Adaptive Path Blog

By the end of this month, you should be able to get your hands on Subject to Change, a book co-written by four of us here at Adaptive Path: Brandon Schauer, Todd Wilkens, David Verba, and me. The book addresses our philosophy in creating products and services, the importance of the right kinds of research, of making design an organizational competency, of thinking of your offerings as part of a larger system, and of approaching your technological solutions in an agile way.

“Customers don’t care about how innovative you are. They just want to be happy and satisfied. Learn from Adaptive Path a passion for finding and solving the problems that will matter to customers no matter what the future brings.”
— Scott Berkun, Author, The Myths of Innovation

“Subject to Change presents complex, challenging ideas in simple, compelling language, with illuminating examples and no shortage of memorable phrases. At once authoritative and nimble, the book itself is an example of the kind of experience the authors admire. No matter who you are, it will change the way you think about design.”
— Michael Bierut, Partner, Pentagram and Author, 79 Short Essays on Design

And here’s the chapter lineup:

CHAPTER 1
THE EXPERIENCE IS THE PRODUCT
“How do we deliver great products and services in an uncertain world? The thing to keep in mind, not just in the abstract, but truly and viscerally, are your customers and their abilities, needs, and desires.”

CHAPTER 2
EXPERIENCE AS STRATEGY
“All that matters to customers is their experience.” Therefore firms need a plan for the experiences they will offer, a plan so strong that it will guide decisions on how the experiences are marketed, maintained, and managed.

CHAPTER 3
NEW WAYS OF UNDERSTANDING PEOPLE
“We must understand people as they are rather than as market segments or demographics.” A new model for understanding your customers more completely and more realistically—the basis of an experience strategy.

CHAPTER 4
CAPTURING COMPLEXITY, BUILDING EMPATHY
“The success of experience-focused products is contingent on everyone sharing an understanding of users and a vision for the experience, because so many people play a role in delivering that experience.”

CHAPTER 5
STOP DESIGNING “PRODUCTS”
“The true success of experience design isn’t how well it works when everything is operating as planned, but how well it works when things start going wrong.” Products are simply interfaces to every service a firm provides.

CHAPTER 6
THE DESIGN COMPETENCY
“The act of design gives form to a powerful idea that many can rally around.” One design prototype can embody strategy, showcase an entire system, and immediately reveal the shortfalls of your business plan.

CHAPTER 7
THE AGILE APPROACH
“In an environment where exploration leading to a dead end is viewed as an expense to be reduced, true innovation is difficult.” New developments in the marketplace both allow and require new approaches.

CHAPTER 8
AN UNCERTAIN WORLD
“We should adapt to and embrace the uncertainty around us.” A new set of organizational competencies—-customer research, design, and agile technological implementation-—will shape the firms lead in these uncertain times.

We’re excited about the release of our book, and we hope you enjoy it. Actually, we suspect that the people savvy enough to read this blog probably already “get” what we have to say… But that you might have colleagues, clients, managers, or executives who could benefit from its clear presentation of issues around design, research, and the need for flexibility. Pre-order today!

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