Leading Business Designer Priya Rajaraman on Adapting to a Changing Business Landscape
There has always been a need for businesses to adapt to changing circumstances, but that need has never been more vital than it is right now.
The pandemic played a large role in bringing about a new era in business. For one, customers and clients expect organizations to be able to deliver on their promises at all times, despite any logistical or financial barriers.
Likewise, organizations themselves need to be highly communicative, both internally and externally, regardless of whether team members are located in the office, at home, or thousands of miles away.
To solve any number of problems and adapt for the future, sometimes organizations need an outside perspective.
This is what business designers like Priya Rajaraman specialize in: helping companies find bespoke, impactful solutions for whatever problems might stand in their way.
With Fjord, a subsidiary of Accenture Song, Rajaraman works with Fortune 500 clients to turn data into insights that will generate intelligent and effective solutions for each company.
Rajaraman has been recognized as a leading figure in this space, but she continues to learn with each new assignment and works hard to deliver custom solutions to fit each situation.
Here's our full interview with Rajaraman, in which we tackled the current business landscape, success stories, and the thoughtful perspective that has helped Rajaraman become an expert.
Do you think many businesses now need to adapt more rapidly than, say, in the early 2000s, than in the 90s, etc.?
Rajaraman: Yes they do. The world is evolving at a rapid pace. Besides, the pandemic has challenged everyone to think on their feet and stay relevant. Therefore, the challenge for businesses is to adapt to the environment more rapidly than before. Yet, that evolutionary process has to be thought through carefully if the gains from the past are not to be frittered away.
How crucial is strong company leadership to successfully navigating transitional periods?
Rajaraman: There is no doubt that strong, visionary leadership is one of the most important elements in steering a company through challenges and evolution. Leadership determines the goals and the routes that a company takes to reach those goals while continuing to explore new frontiers.
When working with an organization, do you speak with stakeholders in many different departments? What does that process look like?
Rajaraman: Yes, it is important to gain a holistic perspective of the organization before settling down to find efficient and effective solutions. There are times when suggestions from one department impact other departments, and it is critical to consider all this.
Besides initial discussions with different departments, there will be times when I would go back to a department after hearing from others. And there are times when I would bring different departments together for a common discussion.
Do you have a particular success story that you can share with us?
Rajaraman: I was tasked to work on researching the user experience perspective for a certain fintech company, what they do well, what they don’t do well, etc. We looked at some of their key value propositions, certain features of their app. We spoke to a number of stakeholders in that company to understand the purpose of the project, their vision for the future, and just their experiences as users. We then interviewed people who use either this company’s app or a competing company’s app to understand their pains, gains, motivations, needs, wants, and desires.
After collecting all that data, I guess the engineer in me just wanted to visualize this. I created an ecosystem map and put things into perspective. While this was out of scope for our project, I felt that this visualization really gave us deep insights into human behaviors in a financial context.
My peers felt that the other data we had should suffice and perhaps the visualization was just an embellishment. But after explaining my conviction and winning their trust, we presented this visualization to the clients. The moment the client saw that slide and we provided an explanation for it, the client had a look of surprise on their face. They said that they wanted us to do this work for them every year moving forward.
During a debrief call after this presentation with the internal team, we congratulated each other for a job well done. And the entire team congratulated me for the indelible work I did.
For me, this was a great success story of how it's important to stand up for what you feel is right, along with having understanding and trusting leaders and peers.
You’re clearly very passionate about your work. Does that passion help you move through professional challenges?
Rajaraman: Intensity and passion are great assets to have in work and in life. Yes, they help me at work. It is also important to be adaptable and leave your ego back home while at work.
Have your past experiences as a small business owner made it easier to communicate one-on-one with clients?
Rajaraman: The importance of the end-user can never be forgotten in any business. My work with individual customers in my small business has helped me to find a balance between the generic and customized product that I designed and sold.
Do your interests beyond your profession have any influence on your professional perspective?
Rajaraman: Yes. My interest in music and graphic arts, including design, have been of great use to me in my professional development. Music is universal, and there’s a song or a genre for everyone. This kind of goes back to my belief that there is no single solution for all.
It might sound boring, but I thoroughly enjoy non-fiction books on the human psyche, like What Do You Say After You Say Hello by Dr. Erin Burne.
Business design writing through different lenses, such as Emotion By Design by Greg Hoffman and Change By Design by Tim Brown, have influenced me in significant ways. I try to bring those lessons to my work.
