Best Steve Portigal Podcasts (2025)

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Announcing “Off the Path with Sam and Steve” 8:00

Play Pause

27d ago8:00

8:00

Sam Ladner and I have a new podcast, called Off the Path with Sam and Steve. It’s a limited series, where we talk about what a research career looks like, even when it goes “off the path.” Our first three episodes are live. Show Links Off the Path with Sam and Steve on Apple Podcasts Off the Path with Sam and Steve on YouTube Off the Path with Sam …

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Steve Portigal and Justin Dauer - Solo, Together: How Two Independent UX Consultants are Collaborating 1:18:16

3M ago1:18:16

1:18:16

In this episode, Kyle sits down with two UX industry veterans who are trying something new: Steve Portigal and Justin Dauer have announced a unique collaboration that allows them to work together while maintaining their independent practices. Steve Portigal has been running Portigal Consulting for over two decades, is the author of "Interviewing Us…

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Susan Mercer - A Former Client's Perspective 1:01:33

4M ago1:01:33

1:01:33

In this episode of The UX Consultants Lounge, Kyle welcomes her first-ever client into the Lounge: Susan Mercer. With over 30 years of experience in digital technology—including roles in UI design, product management, and UX research leadership—Susan brings a rare and candid perspective on what it’s really like to hire and work with UX consultants.…

1
Season 3 update from James and Per 2:03

4M ago2:03

2:03

This is an update to let you know that we have reached the end of Season 3. Have a great summer, and perhaps Per will see you at Camp Digital in Manchester, England, and perhaps James will see you at Web Summer Camp in Opatija, Croatia. References: Our Backstage mailing list get a heads up about the new season: Sign up here Contribute with your tim…

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Dan Brown - From EightShapes to Curious Squid: Building, Closing, and Reimagining a UX Consultancy 1:02:43

4M ago1:02:43

1:02:43

In this episode of The UX Consulting Lounge, host Kyle Soucy sits down with longtime friend and industry leader Dan Brown to explore the evolution of his consulting journey—from co-founding the beloved UX agency EightShapes to launching his solo consultancy, Curious Squid. Together, they dive into: The origin story and 18-year legacy of EightShapes…

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Accessible design systems with Karen Hawkins 36:40

6M ago36:40

36:40

S03E11 (#339). Karen Hawkins, accessible design practice lead at Level access and chair of the W3C ARRM group joins us to discuss accessibility and design systems. Design systems can really help improve accessibility, but in reality design teams often don’t know their exact responsibilities, leading to accessibility gaps in implementation. We talk …

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Designer burnout with Katrina Alcorn 40:12

6M ago40:12

40:12

S03E10 (#338). About 15 years ago Katrina Alcorn suffered from burnout while managing a team of designers and raising a family. Drawing from her own experience, Katrina highlights during our conversation the importance of autonomy, connection, as well as purpose in the workplace. We discuss the ways in which burnout can be avoided and how to create…

1
Headspace with Cal Thompson 48:44

7M ago48:44

48:44

S03E09 (#337). Cal Thompson, VP of Product Design and Research at Headspace, joins us to talk about the evolution of Headspace from a pure mindfulness app to a comprehensive mental health platform, including health coaches and therapists. We chat about Headspace’s internal culture and how they manage being a healthy workplace as a health company. W…

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UX for business with Joel Marsh 44:24

7M ago44:24

44:24

S03E08 (#336). Inspired by feedback from his booked UX for beginners, Joel Marsh has written UX for business. A comprehensive guide for designers navigating real-world challenges. We talk to him about his own journey from design principles to practical business applications. We chat about Joel’s VDP methodology: Value, Diagnosis, and Probability, e…

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Christine Perfetti - Blending UX Consulting with a Mission-Driven Passion Project 1:17:24

7M ago1:17:24

1:17:24

In this episode of The UX Consulting Lounge, host Kyle Soucy reconnects with long-time friend and UX veteran Christine Perfetti for a deeply honest and inspiring conversation about career reinvention, self-worth, and the power of authentic connection. After decades of success in the UX world—most recently through her consultancy, Perfetti Media—Chr…

