The crossroads of social work and design

This week from People Nerds: Rachael Dietkus talks positive deviance, Hina Shahid shares unique ways to use prototyping, & onboarding tips

Carving her own design path Rachael Dietkus, Founder and Principal of Social Workers Who Design, found herself in the field via a road less traveled. Her career—spanning art and design, sociology, and activism—led her to this new nexus of empathy and systems thinking.   EVERYTHING CLICKED This week's community poll Answer with a click this week, see the results in next week's newsletter.   Once it's safe, what percentage of your research will be done in-field/in-person? 1. 0-25% 2. 25-50% 3. 50-75% 4. 75-100% Test more than hypotheses with your prototypes Hina Shahid of Project Pluralism walks us through how her team uses prototype tests for social change. Plus, learn how understanding the "why" behind prototyping can help you refine communication, investigate the value for users, and assess the feasibility of a design.   ENHANCE YOUR PROTOTYPING Faster isn't always better (sorry F9) While a thorough onboarding process can seem lengthy, taking the time to ensure a new employee properly adjusts is critical to both their success and the company's. As someone who has a lot of experience on both sides of onboarding, Nikki Anderson shares her tips for building a positive foundation for newcomers.   WELCOME ABOARD See your name in this newsletter. People Nerds is always on the lookout for new contributors. Learn more about writing with us. More we're discussing:  "Why am I asking this?" Five experts share their advice for conducting mindful and impactful international research.  OJO Labs partnered with dscout to better understand the home buying journey from the user's perspective. See how this impacted their strategy and platform.  What we're hearing: Victory Brown says, "Focused ethnographic studies in UXR is essential to developing an in-depth understanding of users, cultures, and activities." Find out why. Replacing personas? Discover how Pokemapping may be another solution for translating findings from research. dscout is a company composed of People Nerds working to make context-rich human insight an everyday habit across organizations. The dscout platform—Diary, Live, Recruit, and Express—enables remote qualitative research that brings researchers into the moments experienced and shared by real people. Curious about the platform or working with dscout? Talk to an account executive.  dscout, 222 North LaSalle St. Suite 650, Chicago, Illinois 60601, (312) 880-9715 Unsubscribe Manage preferences