A day in the life of: UCD Principal, Mark Wright
This week, we chatted with Mark Wright, one of our UCD Principals here at Made Tech, to understand more about his day-to-day.
1. So, Mark, how is your week going? What are you up to at the moment?
Good, so far! At the moment, I’m working on the first cohort of our design and research academy. They are on their first project this week (there’s three projects: discovery, alpha, beta). They’re asking really good, advanced questions that we weren’t expecting at all! Questions like, “why can personas be problematic?” This is only their third week on the course, so it’s great that they are asking these sorts of questions! I think, initially, there was some fear about going into a project in only week 3, but now they are realising that they can learn by doing. It’s great to see them coming into their own.
2. How is the academy going and what have some of the challenges been?
It’s going really well. Every Friday there is a reflection session (a retrospective), and we get them to reflect on the week and write week notes. One of the things that Clara and I are struggling with is the speed the cohort is going at. We’re in week 3 and the first 2 weeks were the foundation of UCD, but as I said before, the questions being asked now are so advanced. It’s like they want to run ahead to week 8/9. We’re having to swap a lot of stuff around. Our plan has been torn up and thrown out a little bit; some sessions have run over, for example. We’re really trying to go with the flow.
3. What have the most interesting sessions been?
Definitely the introduction to prototyping and user research. Everyone seemed to enjoy that.
4. When you’re not doing academy work, what does your day-to-day at work usually look like?
For most of this year, I’ve been planning the academy. I haven’t really been on project work. Before, when I was working with Ofgem on Future Heat Schemes, I was working across two services; the Green Gas Support Scheme and Green Gas Levy. I was ensuring delivery consistency across those services; making sure they were being delivered to appropriate standards and working with researchers/designers/content designers to ensure consistency across the programme. And, also, mucking in and doing prototyping etc. I also ran some training on accessibility standards, for example, helping Ofgem as an organisation to understand accessibility requirements, etc.
5. What does being a UCD Principal mean to you?
To me, it's about supporting and nurturing the community of researchers and designers, making sure they are working on projects they love and that everyone is having a good time.
6. What are your favourite things about being a UCD Principal?
My favourite part about working here is seeing how big the community is now, looking at it and thinking, “yeah, we did that. We grew it from 2 people!” It’s so rewarding to watch Show & Tells and see how far we’ve come and what people are doing.
7. What’s a piece of work or something you’ve done recently that you are proud of?
The recruitment for the academy. I’m super proud that we have a diverse group of people. The cohort is 90% female and there are lots of people from under-represented backgrounds, as well as people from different tech backgrounds. It’s a really nice mix.
8. Fun fact: What’s your favourite flavour of crisps?
Pigs in blankets. No, they do not taste the same as smoky bacon.
9. Fun fact: If you could be part of any fictional family, which family would you pick?
The Jetsons. I love 1950s Americana.
10. Fun fact: What are you listening to at the moment?
Nick Waterhouse - Blues/Jazz - very inspired by old Motown.