Sera Tajima Podcast

An unplanned message on the US election results for those that are feeling down. ___________________________________________________________I'm Sera Tajima, Climate Tech Advisor & Investor. 🤙I talk about: → Product Growth Strategy (Growth, Design, AI)→ Climate Tech→ Venture CapitalConnect for more good energy ⚡️➕ ⁠⁠⁠⁠Conscious Tech Newsletter⁠⁠⁠⁠➕ ⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠➕ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube⁠➕ ⁠Tiktok⁠➕ ⁠⁠⁠⁠Advising⁠⁠⁠⁠Become a sponsor: partner@seratajima.com

Karin Aue and Jeffrey T. K. Valino Koh were partners of design consultancy Chemistry and both transitioned into design education at universities in Singapore. Karin is Senior Lecturer for the Master of Design in Integrated Design at the National University of Singapore. Jeffrey is Centre Head of the Design Factory at Singapore Institute of Technology where design is a requirement for all majors. Chapters (00:00:00) Background Karin & Jeffrey(00:03:26) Teaching design to non-designers vs design masters students(00:06:51) Finding confidence through design(00:09:30) From design studio to academia(00:15:43) Implementing planet centric design(00:25:01) How to instigate change in the industry(00:31:45) Design curriculum(00:37:04) Don't be a mediocre management consultant(00:40:32) Bring stakeholders with you(00:48:47) Frameworks for designers(00:53:24) How to build a responsible company(00:58:27) Chit chat(01:00:34) Design in Singapore is seen as a driver of growth & innovation(01:12:20) Designing governments(01:13:26) Lightning Round ⚡️Where to find Karin Aue: LinkedinMA in Industrial Design Where to find Jeffrey Koh: LinkedinSingapore Institute of Technology ___________________________________________________________I'm Sera Tajima, Climate Tech Advisor & Investor. 🤙I talk about: → Product Growth Strategy (Growth, Design, AI)→ Climate Tech→ Venture CapitalConnect for more good energy ⚡️Become a sponsor: partner@seratajima.com

Videha Sharma is theClinical Innovation Lead for the Pankhurst Institute for Health Technology, Co-founder at Fava Health, and Ted speaker. Videha has a PhD in Health Informatics and completed fellowships in Digital Health, Medical Leadership and Clinical Entrepreneurship. A surgeon by training, he now has a career bridging the gap between healthcare and technology.Chapters(00:00:00) How this Doctor Leverages Design(00:08:30) Prevention and our generation is becoming more health conscious(00:13:31) Design, jobs to be done, and interoperability (00:20:45) Pivoting from a PhD to health care technology (00:23:46) Culture clash of startups vs universities(00:26:52) Using large language models to product patient information (00:28:42) Methodology, data, hallucinations(00:30:47) How to balance innovation with patient care(00:34:06) Slippery slope of preventative care(00:36:53) Genetic Testing(00:39:19) Health care system incentives, medical ethics, ROI(00:44:30) Do no harm is not a given for designers(00:46:00) NHS, universal healthcare’s role in equality(00:52:54) Psychology’s role in the health system(00:58:02) Project success metrics for strokes(01:07:58) Patient data and the role of AI in the healthcare industry(01:12:34) End of life for data stored(01:15:19) Disposing of medical waste(01:19:54) Lightning Round ⚡️Where to find Videha:LinkedinDesign-led innovation in healthcare | Dr Videha Sharma | TEDxHultLondon___________________________________________________________I'm Sera Tajima, Climate Tech Advisor & Investor. 🤙I talk about: → Product Growth Strategy (Growth, Design, AI)→ Climate Tech→ Venture Capital⁠Connect for more good energy⁠ ⚡️Become a sponsor: partner@seratajima.com