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Service literacy with Lou Downe 41:29

7M ago41:29

41:29

S03E07 (#335). Lou Downe, author of Good Services and former director of design for the UK government joins us in this episode. We sat down with Lou and asked—Where is service design going wrong, and are we even doing service design? Among the topics we discussed were: The complexity of modern services and the complete reliance on infrastructure, a…

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53. Remembering Tomer Sharon 1:03:46

8M ago1:03:46

1:03:46

Tomer Sharon passed away last week. I’m reposting his appearance on Dollars to Donuts from 2019. Show Links Episode transcript Episode (and show links) from 2019 From LinkedIn, announcement of Tomer’s passing The post 53. Remembering Tomer Sharon first appeared on Portigal Consulting.

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Defending against evil with Aarathi Krishnan 40:39

8M ago40:39

40:39

S03E06 (#334). Aarathi Krishnan is an international aid expert, specialising in humanitarian futures and strategic foresight. In a world where the sets of rules that have governed us as humanity are rapidly changing, how will we know if the solutions that we are designing now are going to be fit for purpose? Aarathi pushes the importance of account…

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Fail early 42:42

8M ago42:42

42:42

S03E05 (#333). A linkshow. James and Per discuss two articles they’ve stumbled on. This time we feature articles about things that slow down your website’s experience and why you can’t do anything about it plus the concept of “failing early” but not in a “failing fast” startup way. Article one is Six things that slow down your site’s UX (and why yo…

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Lisa Bragg - The Art of Purposeful Self-Promotion: Being a Signal Through the Noise 57:59

9M ago57:59

57:59

In this engaging episode of The UX Consultants Lounge, host Kyle Soucy sits down with Lisa Bragg, an expert in strategic self-promotion and the author of "Bragging Rights: How to Talk about Your Work Using Purposeful Self-Promotion." Together, they explore the nuanced art of self-promotion that doesn't just add to the noise but acts as a clear sign…

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More systems thinking with Sheryl Cababa 48:47

9M ago48:47

48:47

S03E04 (#332). Two years on from when Sheryl Cababa released Closing The Loop, her book about systems thinking for designers, we hear Sheryls reflections and insights about what she’s learnt during that time and we grapple with the challenge of applying system thinking as designers “out of the box”. We work in a complex space, with many complex as …

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Tamara Adlin - The Power of Alignment 56:08

9M ago56:08

56:08

In this episode of the UX Consultants Lounge, host Kyle Soucy speaks with Tamara Adlin, owner of Adlin, Inc., a consultancy specializing in helping early-stage startups and larger companies with product alignment and redesigns. They discuss her impressive career journey and her profound impact on the field of UX consulting. Tamara shares her experi…

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Murky middle with Christina Joy Whittaker 38:29

9M ago38:29

38:29

S03E03 (#331). Your destiny isn’t tied to a role. You were a person before your role. Leadership expert and strategist Christina Joy Whittaker talks to us about the murky middle, a phenomenon rooted in misalignment and purpose and quite distinct from imposter syndrome which is rooted in confidence. Christina shares her personal journey from corpora…

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The Great Amazon Heist with Oobah Butler 41:39

10M ago41:39

41:39

S03E02 (#330). Oobah Butler, journalist and filmmaker known for his prankster antics, joined us to discuss his work, including “The Great Amazon Heist” and “The Shed at Dulwich”. Oobah highlights the relative ease of manipulating algorithms, such as TripAdvisor and Amazon, to boost fake products’ rankings. We also discussed the broader implications…

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Dark mode 36:06

10M ago36:06

36:06

S03E01 (#329). In the first episode of Season Three, James Royal-Lawson and Per Axbom discuss the concept of dark mode, its benefits, and its implications for UX design, user experience and accessibility. We delve into the European accessibility directive, and the EN 301 549 European standard which includes a section on user preferences, requiring …

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Erika Hall and Mike Monteiro - Consulting with Backbone: Authenticity, Humanity, and the Value of Hard Truths 1:03:42

