Human-Centered Design, Social Media, and Creating Connections in the Time of COVID-19 | Cat Moon, Vanderbilt University
The Strategy Sphere podcast — brought to you by Intapp — features interviews with leading experts in academia, innovation, and business. Our hosts are Lavinia Calvert, who leads the global marketing and business development solutions business at Intapp, and Deborah Farone, a marketing strategy consultant and author. In each episode, Calvert and Farone explore today’s world of professional services marketing, leadership, innovation, and education.
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In this episode, Calvert and Farone spoke with Vanderbilt Law’s Caitlin “Cat” Moon, who teaches her students about making the law more accessible and legal delivery seamless.
With a background in communications, law, and now academia, Moon revealed how our legal ecosystem — and other professional services sectors — have not kept pace with the rest of the world. She provided ideas for new solutions, and described how human-centered design applies to the practice of law as well as everyday business problems.
Moon discussed professionals using social media, explaining how Twitter has been a helpful tool in her own collaboration efforts. She also shared her teaching experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic: Despite having to teach in a mask behind plexiglass, Moon has been able to create a close connection with her students by consistently experimenting in the classroom.
Joining the podcast from a nook underneath her staircase, Moon shared just a tiny taste of her creativity and adaptability, focusing on three key points:
- When communicating — either through teaching, lecturing, or simply speaking with clients — don’t be afraid to experiment with video technology. Ask questions by using polls, engage people by using the chat function, and get comfortable using tools like Slack for live discussion.
- Diversity in all things tends to lead to better results. Make sure that discussion groups involve and encourage discussion from a broad set of people. You’ll have additional perspectives and, if the meeting is run properly, you will likely achieve better results.
- To foster innovation, you need to embrace ambiguity. Although experiments may not always work out the way you planned, consider them lessons, not failures.
As Moon said, “The idea of change itself is overwhelming to most of us.” Nevertheless, change is the engine of improvement and progress.