Sheryl Cababa drives a human-centered design practice that is focused on systems thinking and evidence-based design, working on everything from robotic surgery experience design to reimagining K-12 education through service design. In her work with consultancies such as Substantial, Frog, and Adaptive Path, she has worked with a diverse base of clients including the Gates Foundation, Microsoft, IHME, and IKEA. Chapters:(00:00:00) Sheryl’s Background: Microsoft, Fitbit, Adaptive Path(00:04:18) Working for Philips and living in the Netherlands(00:07:10) Consulting vs Tech(00:11:30) Running her own practice(00:16:29) Systems thinking for design(00:20:02) Thinking about power and inclusion(00:22:20) Subject matter experts and people impacted by the system(00:26:05) Being critical is villainized in tech & AI (00:29:30) Companies that are not receptive(00:35:19) How designers can adopt systems thinking(00:40:23) Edtech example — Work within the system(00:42:59) Why technology isn’t the best first solution (00:48:02) Shortcomings of capitalism (00:48:02) Stakeholder Mapping: Power + Influence(01:06:19) Lightning Round Where to find Sheryl:Sheryl’s LinkedinClosing the Loop (book) ___________________________________________________________I'm Sera Tajima, Climate Tech Advisor & Investor. 🤙I talk about: → Product Growth Strategy (Growth, Design, AI)→ Climate Tech→ Venture Capital⁠Connect for more good energy⁠ ⚡️Become a sponsor: partner@seratajima.com

Gaya Herrington, an acclaimed sustainability researcher and wellbeing economist, discusses the urgent need for a shift from traditional growth models to one prioritizing human and ecological wellbeing. She explores how the obsession with perpetual growth is intertwined with fossil fuel dependency and critiques the narrow view of sustainability. Gaya also emphasizes the importance of redefining success beyond GDP, advocating for a well-being economy that connects emotional richness with societal contributions, while cautioning against the environmental consequences of unchecked growth.

Fonz Morris is lead designer for Netflix monetization growth team. Based in San Jose, he has worked with Netflix since 2020 after leading the design team at Coursera. He was named one of Business Insider’s Most Innovative Designers in 2021 and speaks regularly at tech conferences. Get Sera's weekly updatesLearn Sustainable Growth Design live with Sera (ft Fonz)Chapters(00:00:00) Background on Netflix(00:03:07) Growing up in Brooklyn, NY(00:06:26) How Fonz got into design(00:08:37) Building a design agency(00:11:26) Video conferencing startup(00:13:15) How does being an entrepreneur differ?(00:17:11) Interview process at Netflix(00:21:33) Growth design cohort 2(00:24:59) Growth Design at Netflix(00:30:59) Password sharing on the monetization team(00:38:47) A culture of documentation (PRDs, Specs & design briefs)(00:44:50) Tying in design to business goals(00:48:30) Examples from password sharing project(00:51:05) Empathy in the design process to prioritize retention(00:53:34) Access to data and data scientists(00:57:00) Lightning Round ⚡️Where to find Fonz:Fonz’ LinkedinWhen Everyone leads___________________________________________________________I'm Sera Tajima, Climate Tech Advisor & Investor. 🤙I talk about: → Product Growth Strategy (Growth, Design, AI)→ Climate Tech→ Venture Capital⁠Connect for more good energy⁠ ⚡️Become a sponsor: partner@seratajima.com

⁠⁠⁠Sera Tajima is your host, Founder of The Craft, Startup Advisor, and Climate Investor. ⁠⁠⁠⁠Get Sera's podcast highlights & resources.⁠⁠⁠⁠Join Sustainable Growth Design Chapters(00:00:00) An Introduction to growth thinking(00:02:00) Advance your design career with business thinking(00:03:53) The intersection of growth hacking and product design (00:05:28) Identifying the business lever (00:07:38) How to think about the customer lifecycle and growth frameworks(00:09:52) Risks associated with growth hacking(00:10:36) A strong growth strategy starts with retention (00:12:31) Good growth practitioners are humanity centered(00:14:48) Where your power lies as a technologistConnect with Sera:⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠ ⁠Become a sponsor: partner@seratajima.com

