Technology has made that impact and saved a million lives. But at the same time, the negative effects of technology on human interaction are growing day by day. May it be an addiction to social media, or even the rise of the fake news surrounding us through majority platforms that is harmful.
Tell us about your background, journey, and upbringing.
I come from a humble background. My father was an engineer in the defense services and my mother was a professor of the Marathi language. The environment in our home was such that, we kids were always pushed to do multiple things at a time.
I grew up in Pune, where the culturally rich environment contributed a lot to my building years. I was a Tabala player, I pursued the education for 7 years. I have played Kho-Kho, and was on the athletics team, running short and long-distance, marathons. I was also a part of football and swimming. Apart from this, I love trekking.
I believe, all these activities together instilled sense of values and discipline in me. These values of ‘Never give up’ and ‘Do multiple things with passion’ influenced my core thinking right from the beginning.
I believe, all these activities together instilled sense of values and discipline in me. These values of ‘Never give up’ and ‘Do multiple things with passion’ influenced my core thinking right from the beginning.
When I work, I focus entirely on the task at hand and always finish what I start with. After schooling, I did my Bachelor in Industrial Engineering, went on to earn an advanced degree in Business Administration.
I did my PG, a Masters degree in Human Factors from Clemson University, US. The fundamentals of Industrial Engineering of optimizing systems, processes, checking on efficiencies and effectiveness, improving productivity has carried on through my career.
My higher education focused on a unique topic, the study of human limitations and advantages in designing systems. This led me to a very specific area of interest - Usability. Back in that time, the term User Experience wasn’t coined yet.
My higher education focused on a unique topic, the study of human limitations and advantages in designing systems. This led me to a very specific area of interest - Usability. Back in that time, the term User Experience wasn’t coined yet.
The addition of the design aspect to this combination of my training from engineering, and management built me for my future in experience design.
When and how did you get clarity on what you wanted to do?
Industrial engineering has always been my foundation where designing efficient systems was my forte.
This is what I learned and practiced - the design of man-machine systems, which is a much larger concept. I have looked at not just people-flow, but material-flow, information flow, and design of layouts for entire plants.
Even after entering the field of Usability, it was all these concepts and practices I had learned from my previous education and work that applied to digital media. UX is not just about designing for screens, it is so much more than that. It is about understanding the cognitive behavior, perception of people with respect to the contextual environment.
Industrial engineering has always been my foundation where designing efficient systems was my forte.
This is what I learned and practiced - the design of man-machine systems, which is a much larger concept. I have looked at not just people-flow, but material-flow, information flow, and design of layouts for entire plants.
Even after entering the field of Usability, it was all these concepts and practices I had learned from my previous education and work that applied to digital media. UX is not just about designing for screens, it is so much more than that. It is about understanding the cognitive behavior, perception of people with respect to the contextual environment.
A study and design based on these considerations are way beyond designing just the screen. I have always had this clarity that I want to be at the forefront of human-factors-led design.
I have worked on usability engineering projects, with one of the largest firms in the world at that time. I got to work with big companies on designing user interface systems for healthcare providers, and I have also worked with R&D.
I have worked on usability engineering projects, with one of the largest firms in the world at that time. I got to work with big companies on designing user interface systems for healthcare providers, and I have also worked with R&D.
I was one of the early joiners to build the department at large outsourced product development organization, which would not just develop the products but also design for their clients. I saw over time that usability is catching up faster in the US, the western market specifically. In 2008, the word user experience was coined, that’s when I knew this isn’t just one quality metric in a product.
It is about the entire experience of users. All interactions of users with the brand matter. And this field has the potential to grow quickly. Some of my colleagues and I knew this will take much longer to be recognized in India.
So this is how we decided to be the frontrunners in this field from India, creating impact by design. Incidentally our initial 4-5 years at YUJ we did not have a single customer from India.
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What are your thoughts on the technology-human interaction today?
With the growing influence of technology, humans are almost becoming slaves to it. This was not envisioned. Technology was created to alleviate some of the problems that humans face. Be it healthcare management, better equipment for accurate diagnosis etc.
Technology has made that impact and saved a million lives. But at the same time, the negative effects of technology on human interaction are growing day by day. May it be an addiction to social media, or even the rise of the fake news surrounding us through majority platforms that is harmful.
Technology as a differentiator for businesses is not going to last for very long, in my opinion. The delta of differentiation between tech companies is reducing every day. There was a huge gap between what Google and Facebook had achieved. But, I think that is not the case anymore.
Technology as a differentiator for businesses is not going to last for very long, in my opinion. The delta of differentiation between tech companies is reducing every day. There was a huge gap between what Google and Facebook had achieved. But, I think that is not the case anymore.
Since some of these companies were early adopters, they have more subscribers. Though banking and healthcare in my opinion should amp up their efforts on absorbing more of such technology to help people and solve their core problems better.
What's the future of design space in India?
The design space in India is just moving up. In 2009, it was difficult to even explain what user experience is to anybody. And explain what is the need for it. With our earliest of customers we have spent a substantial amount of time explaining what UX is, why it is essential, what it can do for their business, etc.
These days we find most of the people we interact with are aware of UX. I do see one area where we need to improve on. There are hardly any indigenous products that we are designing. Design in India is still not happening. But Design from India is very much a possibility now.
We as YUJ Designs have proven that design from India can happen. 12 years back when we started no one anticipated the potential scale of India’s contribution to UX design. We have faced some challenges in the past where it was difficult for us to sell this to the customers in the US that we can do UX design.
