SDG's in ranked order: http://ghouse.org/2016/06/15/social-stability-model/

This week on the Best Game in Town: We gather three political consultants to talk about the week that was. And this week was all about ads. Dave Kohn, Jeff Leitner and Delmarie Cobb join host Steve Edwards to talk through the final weeks of the various campaigns.