Erik Westerdahl

Design-driven entrepreneurship or hacking the system?   A few weeks ago I was asked to share my journey as an entrepreneur at local municipality day in Uddevalla kommun After the talk I started to reflect on my role today, being part of a large organization (which is also, btw, the most common question I’m being asked… how have you changed since being part of EY?)   Great designers are ambitious visionaries, empathic translators, brilliant crafts people and makers. For them to flourish you need to constantly juggle between creating enough freedom and safety for creativity to flourish, enough guard rails to keep focus and pedagogy to connect the dots. Fostering a culture that encourages creation of something truly new, something that cuts through the noise.   Since I was always too impatient to read the books, I found my way hacking, testing and experimenting my way to be an entrepreneur in the design and innovation business. And I never identified with the word “entrepreneur”, I rather saw myself as leading a lab. Curiously exploring what actions would lead to most impact – both in happy people and astonishing output.   So, four years into this corporate adventure, do I see myself as an intrapreneur? Nope.   I think I am still a hacker. A lab worker. A systems change activist. Someone who cannot just follow the patterns or any predefined process. I am still obsessing about creative ways of solving problems. Making sure we are inclusive to make use of all untapped capabilities, both inside our organization, ourselves and society. Striving to make things that are beautiful, purposeful and a bit surprising.   PS. Picture is showing a little appreciation speech from my side to the two brilliant comedians (and hackers) who I believe represent future business builders. They really know how to touch people. DS   Wowing people is serious business. How do you do it?

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Transforming your employee experiences? You must check out Lavinia's work. Start on the Offbeat page, and follow the rabbit hole from there... 😄. Lavinia will also be joining us as mentor for the Kaospilot Experience Design training in CPH in two weeks. We will go fast and deep into designing and prototyping meaningful experiences for others. Link for all the details in the comments👇. #experiencedesign #purpose #prototyping

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Article in UX-Norge: Don't be dazzled by the flashing AI-sun - take action and gain control! As AI continues to affect all sectors at breakneck speed, creating both excitement and concern, it's important not to blindly jump on the AI ​​bandwagon. I would advice to take the time to evaluate the requirements for you technological requirements to ensure it meets your unique needs. At its core, artificial intelligence represents a continuation of technological progress, standing on the shoulders of innovations such as computers, the internet and smartphones that have changed all of our lives in recent times. Historically, humanity has always adjusted our life patterns and ways of working, and the innovations that AI brings are no exception. From the Industrial Revolution of the 19th century, which radically transformed society, to the advent of the Internet in the 1990s which changed communication, technological advances have always had profound effects on how we work and live. AI offers great opportunities to streamline work processes and innovate across industries, which will undoubtedly shape the business landscape of the future. But with this rapidly moving technology comes a certain risk of overwhelm. Many companies feel the pressure of having to adopt AI in order not to fall behind and often get a bit desperate to “add AI to it”. Ministers and technology providers promise great opportunities with solutions for challenges you may not even know you had. In this rush, it can be easy to lose your footing and jump into the undetermined void. But it's important to take a step back and consider how AI can be the tool that actually has value for your business, and not just a technological distraction. It is said that AI should be used as an aid to augment human capabilities, not replace them (although many believe we have already passed this point in many regards). But I would strongly advise to take a breath and reflect on how AI can serve your specific goals and ambitions to reach your customers in the best way. It's not about rejecting the technology, but managing its integration in a way that suits your business needs or personal career aspirations; understanding and setting clear goals. Companies need to think through their objectives and values ​​and understand their customers' needs before, for example, they start building a chatbot so that they know that it will actually solve a realistic need. So, take action and let the AI ​​help you make progress, but keep the steering wheel firmly in your hands. That way you ensure that the AI ​​works for you, and not against you.

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I did a bit of soul searching by curating our Design Breakfast newsletter with the topic design systems. Sign up for the newsletter, or if you are interested in a sparring session regarding design systems, DM me!

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I got 99 problems but stakeholders ain't one? End of April I facilitated a BrainBoostBorrel for my Hike One colleagues on the topic of stakeholder management. If we talk about stakeholder management, we typically talk about handling ‘difficult’ people, those that are resistant to change. But what exactly is it that’s happening, and what skills can we leverage when we see these issues arise? I curated a set of 14 skills (with the help of chatGPT of course 😉) that we matched with existing stakeholder issues. My colleague Marco Geurs then walked us through a Rose of Leary exercise to raise awareness about the effects of our communication style in projects. In our follow up sessions we will dive deeper into Conflict resolution and Organizational awareness. I’m currently reading Supercommunicators by Charles Duhigg which touches on the first topic. If you have any other tips/resources on these two topics they’re more than welcome!

