1202 - The Human Factors Podcast

We look back not only at 2021, but at all the podcasts to date and pick our favourites, as well as look at the other statistics such a location and popularity.

CPD deadlines are looming for 2021 and Dr. Fiona Cayzer gives us some insights into what we should be doing by the end of December. We also learn about what the Professional Affairs Board does in the CIEHF as well as about how she got into Human Factors.

An interview with Dr. Nora Balfe, and Dr David Golightly, the co-Chairs of the Conference Proceedings about what goes on in the background of organising the Ergonomics Conference and what 2022 is shaping up like

An interview with Professor Charles Musselwhite about his research into the design if public spaces and how we need to be thinking about the aging population. Not only embracing the fact that we all age, but that we should also have enjoyable spaces to engage with as we age.

Ian Peterman is the Autor of a new book, Conscious Design which has just launched. Conscious design is a philosophy Ian uses within his team, to create brands and products that restore and sustain our planet. This interview talks about how we can embed through-life thinking in our everyday work. To find out more about the book: https://www.consciousdesignbook.com/

Nick Roome is the creator and main host of Human Factors Cast, a weekly Human Factors podcast that looks at current news and events in the HF domain. In this interview he explains how the podcast came to being, how the different elements of it works, and his plans for the future.

Paul Salmon is Professor in Human Factors and is the director of the Centre for Human Factors and Sociotechnical Systems at the University of the Sunshine Coast. In this interview he talks about how his interest in HF was sparked by Football boot design, and then goes on to highlight the research with Transport and Infrastructure he has been doing and the surprising sociotechnical links he and his...

The modern trend of rushed lifestyles, fast food and fitness being for those who like to flex it in the gym could be drivers behind what some describe as a health epidemic. Barry Kirby has been on a 13 week journey with the team at FitnessTMB which takes a more behavioural approach and had led to him losing over 2 stone in weight. In this episode, Barry interviews the team at FitnessTMB,...

Our Performance can be hugely affected by the amount of Sleep that we get.  Yet it is one of those subjects that can be difficult to engage with, never mind manage.  In this episode, Sarah Booth, an expert in Fatigue Risk management with Baines Simmons highlights some of the issues and mitigations that should be considered, and from a personal perspective, what we can do to get a good nights rest!...

This episode is a "deep dive" into the Human Factors aspects of Diving (see what I did there....).  In this episode, Gareth talks about how he has brought his knowledge of Human Factors into the arena of Diving.   In an industry that comprises a huge leisure and tourism sector as well as a military and police angle, Gareth highlights just how HF can play a huge part, as well as how he is overcomin...

In a Bank Holiday Special, Barry caught up with Alastair Somerville, a Sensory Design Consultant who injects a much broader vision on UX by asking the question of "what are people capable of" rather than what they are not. Alastair also talks about how his approach to delivering workshops, and gives us an insight into how his next series, called 'Workshop on a Card' is going to work.   To get in t...

Culture is something that influences everything we do, so having the right culture can really make or break a business.  in this episode, Barry interview James Hayton, the Human Factors and Safety Culture lead at Baines Simmons Ltd (https://www.bainessimmons.com/). The discussion looks at what a Just Culture is all about, and how empowering your workforce to say what they think can have real benef...

To have a successful user experience takes more than just a good user interface, it needs to have the user centred approach at the core of the product and the business.  In this episode I talk to Lee Waters MS, who (at the time of recording as there is now an election) is the Deputy Minister for Economy and Transport, and more importantly for this interview, the lead for AI and Digital in the Wels...

In a career that has spanned 41 years to date, Prof. Bob Stone has had significant input into the Human Factors domain as a whole, as well as more specifically the VR, AR and XR field.   Despite his claim of being semi-retired, he is still involved in a great number of projects. In this discussion we talk about how he got into Human Factors, his work in the defence industry an then onto his resear...

Dr Karl Bridges is the Managing Director of HFEx, based in New Zealand. He is a member of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society of New Zealand (HFESNZ) and is a past president too. He is also a fellow of the CIEHF. In a wide ranging discussion, Karl and Barry talk about how Karl came to emigrate to, and make his mark in New Zealand. They also talk about imposter Syndrome, pandemic experiences a...

Being the CIEHF president is no mean undertaking, its a three year commitment, being the face of the Institute and representing members at different meetings and other organisations.  But this year has been even more challenging because of the Pandemic.  Amanda Widdowson was president-elect when the pandemic started and took over at the 2020 AGM from Bob Bridger. In this interview, we talk about h...

From engaging with "Commander Data" as a colleague, to future aggressors being machines like the Terminator, the Borg or Hal, the idea that computers will become more like humans and engage with us more naturally that a keyboard and mouse has generally been the area of science fiction.  But in some respects the reality is closer than we think, from the chatbot you use on a company Facebook page, t...

2020 certainly delivered its own curveball challenges on many working fronts and trying to do Continuing Professional Development (CPD) from the bedroom or kitchen table was certainly "interesting".  In this podcast, I am joined by Martin Thody, who is the CIEHF CPD lead, to talk about what CPD looked like last year and what we can learn from it in 2021. Martin is no stranger to the podcast, and i...

We breathe it every day and are very aware of the larger issues of air pollution and the future effect on humanity.  But what about the day to day, what does it do to the performance of the human body and how should we be measuring it? Professor Paul Lewis, an expert who not only lectures at Swansea University but also advises the Welsh Government on Air pollution gives us an insight into the main...

When this was recorded, it was the 1st birthday of this podcast, so Happy Birthday to us.  There are precious few HF tools that are made with the input of HF practitioners who use them, but VAPS has been the mainstay of a number of my projects that rely on the ability to design an interface, implement it and for the embedded output to reflect what you started with. Matt Jackson has worked with Pre...

Human Factors is applied to many domains, but perhaps one of the most challenging is the Space environment due to the very nature that it is not of this world.  That, coupled with a challenge of a new space race, firstly with the mission to Mars, but also the commercialisation of the sector, makes working there a very exciting place.  But it also helps to have the right people doing the right job....

One of the areas where Human Factors is getting more traction is within the Healthcare sector.  It is still a slow burner though with lots more work to be done, and this is getting more urgent as new technologies are available to make procedures and processes better and potentially support more effective patient outcomes. Dr Mark Sujan has taken this challenge head on by launching the Artificial I...

Many practitioners believe that working on Trials and Assessments, where equipment and systems that have been designed and developed are tested with users, are some of the most enjoyable parts of being involved in Human Factors.  You get to see kit actually being used and getting feedback, both positive and negative, and discussing with them what can be done to improve the product.   Vicki Wall is...

Steve Harmer is the Human Factors capability lead for BMT Defence and Security.  He was the winner of the "H Rowbotham Award for Outstanding Contribution to HFI" in 2015, and possibly his most rewarding role was being Barry's first line manager when they worked at BAE Systems in 2004......(Steve may disagree...) Whilst starting with an Engineering Degree, we learn why he moved to Human Factors, an...