Fay Johnson

According to the International Consumer Protection and Enforcement Network (ICPEN), 76% of global sites and apps employ at least one dark pattern, with 67% utilizing multiple deceptive strategies. I understand that, at a company level, the pressure to deliver quick results can sometimes lead to the unintentional introduction of dark patterns in product design. While these tactics might achieve short-term goals, they often make technology stressful and challenging for users. This goes against the very purpose of technology, which is to simplify and enhance the user experience. https://lnkd.in/gWQAGN-9

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Looking forward to discussing how changing demographics and culture norms are affecting investment opportunities in longevity, health and well-being at The Care Summit today Alongside Cake Ventures' Monique Woodard, Ziegler's Dan Hermann, Oak HC/FT's Billy Deitch and JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s Jennifer Edwards, we’ll dive into the trends shaping how we are investing in the space: - Last year marked one of the most significant social and economic moments in modern times: The number of older adults—those aged 50 and over- surpassed the number of children under the age of 15 for the first time. - In 2020 the 50 plus population contributed $45 trillion to global GDP, or 34% of the total. That equates to about 3x the revenue of the world’s 100 highest- earning companies in 2020. - The U.S. population grew by 24.5 million from 2010 to 2022, and Hispanics accounted for 53% of this increase – a greater share than any other racial or ethnic group. - Women around the world and across all ages drive 64% of consumer spending

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🚀 What my time at Airbnb taught me about level competencies I'm thrilled to share my latest article where I dive into how level competencies are the backbone of your design team's success. 🌟 https://lnkd.in/gWU4tGEa 📈 Clear expectations and growth paths: How setting clear expectations fosters purpose and direction. 📊 Performance reviews: The importance of fair and concrete performance evaluations. 🎯 Personalized development plans: Developing tailored growth plans for team members. Take a look and let me know what you think! #Airbnb #DesignLeadership #GrowthMindset #TeamDevelopment #Leadership

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Let’s talk about it

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An honest and empathetic view of how generative AI (or more correctly LLMs and Stable Diffusion) are transforming the UX industry. Beautifully written and wise. I think the recommendations are widely applicable. It is an opportunity to be strategic, authentic, and to act with purpose. The time of re-wrapping the ideas of others is a vanishing part of all of our work.

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Early this year, in a conversation prompted by the announcement of Techstars’ departure from Seattle, Jesse R. Canedo asked me what are the biggest challenges for founders in Seattle. Where does our startup ecosystem need to focus resources to best support new ventures at the earliest stages? I realized I didn’t really know. Of course I could share the basic ingredients of any functioning entrepreneurial ecosystem, but my experience of the fundraising environment in this area has mostly been on the other side of the table. I decided to talk to some founders, and I discovered they had a lot to say (I was as surprised as you). I’ve summarized the conversations here, and if you’re at all interested in the state of early stage venture in our region I hope you’ll take a look. Some interesting points: -Money is a need, yes, but the #1 thing founders felt they lacked here was community across different levels of entrepreneurial success and between founders and investors -We have a lot of pre-seed VCs but not a lot of pre-seed checks -For the most part the founders I interviewed declined to name specific investors. However, there were two notable exceptions: by far the most frequent was First Row Partners. Despite several of the founders actually being rejected by the fund, literally every single mention (nearly 50% of my conversations) was highly positive and expressed gratitude for the help and support provided by Yoko Okano and Minda Brusse. The other VC mentioned by name, also positively, was Ascend VC, with founders expressing appreciation for the fund’s efforts to build community and connect networks. Finally, while they understandably requested anonymity, a huge thank you to the founders and others who took time to speak with me so frankly about their experiences and opinions. I appreciate you. **If you’re curious, the image I used was created with Microsoft Designer using the prompt “Cave painting style representation of a female startup founder in Seattle”. I was mostly just playing around with the tool but this image was so delightfully weird that I needed to share it. You’re welcome.** https://lnkd.in/g6hadENz

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We recently kicked off a search for a Program Director to join our Founder Success Team First Round Capital. Given I assume the right person for this role will already be in the startup ecosystem, I'd really love help getting the word out. Here is a bit of context: At First Round, we aspire to invest in founders who possess not just strengths, but areas of true genius, whether it’s technical skill, product intuition and/or domain expertise. But on the other side of every spike in talent are a few areas that are still underdeveloped, parts of the business where a founder doesn't have the skills and expertise — yet. The role of the Program Director on the Founder Success team is leading the ideation, curation, planning and execution of programs and events that fill in those gaps and help founders develop new, crucial competencies. More on the role and where to apply can be found here: https://lnkd.in/gPhhJD4U

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