Episode 27

Leadership, Facilitation, and UX Skills in Action

Published on: 2nd July, 2024

On this episode of The Smart IT Podcast, I welcomed Ashley Morgan to the show.  We discussed the importance of design and the experience of the end user. We kicked off the episode reflecting on our recent facilitation certification program with Voltage Control and the process of creating a portfolio to showcase our facilitation skills. We discussed the role of facilitation in leadership and the need for self-awareness and curiosity in order to be an effective leader. We chatted about the importance of user experience in product and service success.

We also discussed the importance of continuous learning and how curiosity and openness can foster innovation within organizations. Ashley talked about the different mentalities between larger companies and startups when it comes to taking risks and exploring new ideas. Overall, the need for collaboration, communication, and a user-centric approach in organizations is important.

Key Takeaways:

  • Everyone has the potential to be a leader, regardless of their title or role.
  • Openness and curiosity can foster innovation within organizations.
  • Leaning into strengths and supporting each other's weaknesses can create a positive team culture.
  • Larger companies tend to focus on the financial bottom line and are more risk-averse, while startups have a mentality of having nothing to lose and everything to gain.
  • User experience (UX) is crucial in creating a successful product or service, as a poor user experience can lead to frustration and loss of customers.
  • UX professionals have the ability to see the entire system and identify areas where silos and inefficiencies exist, allowing them to recommend changes that improve the user experience.
  • It is important for organizations to prioritize and allocate resources to address user pain points and improve the overall user experience.
  • Collaboration and communication between different teams, including UX, product, engineering, and leadership, are essential for successful implementation of changes and improvements.
  • Feedback and iteration are key in the design process, allowing for continuous improvement and addressing user needs and preferences.
  • Breaking down internal silos for a seamless user experience.
  • The power of feedback and iteration in the design process.

#ux #design #designthinking #facilitation #userexperience  #leadership #curiosity #continuouslearning #innovation #designthinking #startups #exploration #iteration #collaboration #communication #user-centric approach

Show Notes:

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About the Podcast

The Smart IT Podcast
Where IT explores what's next...
The Smart IT Podcast, where IT professionals can assemble and hear from each other, industry leaders, thought leaders, and those in adjacent fields to collaborate and learn from each other and explore what’s next for IT.

The Smart IT Podcast explores what’s next for IT as it continues to find ways to get the important things done for our organizations.
Preparing for the next decade, we need to think differently about how we approach our work to continue to thrive into the future.

Smart IT is an approach, conceptual framework, and development model to getting the important things done by transforming the way traditional IT thinks, works, and leads. It supports the disruption of the status quo, simplifies the complex, reduces uncertainty, and improves risk mitigation.

There has never been more pressure to deliver for our organizations; but I know IT is up to the challenge.

That will require IT to lead by working smarter. Let’s do it together.

About your host

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William Reed

I am an advisor of technology for business use, have seen the possibilities, the challenges, the constraints, and the risks. I have seen firsthand the technical debt, silos, broken communication, despair of IT, and business frustrations. And, I have seen the possibilities, the hopes, and the opportunities while working in the trenches of IT.

As someone that has analyzed, designed, built, and supported technology infrastructure for many businesses over the years, and followed the technology trends and cyber threats, I see the opportunities for our organizations and for the professionals of IT as a fulfilling and thriving career.

I believe we have been blessed with great opportunities to continue to improve ourselves and organizations. If it’s possible, there is no reason enterprise IT cannot reach new heights and help our businesses thrive in age of disruption, complexity, and risk.

I have a passion is bringing a fresh perspective to the challenges in front of IT and help inspire a team to tackle and win. And to help individuals and organizations make better decisions to improve outcomes and experiences.

I advise on matters of technology use for organizational benefits. He has over 20 years’ experience in the Information Technology field. He has worked for multiple technology value added resellers, representing the major vendors and technologies in the industry. He has consulted across the major industries, including banking, health care, retail, oil & gas, education, government, finance, and legal.