Dan Mall is Founder of Design Systems University. He's an expert in helping companies scale design systems. In this episode Dan and Sera talk design systems, why they matter, and how to implement them. Get Sera's weekly highlights ✍️Learn Growth DesignChapters(00:00:00) Dan intro (00:01:58) How Dan got into design (00:04:17) Starting his agency (00:07:10) Find equilibrium as a business owner(00:08:40) Design Systems(00:10:16) The spectrum of design systems(00:13:50) What organizations Dan works with(00:15:15) Get buy-in to scale something that's working(00:16:29) Dan's approach — "Piloting" (00:18:57) Designers need to learn the language of business(00:22:36) We are not a great representation of users(00:23:47) Design Politics(00:27:14) Have your own opinions(00:32:36) Templates, patterns, and packages(00:36:06) How to get started(00:43:37) No parity between design and code(00:47:15) Get people to spend less time in Figma(00:49:15) Build a tool that people use(00:51:50) Publicize your Design System(00:53:20) Design Systems democratize designWhere to find Dan Mall:Design Systems ⁠LinkedInTwitterWebsite⁠Where to find Sera:LinkedInYouTubeSera's WebsiteThe Craft To become a sponsor contact podcast@the-craft.io. 🎤

Sera Tajima is your host, startup advisor and climate tech investor. ⁠Get on the waitlist to learn Sustainable Growth Design ⁠(Sold Out )⁠⁠⁠⁠Chapters(00:00:00) Introduction(00:00:25) Misunderstanding design(00:01:12) Example: The evolution of cars(00:02:02) Continuous improvement for users(00:02:30) Great design is invisible(00:03:00) Design's impact on society (00:03:10) Design as problem solving(00:03:27) Form follows function(00:04:40) The role of aesthetics(00:05:06) My experience as a product designer(00:06:48) Expanding the impact of design (00:07:26) Product Designers(00:07:50) Creating an experience(00:08:55) Identifying the right problem to solve(00:09:54) Collaborating with teammates and aligning stakeholders(00:11:06) Creating a functional solution(00:12:30) The importance of design (00:12:53) Unintended consequences of design (00:14:00) The conscious design movement___________________________________________________________I'm Sera Tajima, Climate Tech Advisor & Investor. 🤙I talk about: → Product Growth Strategy (Growth, Design, AI)→ Climate Tech→ Venture Capital⁠Connect for more good energy⁠ ⚡️Become a sponsor: partner@seratajima.com

Tommy Geoco is Founder and author of UX Tools. After serving in the U.S. military, he worked in Product Design for over 14 years now. He has a combined social media following of over 1 million. 🔥Chapters(00:00:00) Tommy Introduction (00:01:21) Making design education better with UX Tools (00:02:01) The design industry is competitive(00:02:50) The bootcamp business model (00:04:10) The best way to learn is on the job(00:07:14) Ditch the cynicism of the way things evolve(00:09:09) All companies have dysfunction (00:10:10) Tommy's journey into design (00:15:35) Learning online and the shapes of work(00:26:20) How to attract the right fit(00:30:00) Make time for play (00:46:39) Have a growth mindset(00:51:41) Build real relationships(00:55:13) Newsletter & Micro CoursesJoin Sera live to learn Sustainable Growth DesignWhere to find Tommy:UX Tools: ⁠⁠https://uxtools.co/⁠⁠Tiktok: ⁠https://www.tiktok.com/@designertom⁠LinkedIn: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/tommygeoco/⁠⁠Website: ⁠https://www.designertom.io/⁠___________________________________________________________I'm Sera Tajima, Climate Tech Advisor & Investor. 🤙I talk about: → Product Growth Strategy (Growth, Design, AI)→ Climate Tech→ Venture Capital⁠Connect for more good energy⁠ ⚡️Become a sponsor: partner@seratajima.com