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I’m so excited to be hosting a workshop on Outcome-driven UX Metrics at the UX Nordic Conference on August 28th. Organizations run on numbers. With meaningful metrics, your UX team can show its true value and contribution. Yet, it can be difficult to find measurements reflecting your best work, making mediocre work "good enough." Outcome-driven UX Metrics connect improvements in the user experience to increased value for the organization. With this radical new approach, UX teams measure how their work improves the lives of their customers, users, and employees. UX leaders like yourself can connect the dots of your team's efforts to critical business objectives like customer acquisition, retention, and loyalty. In this earth-shaking workshop, I will explore how UX leaders use Outcome-driven UX Metrics to vividly demonstrate their design's ROI to executives and senior stakeholders. You'll discover how you can use insightful UX metrics to hold the entire organization accountable to deliver better user experiences. Uncover how you'll… … Set your OKRs and KPIs with metrics that accurately reflect improvements to the user and customer experiences your organization delivers. … Align Agile's "definition of done" to how (and when) your product attains clear experience improvements in your users' lives. … Change how your organization views UX, moving from the "make it pretty" team to a strategic contributor of innovation and customer value. More information at: https://cstu.io/35fa35

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I’m so excited to be hosting a workshop on Outcome-driven UX Metrics at the UX Nordic Conference on August 28th. Organizations run on numbers. With meaningful metrics, your UX team can show its true value and contribution. Yet, it can be difficult to find measurements reflecting your best work, making mediocre work "good enough." Outcome-driven UX Metrics connect improvements in the user experience to increased value for the organization. With this radical new approach, UX teams measure how their work improves the lives of their customers, users, and employees. UX leaders like yourself can connect the dots of your team's efforts to critical business objectives like customer acquisition, retention, and loyalty. In this earth-shaking workshop, I will explore how UX leaders use Outcome-driven UX Metrics to vividly demonstrate their design's ROI to executives and senior stakeholders. You'll discover how you can use insightful UX metrics to hold the entire organization accountable to deliver better user experiences. Uncover how you'll… … Set your OKRs and KPIs with metrics that accurately reflect improvements to the user and customer experiences your organization delivers. … Align Agile's "definition of done" to how (and when) your product attains clear experience improvements in your users' lives. … Change how your organization views UX, moving from the "make it pretty" team to a strategic contributor of innovation and customer value. More information at: https://cstu.io/35fa35

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Don’t miss my Outcome-Driven UX Metrics Workshop at the UX Nordic Conference on August 28. Outcome-driven UX Metrics is our radical approach to measuring your product’s or service’s user experience. When you use Outcome-driven UX Metrics, you’ll directly track the user experience improvements your team makes. It’s not based on the magical thinking you find in conventional UX metrics approaches. 👉 No more complicated explanations about how conversion rates, NPS, or the HEART framework demonstrate how the experience is better for customers and users. 👉 No more explaining why numbers didn’t change, even though you improved your design. 👉 No more guessing why your numbers change by themselves, even though you didn’t deliver anything new. These improvements are so exceptional that customers immediately see the enhanced value, and users see increased benefits. Outcome-driven UX Metrics make UX distinctively visible. Until the conference, you can get your Outcome-Driven UX Metrics journey started with my article Measuring Experiences, Not Product Use. https://cstu.io/34a242

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Don’t miss my Outcome-Driven UX Metrics Workshop at the UX Nordic Conference on August 28. Outcome-driven UX Metrics is our radical approach to measuring your product’s or service’s user experience. When you use Outcome-driven UX Metrics, you’ll directly track the user experience improvements your team makes. It’s not based on the magical thinking you find in conventional UX metrics approaches. 👉 No more complicated explanations about how conversion rates, NPS, or the HEART framework demonstrate how the experience is better for customers and users. 👉 No more explaining why numbers didn’t change, even though you improved your design. 👉 No more guessing why your numbers change by themselves, even though you didn’t deliver anything new. These improvements are so exceptional that customers immediately see the enhanced value, and users see increased benefits. Outcome-driven UX Metrics make UX distinctively visible. Until the conference, you can get your Outcome-Driven UX Metrics journey started with my article Measuring Experiences, Not Product Use. https://cstu.io/34a242

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I’m excited to host a workshop on Outcome-driven UX Metrics at the UX Nordic Conference on August 28th. Organizations run on numbers. With meaningful metrics, your UX team can show its true value and contribution. Yet, it can be difficult to find measurements reflecting your best work, making mediocre work “good enough.” Outcome-driven UX Metrics connect improvements in the user experience to increased value for the organization. With this radical new approach, UX teams measure how their work improves the lives of their customers, users, and employees. UX leaders like yourself can connect the dots of your team’s efforts to critical business objectives like customer acquisition, retention, and loyalty. In this earth-shaking workshop, we will explore how UX leaders use Outcome-driven UX Metrics to vividly demonstrate their design’s ROI to executives and senior stakeholders. You’ll discover how you can use insightful UX metrics to hold the entire organization accountable to deliver better user experiences. Uncover how you’ll… … Set your OKRs and KPIs with metrics that accurately reflect improvements to the user and customer experiences your organization delivers. … Align Agile’s “definition of done” to how (and when) your product attains clear experience improvements in your users’ lives. … Change how your organization views UX, moving from the “make it pretty” team to a strategic contributor of innovation and customer value. More information at: https://cstu.io/83c6ff

