Stay ConnectedThe Optimal Path is a podcast about user research and product decision-making, brought to you by Maze. Explore how today’s leading organizations leverage user research to inform better product decisions. Each episode uncovers the ideas and approaches used to unlock continuous insights—and the optimal path for product success.
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In this episode of The Optimal Path, host Ash Oliver welcomes Sander Viegers, VP of Design at Rabobank, to discuss the pivotal role of research and design in the digital transformation journey at Rabobank. Sander shares the principles that guide Rabobank's cooperative approach to a customer-centric design process, as well as practical examples of how research powers more innovative solutions for the customer and the business.
About Sander:
As the VP of Design at Rabobank, Sander leads the design organization in creating comprehensive customer and employee experiences on a global scale. With prior experience leading design teams at Microsoft, Amazon, and Catawiki, Sander has a proven track record of successful design leadership. He holds a Master's degree in Industrial Design Engineering from Delft University of Technology and has been named inventor on multiple patents.
Connect with Sander:
You can connect with Sander on Linkedin
Resources:
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See you next time!
In this episode of The Optimal Path, host Ash Oliver is joined by Amy Lima, formerly product designer at AMP @ Amazon Music and currently founder of Diversify Design. Together, they discuss the role of user research in building community products and how to start and scale a research practice inside design teams.
About Amy:
Amy Lima is a first-generation Brazilian-American product designer, and founder of Diversify Design.
Her global footprint growing up between cultures and across continents brings an innate appreciation for diverse perspectives and a fascination for the human experience. To honor these values, her design philosophy is deeply rooted in ethical and inclusive design practices, with her work focusing on fostering community and social expression in a 0-to-1 design process.
Beyond her 9 to 5, she’s an active member of the design community and is often found hosting panels, giving conference talks, and writing articles on her experience pivoting into design from the music industry as a minority in tech.
Connect with Amy:
You can connect with Amy on LinkedIn.
Resources:
Follow Maze on Social Media:
• X: @mazedesignHQ
• Instagram: @mazedesignHQ
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/mazedesign
To get notified when new episodes come out, subscribe at maze.co/podcast.
See you next time!
In this episode of The Optimal Path, host Ash Oliver welcomes Marcus Brandford to discuss the transformative power of research in marketing and product development. Delving into how research can inform creative campaigns and marketing decisions, Marcus shares how Figma harnesses customer insights to understand its audience and build impactful brand connections that drive better business outcomes.
About Marcus:
Marcus Brandford uses research to power marketing decisions. His career began on the agency side at Known, a marketing strategy firm where he ran custom studies for many Google teams as well as Microsoft, Intel, Viacom and others. After leaving the field to pursue his MBA from UC Berkeley, he joined Figma in 2022 as a dedicated researcher for the Marketing function. Marcus works with the Brand, Growth, Editorial, and PMM teams to introduce the market perspective into the creative process, helping teams build with their audience in mind.
Connect with Marcus:
You can connect with Marcus on LinkedIn.
Resources:
• The Dream Machine by M. Mitchell Waldrop
Follow Maze on Social Media:
• X: @mazedesignHQ
• Instagram: @mazedesignHQ
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/mazedesign
To get notified when new episodes come out, subscribe at maze.co/podcast.
See you next time!
In this episode of The Optimal Path, host Ash Oliver sits down with Roy Opata Olende to delve into the complexities of UX research across organizational altitudes. They explore the different modalities of learning that take place inside organizations, the critical need for leadership buy-in, and the challenges of communicating research impact. Roy introduces the concept of a "menu of learning" along with his best practices for fostering a culture of curiosity within your own organization.
About Roy:
Roy Opata Olende has been involved in user research and service design since 2012. He currently leads the UX Research practice at Zapier, a SaaS automation company. Prior to this role, he led Research Operations at Zapier and UX Research at Buffer.
When not working or hanging out with his wife and three young boys, he can be found obsessing over football (soccer). Roy hails from Kenya and currently resides just outside of Toronto, Canada.
Connect with Roy:
You can connect with Roy on X or LinkedIn.
Resources:
• Research Maturity Model Report by Maze
• How Zapier's Head of UX Research Organizes Projects
• How to Build a High-Impact Learning Culture by Josh Bersin
• Just Enough Research by Erika Hall
• Research Practice by Gregg Bernstein
Follow Maze on social media:
• X: @mazedesignHQ
• Instagram: @mazedesignHQ
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/mazedesign
To get notified when new episodes come out, subscribe at maze.co/podcast.
See you next time!
The Optimal Path is a podcast about user research and product decision-making, brought to you by Maze.
The voices featured in this trailer are Ash Oliver, UX Research Advocate at Maze; Marcus Brandford, Figma; Roy Opata Olende, Zapier; Amy Lima, (formerly) Amp @ Amazon Music; and Benjamin Humphrey, Dovetail
New episodes drop every other week. Follow Maze and Ash Oliver on LinkedIn for updates, or visit maze.co/podcast and subscribe to be the first to know when we launch new episodes. See you soon!
The Optimal Path is a podcast about product decision-making from the team at Maze. Each episode brings in a product expert and looks at the stories, ideas, and frameworks they use to achieve better product decision-making—and how you can do the same.
You can connect with Jo on Twitter or LinkedIn.
Resources mentioned:
Follow Maze on social media:
To get notified when new episodes come out, subscribe at maze.co/podcast. See you next time!
The Optimal Path is a podcast about product decision-making from the team at Maze. Each episode brings in a product expert and looks at the stories, ideas, and frameworks they use to achieve better product decision-making—and how you can do the same.
You can connect with Gabriel on Twitter (@gabrielvaldivia) or check out his website.
Resources mentioned:
Follow Maze on social media:
To get notified when new episodes come out, subscribe at maze.co/podcast. See you next time!
The Optimal Path is a podcast about product decision-making from the team at Maze. Each episode brings in a product expert and looks at the stories, ideas, and frameworks they use to achieve better product decision-making—and how you can do the same.
You can connect with Aiswarya on LinkedIn or check out her newsletter.
Resources mentioned:
Follow Maze on social media:
To get notified when new episodes come out, subscribe at maze.co/podcast. See you next time!
The Optimal Path is a podcast about product decision-making from the team at Maze. Each episode brings in a product expert and looks at the stories, ideas, and frameworks they use to achieve better product decision-making—and how you can do the same.
You can connect with Jasmine on Twitter (@jazzy33ca) or check out her website.
Resources mentioned:
Follow Maze on social media:
To get notified when new episodes come out, subscribe at maze.co/podcast. See you next time!
The Optimal Path is a podcast about product decision-making from the team at Maze. Each episode brings in a product expert and looks at the stories, ideas, and frameworks they use to achieve better product decision-making—and how you can do the same.
You can connect with Julian on LinkedIn. And if you'd like to discuss the episode with other listeners, socialize with guests, and find extended host notes with further resources—check out the Host Posts space inside the Maze Community.
Resources mentioned:
Follow Maze on social media:
To get notified when new episodes come out, subscribe at maze.co/podcast. See you next time!
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