But in all this time now, with more than 2100 projects and more than 500 products designed, we have made an Impact by Design from India. This will continue to grow. Our vision is to be one of the top UX design firms not just in India, but worldwide.
What is your advice for designers, young and senior?
To young designers, I’d say really learn and push the boundaries. Learn how to think design, gather in-depth knowledge about the nuances and methodology. The syllabus taught at our design schools is still not up to the mark, so young designers will have to do this on their own.
To young designers, I’d say really learn and push the boundaries. Learn how to think design, gather in-depth knowledge about the nuances and methodology. The syllabus taught at our design schools is still not up to the mark, so young designers will have to do this on their own.
In my opinion, the current design schools of India teach only 20-30% relevant material in comparison to the high-quality work that happens worldwide.
Apart from all the fundamental skills, a designer should have – critical thinking, a design mindset, a scientific approach with embedded creativity; and a lot of sense-making. The learning needs to happen at a faster pace.
Apart from all the fundamental skills, a designer should have – critical thinking, a design mindset, a scientific approach with embedded creativity; and a lot of sense-making. The learning needs to happen at a faster pace.
Being adaptive will help the designers the most in these times. These are the times for a lot of data-driven experimentation. It is about pushing the boundaries of one’s knowledge in an agile way.
The other most important aspect is to have a trans-disciplinary approach. It is not enough today to say I don’t understand technology. The knowledge of technological advances should be enough to understand the solutions and possibilities it can offer. Therefore the designers who aimed to be a T-shaped personality will have to be now a pi-shaped personality.
Design in its form, whether it is interaction design or visual design, it is going to be a commodity. It is going to be done by maybe some automated technology in the future. And these things are happening as we speak.
So the skills you’ll need to develop are adding value more towards the product and the business, leading a team, managing a product. One would require skills of eliciting those non-verbal, unsaid insights and cues from various information pieces. Not just from stakeholders, or users but also see patterns, analyze those, and draw insights from trends in the market.
They will also have to start understanding technology in a better way. So understanding the upcoming advances, working with them, grasping the challenges of the future, will be important. They will also need to learn other aspects of these technologies. The ethics in using ML or AI in different conditions. Understand how responsible design can be And so on.
The other most important aspect is to have a trans-disciplinary approach. It is not enough today to say I don’t understand technology. The knowledge of technological advances should be enough to understand the solutions and possibilities it can offer. Therefore the designers who aimed to be a T-shaped personality will have to be now a pi-shaped personality.
Design in its form, whether it is interaction design or visual design, it is going to be a commodity. It is going to be done by maybe some automated technology in the future. And these things are happening as we speak.
So the skills you’ll need to develop are adding value more towards the product and the business, leading a team, managing a product. One would require skills of eliciting those non-verbal, unsaid insights and cues from various information pieces. Not just from stakeholders, or users but also see patterns, analyze those, and draw insights from trends in the market.
They will also have to start understanding technology in a better way. So understanding the upcoming advances, working with them, grasping the challenges of the future, will be important. They will also need to learn other aspects of these technologies. The ethics in using ML or AI in different conditions. Understand how responsible design can be And so on.
Tell us about a project that currently interests you.
We’re currently working on an app for a big automotive company. The app is aimed at increasing the sale of genuine parts. It is an e-commerce app for mechanics, and experts. Yet through this app, we’re bringing in a lot of community benefits, new business opportunities that can make a difference in the lives of over 1.5 lacs mechanics.The app focuses on four major aspects - it helps the users earn, learn, work, and connect with the community. The mechanics receive work requests through the app and get new business. The platform also offers experts an opportunity to mentor the mechanics. There’s also a forum for mechanics to reach out to the community and share their stories with people from across the nation.
This app is a big opportunity to ensure we make an impact through the experience designed for users. This is a chance to contribute as designers, to a business providing revenue to so many people, enriching their lives.
What advice do you have for aspiring entrepreneurs or those eyeing the top job?
For aspiring entrepreneurs, I’d say pitch something unique to offer. Don’t just jump on the me-too bandwagon. Don’t just emulate what already exists, if you want to make a difference. Keep in mind that you need a bigger purpose to look up to when you set sail into this territory. Set it as a North Star for yourself and
your business.
And one important thing you need to bear in the mind is nothing will come easy. Be ready to do anything at any point in time, whether you’re a start-up or an established company. If you are not prepared for this, you’re up for failure.
For aspiring entrepreneurs, I’d say pitch something unique to offer. Don’t just jump on the me-too bandwagon. Don’t just emulate what already exists, if you want to make a difference. Keep in mind that you need a bigger purpose to look up to when you set sail into this territory. Set it as a North Star for yourself and
your business.
And one important thing you need to bear in the mind is nothing will come easy. Be ready to do anything at any point in time, whether you’re a start-up or an established company. If you are not prepared for this, you’re up for failure.
Another crucial aspect of being an entrepreneur is being patient. Things will go wrong wherever they have to go wrong, always be prepared for the unexpected. Remember, it’s about how many times you have tried, failed, and got up.
It may be a cliché advice, but this is the reality. Keep on upgrading yourself, keep learning what’s happening out there, in the market. I still do it at the end of my day, I ask myself - what did I learn today? If I haven’t learned anything, I don’t term it as a productive/ successful day.
Learning everyday is a big part of an entrepreneur’s life.
Learning everyday is a big part of an entrepreneur’s life.
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