11M ago1:03:42

1:03:42

In this episode of The UX Consultants Lounge, host Kyle Soucy sits down with two legendary figures in the UX and design consulting world: Erika Hall and Mike Monteiro, co-founders of Mule Design. Known for their honesty, wit, and willingness to challenge the status quo, Erika and Mike bring decades of experience—and a few well-placed truth bombs—to…

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68. How can AI fulfil technology's promise of making our professional lives easier, simpler and more efficient? - Noam Segal 51:51

12M ago51:51

51:51

"Although it's understandable that this technology brings all sorts of concerns and anxieties and worries with it, and I share those, by the way, as well. It's not all excitement. I really think this is going to transform the entire tech industry...And honestly, I'm really hoping that what AI brings is, it finally brings to fruition what technology…

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Lynne Polischuik & Justin Davis - Navigating the Evolution of UX Consulting: Adapting to Industry Shifts 1:18:40

12M ago1:18:40

1:18:40

In this episode of The UX Consultants Lounge, host Kyle Soucy welcomes Lynne Polischuik and Justin Davis, two seasoned UX consultants, to discuss the evolving landscape of UX consulting. From the challenges of today’s market to the exciting opportunities presented by AI and emerging work models, this episode dives deep into the current state of UX …

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67. UX Brighton 2024 - Part 2 - How are you using AI in your own work? What excites or scares you about it? - Attendees at UX Brighton 30:38

12M ago30:38

30:38

'From an internal perspective we're using AI everywhere from marketing to writing code..' 'I think because everybody is trying to get in the AI game you're just throwing things at a wall and seeing what sticks..' 'There's a good portion of my job that could be automated, so I'm just trying to get a little bit ahead of the curve..' 'My concern is th…

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66. UX Brighton 2024 - Part 1: How can we reduce UX industry anxiety about AI? - Danny Hope, Curator @ UX Brighton 23:02

1y ago23:02

23:02

"What we're aiming to do is answer the question, what do UX practitioners need to know about AI? I want to reduce people's anxiety in the same way that my anxiety has been reduced by confronting the the subject...I'd really like people to leave the conference feeling less anxious about [AI] than they felt coming in." Danny Hope, Curator of the UX B…

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Interviewing Users anniversary and new audiobook! 31:05

1y ago31:05

31:05

It’s the first anniversary of the second edition of Interviewing Users, and it’s now available as an audiobook. Listen to this episode for a sample. Show Links Interviewing Users on Audible Interviewing Users, 2nd Edition (print and eBook) The post Interviewing Users anniversary and new audiobook! first appeared on Portigal Consulting.…

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Elizabeth Creighton - Scaling Your UX Consultancy: Newsletters, Courses, and Deliverables 1:05:56

1y ago1:05:56

1:05:56

In this episode of the UX Consultants Lounge, host Kyle Soucy sits down with Elizabeth Creighton, the owner of Brazen, a consultancy that offers UX research and training services. Elizabeth shares great tips about scaling your UX consultancy through newsletters, online courses, and investing in deliverables. Plus, they discuss the emotional journey…

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Becca Kennedy - From Academia to UX Consulting 1:10:30

1y ago1:10:30

1:10:30

In this episode of the UX Consultants Lounge, host Kyle Soucy sits down with Becca Kennedy, the owner of Kennason, a UX consultancy that combines design research and content design services. With over 15 years in the industry and nearly a decade of running her own consultancy, Becca shares her insights and experiences in the world of UX consulting.…

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A heartfelt update from James and Per ❤️ 2:29

1y ago2:29

2:29

This is an update to let you know that we are delaying the start of season 3 as Per is soon to have a heart operation. We’re aiming now to start Season 3 in the new year, once Per has recovered. Per is currently in preparations to undergo open-heart surgery in about a month’s time,... The post A heartfelt update from James and Per ❤️ appeared first…

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52. Emily Sun of Hipcamp 49:53

