How can we put the user at the heart of change? 💁💕
How can we put the user at the heart of change? 💁💕
...plus we dip into some Fringe economics, and all the latest news from Nile
Welcome to The Navigator 🧭 - a newsletter about people, psychology and design for business leaders who want to make meaningful change. I’m Sarah Ronald, and I write this newsletter with the Nile team. If this email was forwarded to you, you can subscribe here to receive it straight to your inbox.
Hello! 👋 How was your summer? Although The Navigator took a break, the team at Nile has been really busy, and we’re pleased to be back in your inbox with more insights from the world of strategic design.
This month saw Nile celebrate its 17th birthday. A lot has changed in that time - not least the way user-centred design is discussed and delivered. In this issue, our new Group Marketing Manager,
, looks at how changes in society shape our responses to the challenge of creating services - and what questions we’ll face next.Meanwhile, the Nile team headed across town for an Edinburgh Fringe Festival event we supported through our partnership with Adam Smith’s Panmure House. Senior Bloomberg writer Merryn Somerset Webb wrangled a panel of experts as they entertained and enlightened us with some very frank views on the economy - you can discover what went on further down this issue. 👇
My best wishes as you navigate your week,
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On the path to user-centric design
From bus services to banks and retailers to royal families, no organisation can escape being influenced and shaped by the wider social context.
And since Nile was founded 17 years ago, we’ve seen some dramatic social shifts.
Global movements like #MeToo and BLM have emerged and matured, alongside the continued push for LGBTQI+ rights, working in the face of a slew of divisive political figures (you know who).
We’ve experienced easier access to better, more powerful technology – in parallel with growing fears over its misuse. We’ve lived through a pandemic that’s redefined how the world works, and we’re now struggling to face up to big challenges like the climate crisis, growing inequality at all levels, and the rise of unregulated AI.
Challenging but vital issues like diversity, inclusion, accessibility and sustainability are no longer ‘nice-to-haves’ but are expected by customers - and, increasingly, are enforced by industry standards, regulators or even through legislation.
More than just a nice-to-have.
As a result, well-designed services have also become more than just a nice-to-have. Beyond the monetary return on investment, empathetic strategic design can clear a path for organisations who want - or need - to take on these big issues.
Thanks in no small part to the Covid crisis, digital transformation and remote working - once vaguely-imagined future states - have become daily realities. As Mike Bracken writes in Digital Transformation at Scale, the pandemic meant that, for the first time, creating digital services that actually worked ‘became headline news’. Those organisations that didn’t invest in user-centred design, Bracken says,
…suffered the consequences of behaviour that had long since been baked into the organisation’s design: the difficult conversations not had, the investments not made, the complacencies untouched. When the stakes were smaller, so was the damage. The stakes got much higher in 2020.
The expectation today is that services shouldn’t just make things work, but should create satisfying and equitable outcomes for the people they impact. As changemakers know, putting people’s needs at the heart of change will ultimately benefit the many, reduce costs, generate positive brand stories and result in happier, more loyal customers.
Led by the users, not the tools.
Ten years ago, when faced with a broken system or a big gap between customer expectations and reality, the default position might have been to think about what tools or frameworks we could apply to fix the problem.
Today, a strategic user-centred approach means looking at the bigger picture, thinking about how we can change mindsets, break down silos, collaborate across teams and disciplines and accept ambiguity and uncertainty. Putting people at the heart of design means approaching them with empathy to properly understand their needs, bringing in diverse perspectives, and being prepared to iterate.
New developments like unregulated AI, dark patterns and increasingly powerful ways to gather and make sense of data are raising a plethora of possibilities and challenges for how services that impact everyone’s day-to-day lives are delivered. Equally, questions around how organisations overcome bias and inequity and support social justice remain only partly answered.
For those of us strategising and building services, it may mean looking again at our own makeup, and considering how we can become more representative of our stakeholders. It will mean thinking about who we partner with to access less-heard voices, and what practices - like co-designing - we can adopt to share power with users more equitably.
As we begin another year in the story of Nile, we’ll continue to do our bit in finding positive answers to those questions, advocating for those who want to make things better, and creating pathways through this shifting landscape.
