The World of UX with Dr Darren Hood

In the first official segment of "Talkin' Shop," Darren interviews Jon DeHeus, a product designer for Ford Credit. Darren presents questions to discuss Jon's journey as a UX professional, how he got into the discipline, biggest challenges, greatest memories, and much more. Tune in today to learn about Jon's life in UX and to get inspiration for your own trek. #ux#uxr#uxintervie...

The factors covered during last week's nuances of UX research were a bit unique in that they were not closely related to the actual research that we do. For this week's segment, Darren limits his coverage to various nuances that are very closely related to the work done by UX researchers. Examples covered include, but are not limited to research design, screening, patitence, moderation, st...

The hottest segment of today's UX job market is that of UX research (UXR). While many are eager to get into the field, as with UX as a whole, many are over-focused on the work and are unaware of the associated nuances, putting them and their organizations at a disadvantage. In this episode, Darren provides a brief overview of UXR and shares info about several nuances that, if embraced, can hel...

In an inaugural segment of "Talkin' Shop," Darren welcomes Eric Shumake and Michelle Pakron as the group spends time talking about eye-openers, challenges, their biggest surprises, and general tips associated with job seeking in the world of UX. Tune in today for this special extended episode. #ux#uxhiring#uxjobseekers#uxhiringdysfunction#experiencedesign#podcasts#cxofmradio#cxofm#real...

This week, Darren continues the presentation on overlooked factors associated with the UX hiring process, specifically focusing on issues associated with job candidates. The topics covered range from poorly constructed resumes to failing to prepare properly for interviews and from neglecting to interview the company to the danger of false hopes (derived from faux UX resources). Darren also provide...

In another extended episode of The World of UX, Darren takes time to address several critical problems at-large in today's world of UX hiring. Topic examples include realistic expectations for ROI, impact of UX maturity levels, candidate competencies, critical thinking, academic thinking, overemphasis of UX design tools and design processes, misapplication of agile experience, and much more. T...

In this special edition of The World of UX, Darren holds a conversation with his special guest Chantel Botha, Managing Director at Brand Love world class CX practitioner, and a new member of the CX of M Radio Network. Chantel discusses such things as the goals for her new podcast, defines CX, talks about the challenges in CX today, strategies for achieving stakeholder buy for CX initiatives, and s...

This week, Darren concludes this round of "UX potpourri" focusing on such topics as the importance of hearing viable voices in UX, distinguishing between valid and invalid resources, his recent resignation from the UXPA Board of Directors, human-computer interaction (HCI), the dangers of rampant misinformation and non-authoritative sources, ethics in education, the dangers of neutrality, a...

This week, Darren continues sharing "UX potpourri," discussing a concept referred to as "baby bird syndrome" and elaborating on the infighting and hostile behavior that's becoming all too common in UX circles. Tune in today for downloads on these topics and how they can impact you. #ux#uxuncensored#babybirdsyndrome#uxvolatility#uxhostility#realuxtalk#theworldofuserexperience#ux...

In this week's episode, serving as a segue between series, Darren spends time discussing a very busy week on social media, addressing three specific topics: 1) The paradox of UX job opportunities; 2) The importance of learning to optimize reviewing of UX job postings and 3) The volatile nature of many social media interactions in the world of UX. Tune in to this extended episode for the deets....

In the finale of this 3-part series, Darren shares a recap of the 7 key contributing factors to today's dysfunction in the world of UX, along with methods that can be used to overcome their operation and impact. He also issues a milestone personal challenge for all listeners and the UX community-at-large. Listen today to hear and accept the challenge! #ux #uxuncensored #uxdysfunction #realuxta...

In Part 2 of this 3-part series, Darren spends time identifying 7 key contributing factors for dysfunction in the world of UX today, providing a means of examining the UX operation of our organizations, our teams, and our personal states. Tune in for more details. #ux#uxuncensored#uxdysfunction#realuxtalk#theworldofuserexperience#righttheship Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Pri...