1+ y ago49:53

49:53

In this episode of Dollars to Donuts, I talk with Emily Sun, the head of Design and Research at Hipcamp. We discuss staying engaged in work, designers doing their own research, and research at a small, growing company. There’s actually a big opportunity with smaller companies. At small startups, you are much closer to the people who are making the …

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Karen McGrane - Embracing Adaptability in UX Consulting 1:08:52

1+ y ago1:08:52

1:08:52

In this episode, host Kyle Soucy is joined by Karen McGrane, a renowned UX consultant, to dive deep into the intricacies of UX consulting, running a consulting business, and adapting to industry changes. Karen shares her extensive experience, from starting and running multiple consulting firms to managing business downturns and shifting industry no…

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65. What do design teams need to consider when developing products for international markets?: Chui Chui Tan 40:54

1+ y ago40:54

40:54

Join me chatting with author and cultural expert Chui Chui Tan around researching and designing products for international markets. What do design teams need to consider to ensure the best cultural fit and customer uptake for what they're building? How can they better understand local market differences? What potential pitfalls should they watch ou…

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51. Tamara Hale of Splunk 1:18:04

1+ y ago1:18:04

1:18:04

This episode of Dollars to Donuts features my conversation with Tamara Hale, the Director of Product Experience – Research & Insights at Splunk. We talk about the long tail of impact, being an anthropologist of work, and having a creative practice. The ‘doing the research’ bit is only about a quarter of your job. The rest of it is all the other stu…

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Introduction: An Interview with Your Host, Kyle Soucy 40:34

1+ y ago40:34

40:34

In this special introductory episode, we get to know Kyle, the host of our UX Consultant Podcast. Celebrating her 20th year in business as an independent UX research consultant, Kyle shares her journey, the motivations behind starting this podcast, and what listeners can expect in future episodes. Joined by her children, Roger and Gabriel, Kyle ans…

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Trailer: Welcome to the UX Consultants Lounge 1:36

1+ y ago1:36

1:36

Links and Resources: Connect with Kyle on LinkedIn. Learn more about Kyle's UX Research consultancy, Usable Interface. Submit a question or story: Have a question or topic that you'd like us to cover in a future episode and/or want to share an anonymous consulting story? Submit your questions and stories. Don't want to miss an episode? Be sure to s…

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50. Vanessa Arango Garcia of Delivery Hero 58:54

1+ y ago58:54

58:54

In this latest episode of Dollars to Donuts, I talk with Vanessa Arango Garcia, Director UX Research & Research Operations at Delivery Hero. We discuss creating an engaged research community across a global organization, being accountable for impact, and how today’s challenges provide an opportunity for the research progression to grow. We care a l…

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49. Sarah Gregory of Coinbase 1:11:08

1+ y ago1:11:08

1:11:08

This episode of Dollars to Donuts features my conversation with Sarah Gregory, Director of User Research for Consumer at Coinbase. We talk about research comms, archiving user research, and doing research that no one is yet asking for. Our email is designed for one very specific leadership stakeholder, and it is tailored to how that person likes to…

1
Season 3 update from James and Per 2:23

1+ y ago2:23

2:23

This is an update to let you know that we have reached the end of Season 2, a sensible 10-month season this time rather than more than 10 years! It’s time for us to take a short break before we kick off Season 3 on August 9th. We are already busy with planning the episodes... The post Season 3 update from James and Per appeared first on UX Podcast.…

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48. Jamika Burge of Capital One 1:13:12

1+ y ago1:13:12

1:13:12

In this episode of Dollars to Donuts I speak with Jamika Burge, the head of research for Data and AI at Capital One. We talk about her journey through academia, discovering user research, and intersectionality. Doing good – for me, as a researcher, and as someone who wants to do good in the world, it means understanding people’s needs in context an…

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47. Akshay Verma of Duolingo 1:10:45

1+ y ago1:10:45

1:10:45

This episode of Dollars to Donuts features my interview with Akshay Verma, the head of User Research at Duolingo. We talk about being qualitative focused in an experimentation-driven organization, research team structures, team rituals, and sharing knowledge between researchers. I don’t actually want to bemoan or belabor this concept of a room that…