Putting people at the heart of services is not just an ethical imperative, but an opportunity to create a world that works better for us all.
Fringe economics at Panmure House
In our June issue, we shared that Nile is now a supporter of Panmure House - the final residence of Scottish economist and father of capitalism Adam Smith. A leading centre for commercial, economic and philosophical debate, it exists to host the most essential conversations of our time.
Last Sunday, as part of Edinburgh’s Festival Fringe, the venue opened its doors to the public for a lively panel discussion on the economy, which Nile was proud to sponsor. Merryn Somerset Webb, senior columnist for Bloomberg, chaired a formidable panel of experts and thinkers in economics, finance and politics: Paul Johnson, Director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies; Richard Wilson (CEO at abrdn Personal Wealth); businessman and investor Jim Mellon, and comedian Simon Evans.
The spirit of Adam Smith loomed large over the event. We were greeted in the foyer by a priceless first edition of The Wealth of Nations (on loan from US economist Mark Skousen), and the event’s title - The Butcher, the Brewer, the Baker and Merryn Somerset Webb - was in reference to Smith’s assertion that:
It is not from the benevolence of the butcher, the brewer, or the baker, that we expect our dinner, but from their regard to their own interest. We address ourselves, not to their humanity but to their self-love, and never talk to them of our own necessities but of their advantages.
The focus was on the current state of Britain’s economy, and what could be done to set it on the right track. Each of the panellists came armed with their own favourite quotes from Adam Smith, which kept the discussion flowing. Jim Mellon shared this one:
By means of glasses, hotbeds, and hotwalls, very good grapes can be raised in Scotland, and very good wine too can be made of them at about thirty times the expense for which at least equally good can be brought from foreign countries. Would it be a reasonable law to prohibit the importation of all foreign wines, merely to encourage the making of claret and burgundy in Scotland?
Naturally, this led to a lively debate on the merits of free trade post-Brexit (and the price of a good red 🍷). From there, the discussion was wide-ranging, and the panel weren’t afraid to speak their minds: Why are children in developing nations like India excited to attend school, while some in the UK see it as an imposition on their social lives? Should asylum seekers be allowed to work while their claims are being processed? Should we cut student loan interest, or cut the number of degrees that don’t result in jobs that immediately benefit the economy?
The Nile team and our guests enjoyed a lively and engaging hour in which some big ideas about the economy were explored in a frank and accessible way. And afterwards, the Scottish summer was kind enough to let us enjoy a drinks reception on the historic courtyard outside the 17th century house.
An edited recording of Sunday’s discussion will be available shortly via the Bloomberg Merryn Talks Money podcast.
Nile News
The Navigator might have taken a break, but Nile certainly hasn’t! Our team has been working throughout the summer on continuing to deliver fantastic outcomes for our clients.
Here’s a few other things we’ve been up to, in between dodging Festival tourists and influencers posing outside our Circus Lane HQ:
☕️ Our latest Changemaker Breakfast in Edinburgh focused on the psychology of choice and complex decisions. Together with professionals from across our client base, we explored how we could jointly design products, services, and experiences that support their businesses in achieving fair outcomes. The session included a really engaging tour through the financial services ‘advice gap’ – creating some really engaging and insightful discussion around the table.
✨ Not only has our Operations team worked hard to ensure we retain our ISO 9001 accreditation, but the auditor praised Nile’s quality management system as being among the best they’ve seen.
🔮 We’re teaming up with Edinburgh Futures Institute for a new event series on a topic that affects us all. All will be revealed in the next insight-packed issue of The Navigator…
That’s it for this month - as always, you can keep up with our latest news, and insights from the team, by following Nile on LinkedIn. And if you found this newsletter useful, please spread the word:
About Nile
Nile is a Strategic Design team that helps deliver human-centred change in highly regulated industries. Our methods engage employees and customers with new technology and ways of working. Our outcomes help save money and improve business performance.
If you think we can help your teams, reply directly to this email (they come straight to my inbox), or reach out to someone specific via our website.
Thanks for reading! 🚀