Rosenverse

This video is only accessible to Gold members. Log in or register for a free Gold Trial Account to watch.

Log in Register

Most conference talks are accessible to Gold members, while community videos are generally available to all logged-in members.

Theme 1: Intro
Gold
Monday, January 8, 2024 • Enterprise Experience 2020
Share the love for this talk
Theme 1: Intro
Speakers: Lada Gorlenko
Link:

Summary

The speaker opens the talk by framing the unique difficulty of being a newcomer or change leader in century-old companies and traditional industries. Seb Mallow from Canadian Railways shares his experience of feeling removed from the core business and facing distinct challenges compared to UX teams at tech-first companies. Inspired by these stories, the conference team aims to spotlight how UX can grow and transform mature enterprises. Rob Meetzel, a 30-year veteran at Ford, provides the insider perspective of evolving UX within a legacy automotive giant, while Seb offers the fresh viewpoint of a newcomer navigating steep learning curves at Canadian National Railways. The second part of the talk shifts to government UX transformation, featuring speakers like Mykelaan, who designed US satellite interfaces and managed complex stakeholder dynamics, Sherbiney Stonk from Australia Post illustrating how to build an agile UX team in an old organization, and Ivana Stok discussing product operations focused on scaling UX impact rapidly and broadly from day one. Throughout, themes of patience, perseverance, stakeholder management, adaptive strategies, and scalable solutions surface as keys to success. The talk encourages professionals from all backgrounds — consultants, tech startups, and enterprise UX teams — to learn from these tangible stories of transformation in challenging environments.

Key Insights

  • UX transformation in century-old companies requires different approaches than in tech startups.

  • Seb Mallow's experience reveals how being two layers removed from core business changes UX challenges.

  • Rob Meetzel's 30-year tenure at Ford shows how UX evolves alongside a legacy company's culture.

  • Fresh perspectives from newcomers like Seb can drive innovation even in conservative companies.

  • Government UX transformation demands managing high-level stakeholders with complex interests.

  • Sherbiney Stonk built one of the most effective agile UX teams in an old institution, Australia Post.

  • Scaling UX in large enterprises benefits from strong product operations from day one, as Ivana Stok explains.

  • Patience and perseverance are critical traits to lead change in slow-moving traditional industries.

  • Stories from old industries inspire UX practitioners working in any environment to believe in transformation.

  • Consultants supporting legacy enterprises must design scalable, adaptable solutions suited to bureaucratic contexts.

Notable Quotes

"What is it like to be a new kid on an old block?"

"Leading change in a century-old company is a very different challenge."

"Seb said his function supports the function that supports the main business – making his work twice removed."

"If they can do it, so can I – that’s the takeaway from these transformation stories."

"From fast-paced tech worlds, you will appreciate the patience and perseverance it takes to move an old champion."

"Rob Meetzel knows Ford as the back of his hand after nearly 30 years."

"Seb is career UXer fresh at Canadian railways with a steep learning curve."

"Mykelaan’s story is a playbook on dealing with very difficult high-rank stakeholders."

"Sherbiney built a well-functioning agile train in one of the oldest organizations."

"Ivana will teach you how to scale fast and big from day one through product operations."

Ask the Rosenbot
Alicia D. Johnson
Disasters and the 21st Century
2021 • Civic Design 2021
Gold
Leisa Reichelt
Opening Keynote: Operating in Context
2018 • DesignOps Summit 2018
Gold
B. Pagels-Minor
Breaking the Tension: The Power of Enabling Your Employees to Show Up Authentically
2022 • Design at Scale 2022
Gold
Louis Rosenfeld
How AI will Change DesignOps Tooling
2023 • DesignOps Summit 2023
Gold
Emily Williams
When UX Research and Institutional Racism Collide: A Case Study
2021 • Advancing Research 2021
Gold
Nathan Shedroff
Redefining Value: Bridging the Innovation Culture Divide
2015 • Enterprise UX 2015
Gold
Amy Bucher
Harnessing behavioral science to uncover deeper truths
2025 • Advancing Research 2025
Gold
Sam Proulx
Designing For Screen Readers: Understanding the Mental Models and Techniques of Real Users
2021 • DesignOps Summit 2021
Gold
Saara Kamppari-Miller
Theme Three Intro
2023 • DesignOps Summit 2023
Gold
John Paul de Guzman
10k Screens Later: How We Became a Data-Driven Design Organization
2024 • DesignOps Summit 2024
Gold
Erika Flowers
AI-Readiness: Preparing NASA for a Data-Driven, Agile Future
2025 • Designing with AI 2025
Gold
Lada Gorlenko
Theme 3: Introduction
2021 • Design at Scale 2021
Gold
Jack Moffett
UX Metrics That Matter and The Future of our Design at Scale Conference: A Community Conversation
2022 • Enterprise Community
Alla Weinberg
Design Teams Need Psychological Safety: Here’s How to Create It
2022 • DesignOps Summit 2022
Gold
Caitlyn Hampton
Compass 101: Growing Your Career In A Startup World
2021 • Design at Scale 2021
Gold
Josina Vink
Navigating the pitfalls of systems thinking in service design
2024 • Advancing Service Design 2024
Gold

More Videos

Nalini Kotamraju

"For the first time, I was able to advocate for funding directly for the research function at high executive levels."

Nalini Kotamraju

Research After UX

March 25, 2024

Dean Broadley

"Care less about being certain and more about being effective."

Dean Broadley

Not Black Enough to be White

January 8, 2024

Denise Jacobs

"Every day is a chance to check: is this how I want to be? This is a long-haul, marathon effort."

Denise Jacobs Nancy Douyon Renee Reid Lisa Welchman

Interactive Keynote: Social Change by Design

January 8, 2024

Kim Fellman Cohen

"Our team’s improvement wasn’t the final state—we set ambitious goals to be in the 80th to 90th percentile next year."

Kim Fellman Cohen

Measuring the Designer Experience

October 23, 2019

George Aye

"Every major brand has a dark side brought to you by design on purpose, 40 hours a week."

George Aye

That Quiet Little Voice: When Design and Ethics Collide

November 16, 2022

Nathan Curtis

"You need to be the connector between people trying to drive decisions and others influencing them."

Nathan Curtis

Beyond the Toolkit: Spreading a System Across People & Products

June 9, 2016

Greg Petroff

"There is an enormous amount of diversity in the real estate agent community, from demographics to technology savvy to regional differences."

Greg Petroff

The Compass Mission

March 10, 2021

Chloe Amos-Edkins

"Global and local cultures are closely entwined and always influencing one another."

Chloe Amos-Edkins

A Cultural Approach: Research in the Context of Glocalisation

March 27, 2023

Mackenzie Cockram

"85% of people were leaving after viewing only one page, showing severe bounce issues."

Mackenzie Cockram Sara Branco Cunha Ian Franklin

Integrating Qualitative and Quantitative Research from Discovery to Live

December 16, 2022