UX is a beautiful and valuable thing, but the current world of UX is operating in a cycle of dysfunction. Overcoming it requires knowledge of its traits and contributing factors. In the first segment of a 3-part series, Darren will provide insights about UX's storied history, laying the foundation to explain what went wrong and what we'll need to do in order to right the ship. Tune in for...

This week, Darren completes his exposé of UX bootcamps, examining their operation from critical angles and addressing different topics one should consider when selecting an educational resource. Specific topics covered in this finale include bias infusion, pedagogy, value propositions, ethics, and impact upon the discipline. As always, tune in for the deets! #ux#uxuncensored#uxbootcamps#realuxtalk...

UX bootcamps are all the rage for many today. Is the hype real? Can they really help a person to get a start in the discipline? Are they worth the money? Do they offer a delightful learner experience? Can they really help a person get a job? Are there job-related guarantees? In this episode, Darren bears all by providing a high-level review and exposé, challenging people to engage in critical thin...

This episode highlights questions presented from attendees at a talk Darren delivered for the folks at UserWizard, an organization that specializes in mentoring services for people transitioning into UX from other disciplines. Tune in to hear coverage about such topics as UX education, apprenticeships, and specific UX learning resources. You can learn more about UserWizard at https://www.user-wiza...

Are you familiar with the challenge and frustration of constantly being brought into projects at the last minute? Do you wonder how you're going to achieve an optimal design without the time to conduct research? Do you know how it feels to scratch and claw about ways to bring value in the face of such challenges? This week, Darren talks about earning trust from stakeholders along with the chal...

Have you ever seen or completed a design that you felt good about just because of how it looked? Of course, you have. Considering the fact that UX's focus on aesthetics is minimal, we must make sure to evaluate the work based on an entirely different plane. This week, Darren talks about a little-used method to help optimize our design efforts and their associated value. Tune in for the deets!...

In this episode, Darren presents a metaphor comparing the assembly of vehicles and the associated commonalities with the personal development and maturity of a UX professional. Just as each vehicle may have a particular target audience, sets of vehicles still have common denominators that drive their productivity, consistency, and value. Tune in to hear this week's presentation. #ux#uxuncensor...

This week, Darren spends time addressing the wealth of UX design tools on the market with the express purpose of diffusing their supposed and perceived importance. He lists several tools, as well as provides the means of how to evaluate them to select the best one for your organization's needs. As always, tune in for the deets. #ux#uxuncensored#uxdesigntools#evaluation#theworldofuserexperience...

In the finale of the series covering UX and the Age of Misinformation, Darren takes time to focus on how to overcome the associated challenges and thrive in light of the aforementioned stumbling blocks. Tune in to learn (or be reminded) about critical steps for the advancement and maintenance of one's personal UX maturity and how to develop a healthy, reliable, and needful filter. #ux#realuxta...

This installment of the current series focuses on one of the most overlooked sources of UX misinformation — the employment process. It's one thing for job descriptions to be written poorly, but there are lots of unintended consequences. When people can't get interviews and don't get hired, they assume something is wrong with them and they fix things that aren't broken. The experien...

This week, Darren continues to cover dangers and examples associated with rampant misinformation in today's UX landscape, as well as a base remedy for protecting one's self against the associated threat. Tune it today to hear the deets, as well as a frightening example of misinformation and how it spreads among those who might truly want to excel in the discipline. #ux#realuxtalk#theworldo...

In Part Two of the series on UX and The Age of Misinformation, Darren continues providing obvious and not so obvious examples of misinformation, highlighted by the results of a faux poll used to illustrate the pulse of misinformation in today's UX spaces and addressing the dangers and risks associated with the indifference that plagues the discipline. Tune in to hear about the faux poll and th...

The landscape of UX today is quite active. With information serving as a key to helping people grow and develop, one would think all of the resources being provided would be helpful, but it's anything but. Many of the resources presented today are chock full or obstacles in the form of misinformation that are adding to the seemingly ambiguous space we know as UX. This week, Darren begins a bri...