I would summarize my profession as designing experiences that are founded by human science. At Ford, we approach each design challenge using a research methodology centering on neurology, psychology and anthropology. By utilizing these three foundations of human behavior to shape our solution, we are able to account for the needs of the individual, the group and the community. This collective understanding forms the building blocks of a human experience and enables diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) to remain at the core of everything we do.
What I find most exciting about this work is the impact we can have at multiple scales. When talking about workplace, our findings have the ability to impact both the spaces we create and the policy of an organization. The impact within workplace is cyclical and can be monumental. When an organization understands the ‘why’ behind their employees’ behavior, and in response designs curated experiences, it will inevitably boost organizational culture, which drives retention and wellbeing, further enhancing the ‘why.’ Then, the cycle continues. There is incredible value in deeply understanding your employees even in large, multifaceted, global organizations.
Within Retail, we have the potential to positively impact individuals, communities, and even nations of people when we pair human science with the data and analytics we have access to. We can begin to overlay thick and thin data to not only transform the retail experience, but enrich the lives of our customers along the way.