Jemma Ahmed

" Every time we say, I would prefer not to, we reclaim a little bit of agency. "

" The moat that once protected researchers—their exclusive data access—is disappearing; now our value is enabling others to use insight. "

" I never talk about the business and the business value, there are people making decisions you should understand. "

" People deserve to have their stories heard and held compassionately for no other reason than by virtue of the fact that they exist. "

" Insights are networked; they don’t exist independently beyond how they’re absorbed and acted on by others. "

" Democratization requires intentional investment; you can’t just add it as a bullet point on someone’s to-do list and expect it to work. "

" If your talk isn’t accepted, it doesn’t mean it’s bad—it might just not fit the program’s narrative arc or available slots. "

" Victor is going to throw a wrecking ball through the idea of interviewing. "

" User experience is everyone’s responsibility. It’s not just UXs. "

" Ecosystem mapping can practically join up different data sources to create holistic insight. "

" How can we teach others about powerful stories without first becoming learned ourselves? "

" There has to be some connection between our results and how our partners see the value in it. "

" There are more and more specialized roles emerging as research expands, like DesignOps and UX recruiting. "

" We used behavioral science techniques like laddering and therapeutic research to vividly recreate users' memories. "

" Ultimately, we’re all here to help our companies care about the customer faster, no matter the tribe or method. "