UX Research

– It’s been almost three years now... Long enough for a "temporary" downturn to start feeling permanent... Last week, I sat down with an entrepreneur I’ve known for a while. He’d just had to shut down part of his digital agency. We talked about where we

AI-generated personas and insights are starting to pop up in my LinkedIn feed, often pitched as clever ways to speed up user research. But if you’re aiming to build something better than average, these shortcuts won’t save you time. They’re more likely to lead you in the

“I looked and looked and looked, but I did not see God.” The quote is often attributed to Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin after his journey into space. Whether he actually said it is uncertain, but the Soviet propaganda machine used it anyway to make a point. User research exists to bring

What does it take to succeed as an interaction/UX designer in the coming years? My answer might sound boring. Even though the industry is evolving faster than ever and development practices have come a long way, the fundamentals of great design work are pretty much the same today as

“UX? Service Design? No, thanks, we’re not focused on innovation or growth right now. Our priority is cutting costs. Anything that isn’t absolutely essential needs to be kept to a minimum.” This mindset might seem logical, but it’s actually costing companies more than they realize. Many businesses

A couple of weeks ago, I met up with the CEO of a local bank. We talked about the future of banking, the benefits and challenges of being a local entity, and, of course, the importance of customer experience. At one point, I turned my screen to show how we

"Johan… you know I’m not a designer, but after ten years in communication and product development, I’ve seen how much better things go when skilled designers are involved from the start. Yesterday, a new client dismissed my points, and I struggled to find the right words to

Did you know acquiring a new customer is five times more expensive than retaining an existing one? Or that customer-centric companies can grow their revenues 4% to 8% faster than their competitors? Or that companies that focus on enhancing the customer experience see, on average, a 15-20% increase in sales

Imagine spending months developing a new feature, only to find out it doesn’t resonate with your customers—despite feeling confident that you "knew" what they wanted. Sound familiar? This scenario plays out more often than we think. Decision-makers sometimes ask me: “What’s the point of research

A few weeks ago, I got to catch up with Steve Portigal, author of Interviewing Users and track leader at Ambition Empower. We talked about what’s changed over the years, including the rise of remote research—often at the expense of traditional field studies. Many years ago, after completing

"You know we would like to do tests and research, but there is no time right now.” Jan Andresen recently followed up on my post about trusting the process. He asked how I handle situations where decision-makers want to skip the research and move straight to implementing a solution.

I’ve spent years meeting with CEOs, VPs, and upper management—both as a board member and advisor. These rooms can feel intimidating, filled with decision-makers who expect results. My role is often to help make the product or service perform better. Still, despite decades of experience, I sometimes find

When optimizing business performance, numbers often steal the show. And here’s the thing. They should. But to really understand what’s happening, you have to dig deeper. The most important insights aren’t captured in spreadsheets. Last week, my Ambition colleagues and I organized after-work events in Gothenburg and