Copernicus Consulting — Design Research and Strategy

Putting customers into sizing: a revolution in fashion?

by Sam Ladner April 25, 2011

The bane of many women’s existence appeared in today’s New York Times: irregular clothing sizes. The journalist interviewed one young woman who complained about irregular sizing:
“I can be anywhere from a 0 at Ann Taylor to a 6 at American Eagle,” she said. “It obviously makes it difficult to shop.”
The woman used a body scanner, [...]

Tagged as: clothing, culture, fashion, linkedin, product design, women

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Why should social scientists work in business?

by Sam Ladner April 7, 2011

My column in University Affairs has finally been published. In it, I argue that social scientists have both practical and moral reasons to seek out work in the business world:
Social scientists can improve business outcomes by doing what they’ve been trained to do: examine the social practices around the product or service. We are studying [...]

Tagged as: academic, linkedin, research, sociology

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Design research podcast

by Sam Ladner March 30, 2011

I recently spoke with JohnnyHolland’s Jill Christ and Andrew Harris about research for the design process. The result is an easy-listening podcast, ready for download onto your iPod! Radio Johnny also has a huge number of other, fantastic podcasts.
Jill provides some highlights:
Sam Ladner share her insights about Design Research, and what the Interaction Design community [...]

Tagged as: design research, podcast, research

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Researching culture: a practical how-to for designers

by Sam Ladner March 21, 2011

I recently gave a guest lecture to the Master’s of Design students at OCADU on how to research culture. Don’t worry if you missed it, because you can now listen to the same lecture and get the presentation!
Below is the audio and presentation from that lecture. Are you interested in more? Consider Culture Coaching, a new [...]

Tagged as: coaching, culture, design, linkedin, research

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Spring rituals: the cultural significance of spring cleaning

by Sam Ladner March 18, 2011

Canadians love spring. If you’re not Canadian, I bet you’re thinking, “Of course they do; everyone does.” Ah but you do not “verstehen” Canada if you say such things. Indeed, I didn’t even “verstehen” Canada growing up on the West Coast — we didn’t even have snow!
Spring is approaching in Canada, and we feel it. [...]