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My 6 Simple Tips for Career Success from last weeks "Reach your Human Potential" session for the graduates program Tietoevry. In today's fast-paced world, success isn't just about skills, or reading books it's about mindset. 🏔 Find Purpose, Not Motivation: Motivation can wane, but purpose is a driving force that keeps you moving forward even when times are tough. 📊 Work on Your Imperfections: Self-awareness is key. Identify your weaknesses and actively work on them. 💪 Build Mental Resilience: Challenges are inevitable. Cultivate a resilient mindset to navigate through setbacks and emerge stronger. ⚖ Be Accountable: Own your actions and decisions. 🛣 Avoid Shortcuts: Success built on shortcuts is often short-lived. Embrace the journey. 👩 Be Honest: Integrity is non-negotiable. Honesty fosters trust, credibility, and respect in your professional relationships. Learn more here > https://lnkd.in/dbiutbvR #CareerSuccess #ProfessionalDevelopment #Leadership #CareerAdvice #PurposeDriven #MentalResilience #Integrity #ContinuousImprovement

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Don’t miss my Outcome-Driven UX Metrics Workshop at the UX Nordic Conference on August 28. Outcome-driven UX Metrics is our radical approach to measuring your product’s or service’s user experience. When you use Outcome-driven UX Metrics, you’ll directly track the user experience improvements your team makes. It’s not based on the magical thinking you find in conventional UX metrics approaches. 👉 No more complicated explanations about how conversion rates, NPS, or the HEART framework demonstrate how the experience is better for customers and users. 👉 No more explaining why numbers didn’t change, even though you improved your design. 👉 No more guessing why your numbers change by themselves, even though you didn’t deliver anything new. These improvements are so exceptional that customers immediately see the enhanced value, and users see increased benefits. Outcome-driven UX Metrics make UX distinctively visible. Register for tickets: https://cstu.io/8edabe

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Come and listen online TIEKE Tietoyhteiskunnan kehittämiskeskus ry webinar with my lead data architect colleague Timo Kostamo (talk in Finnish - slides in English), co-speakers Antti 'Jogi' Poikola and Mikko Eloholma Siili’s Topic: Maritime Data Space as an enabler for Virtual Port Arrivals - Gaiax innovation ecosystem project led by Siili Solutions Climate change requires significant changes from the shipping industry. Using service design, we developed an innovative solution together with the ecosystem with over 30 organisation - suitable for the multi-stakeholder field, which can reduce ships rushing to ports, fuel consumption, emissions and waiting at anchor. The project has been nominated as a flagship project of the COP27 - UN Climate Change Conference Global Green Shipping Challenge program of the United Nations Climate Conference. Main partners Fintraffic, and ESL Shipping Ltd, Yara International, SSAB and Port of Oxelösund, who have tested the idea since 2021. Data Spaces Alliance Finland Fintraffic ESL Shipping Ltd

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Must be one of the best initiatives i have seen that comes from the top regarding UX. https://lnkd.in/dB8SpaiH

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Come and hear me talk about UXers and clinicians collaborating!

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“Efterklang: The Makedonium Band” screening during the 21st Edition of Millenium DOCS Against Gravity (May 10-19. 2024) is a good example of the creative process in action. Be open to other people and their culture, don’t judge, and find time to contemplate and observe. Finally, you can achieve a union with your team and create something unique. Sounds like Theory U ;) https://lnkd.in/dgNaWunT 

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If you are involved in Pharma or MedTech device development, I urge you to spend 5 minutes listening to Jacob telling about overseen psychological barriers that can lead to patients not taking their medication or not using their medical device 💡🌟 Coming from the hearing aid industry, I can definitely relate to this, but have honestly never thought about the effect of such psychological barriers 🤔 Give me or Jakob Bendix a call, if you want to hear more ☎ (see my phone number under contact information or send me a direct message)

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Despite a slightly dystopian start, this Fast Company piece by Zalando’s Jarno M. Koponen sparks some really important questions for designers and product builders in the AI age. I’ll unpack some of the takeaways: 🧠 Jarno writes that successful and groundbreaking innovation requires different aspects of creativity. It requires the ability to detect and leverage patterns, trends, and opportunities that span across different areas of diverse human life and fast-developing technologies. As AI becomes more and more useful, the innovation practices of product design will be key in being able to spot the opportunities and creative possibilities and realize their potential. ⚔️ He also highlights that AI's influence on design can be a double-edged sword. While it can drive innovation at scale, it also risks leading to homogenization if not managed carefully. This is a call to the design community to ensure that AI serves to augment human creativity rather than diminish it. Creating environments—both digital and physical—that foster deep, meaningful creative work is key to blending the best of human and machine capabilities. 🚀 Lean into what makes AI great: find creative ways to inject scenario-based “design fiction,” and data-driven personas into AI-augmented processes. Then leverage design practices and tooling that allow testing with real customers as fast as possible. It will become even more critical that product designers can get their ideas in front of real customers as fast as possible to validate and iterate solutions quicker than the competitors (other human and designer AIs). AI is more than just a tool for those in design—it's a creative ally. The challenge lies in harnessing it in a way that amplifies our creative voice, ensuring our work remains diverse, impactful, and fundamentally human. Check out Jarno’s full FastCo piece and share your thoughts below! https://lnkd.in/ge4tgY9P 

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