1
Interviewing users with Steve Portigal 39:25

1+ y ago39:25

39:25

S02E18 (#328). Over ten years have passed since the first edition of Steve Portigal’s legendary book Interviewing Users was released. Together with Steve, we reflect on how user research has evolved during the past decade, and how the importance of user research in order to understand people and their needs is still crucial. We discuss... The post …

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46. Daniel Escher of Remitly 1:06:02

1+ y ago1:06:02

1:06:02

In this episode of Dollars to Donuts I speak with Daniel Escher, Director of UX and Research at Remitly. We talk about more ways for researchers to add value, business questions over research questions, and the things that researchers worry about. Where I think collective identity can be limiting is when someone thinks of themselves as a researcher…

1
The President of Iceland 40:15

1+ y ago40:15

40:15

S02E17 (#327). A linkshow. James and Per discuss two articles they’ve stumbled on. This time we feature articles about how certain features of e-commerce sites have to go, and how a design mistake impacted civic engagement in Iceland. Article one is The lazy load, endless scroll, and color slicing have to go by Bethany Sadler-Jasmin. “UX... The pos…

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64. Quantitative research: What are the pitfalls and benefits for product teams?: Ben Dressler @ Freelance Product Insights Researcher 52:01

1+ y ago52:01

52:01

"The only reason I sometimes shy away from the words 'qual' and 'quant' is I think they present this dichotomy that is not the full truth, right? I think people then start to think 'qual' means talking to people about fuzzy feelings and doing personas, whereas 'quant' means you sit on billions of data points and you put graphs and fancy charts out …

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Strategic impact with Nathan Shedroff 33:28

1+ y ago33:28

33:28

S02E16 (#326). Nathan Shedroff, author of A Whole New Strategy, talks to us about how we as designers can have strategic impact. Through an expanded understanding of the context you are working within, and building both situational and operational awareness, we can bridge the gap between design and business. We look at how some of... The post Strat…

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The rule of three with Ellen Lupton 31:22

1+ y ago31:22

31:22

S02E15 (#325). Ellen Lupton, designer, educator and author, helps us stock up our toolbox of design principles and methods, starting off with storytelling in visual design, and the “rule of three” before we move on to linear and non-linear experiences. Will we follow the rule of three and have a third topic? We talk about... The post The rule of th…

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63. Researcher Burnout: What is it? How do you spot the warning signs? And what can you do about it? 36:28

1+ y ago36:28

36:28

Tina Lickova is an independent researcher and service designer. She is also host of the excellent UX Research Geeks podcast. In this honest and candid episode, Tina talks with me from personal experience about professional burnout working as a researcher: what it is, how to acknowledge it, what the warning signs are and how to take action. We also …

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Sketching workshop with Eva-Lotta Lamm 58:39

1+ y ago58:39

58:39

S02E14 (#324). A slightly different episode to usual. Eva-Lotta Lamm joins us to hold a visual thinking sketching workshop – Eva-Lotta, James and Per have fun going through three sketching exercises set by Eva-Lotta that can help you with your creativity, team-building, visual thinking and much more. Grab some pens, and perhaps even a couple... The…

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Change leadership with Maria Giudice 42:51

1+ y ago42:51

42:51

S02E13 (#323). We are in the age of design-driven change. Maria Giudice joins us to talk about being changemakers – How we can design change in a complex world. We start by looking at the history of change management and how we are now firmly in the age of design-driven change and that requires change... The post Change leadership with Maria Giudic…

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62. How do you uncover the most compelling insights when interviewing your users?: Author Steve Portigal 1:06:52

1+ y ago1:06:52

1:06:52

Steve Portigal is an experienced user researcher who helps organisations to build more mature user research practices. He is principal of Portigal Consulting, and the author of two books: Doorbells, Danger, and Dead Batteries and Interviewing Users, the second edition of which is now out. He’s also the host of the Dollars to Donuts podcast. In this…