Provoking Emotion,
Building on Intuition and Guiding Attention
Provoking emotion, building on intuition and guiding attention would be a few ways to describe my work with user experience as an interaction designer. My starting point is in understanding the users’ expectations and needs in order to empathize with them. This insight helps in creating relevant and engaging experiences that are oftentimes tangible with the digital element as an intangible layer.
Since graduating from Design School Kolding, I’ve been fortunate to work in the IdeaFactory at Bang & Olufsen (B&O) in Struer and as a design consultant with Designit Copenhagen working with product/service experiences. Both of those early positions challenged me in very different ways, but what I learned at Design School Kolding gave me the confidence to always find a way forward. I was taught not to be afraid of failing and to learn from those failings. Now I’m back at B&O designing concepts for the future of living in the home. My current responsibilities are as a Senior UX Concept & Design Manager leading a talented team of cross-disciplinary creative people who design concepts that deliver magical experiences. I also collaborate with our external designers on tangible interactions to ensure holistic storytelling between the design intent of the form and its method of interaction. It’s very much a dream scenario for me to be a part of such an amazing design heritage and to work daily with an inspiring group of professionals.
In many ways, the environment at Design School Kolding instilled the mindset that I still carry with me today – one where reduction of the unnecessary, the magic of the unexpected and an emphasis on purpose will elevate the result. The support and experience of the faculty played a major role in challenging us to fine-tune the arguments for our decisions and avoid playing it safe. My fellow students were a huge resource for sparring over ideas, and the community that grew out of our interchange made us better for it. Spending late nights in the building where there was a constant flow of energy was a common occurrence. I see this as a result of the location, Kolding having few distractions, so we immersed ourselves in our work.
It’s coincidental that I ended up at the school in Kolding. I grew up in Brooklyn, NY, and it was only because of my time working in Reykjavik, Iceland that I became aware of the school. When I read about the Interaction Design Program and the school’s vision, I knew this was a place I needed to be. It was a life-changing decision, not least because I have a passion for what I do, but also because I met my wife Signe there, who was studying ceramic design. I’m forever grateful for all that I have taken from my time at DSKD, and I share that in every collaboration I undertake.
