For more information about Jan’s work and to catch up on his latest research you can visit his blog at:

http://www.janchipchase.com/

Jan Chipchase is one of a team of researchers and anthropologists working at Nokia. Based within the design organisation at Nokia, his job is to study people around the world ­ how they behave, communicate and interact with each other and the things around them. He shares his observations and insights with Nokia designers, who often accompany him on field trips, helping them to create new ideas for how mobile devices will look, work and will be used in the future.

Most of his time is spent in the field conducting research projects. This takes him out onto the streets, into people’s homes and public spaces to observe, document and analyze the rich tapestry of everyday life. Recent projects include visiting Uganda to look at shared phone use, several trips to India to look at how design can make mobile devices more accessible to people with low or non-existent levels of literacy, and a study in South Korea looking at how early adopters were reacting to the then recently launched mobile TV.

His research focuses on the future 3 to 15 years from now ­ understanding today’s base human motivations, detecting early signals of new trends and combining this knowledge with an understanding of where technology is heading. The research is used by the design team together with a suite of other tools to help inform and inspire the design of future products, features, applications, services and platforms. In 2006 alone this took him to 15 different countries, helping Nokia understand both the similarities and differences between cultures.

Jan has a Masters in User Interface Design, and a degree in Development Economics. He is half British half German by nationality, and is based in Nokia’s Insight and Innovation Studio in Tokyo, his home since 2000. He has had 3 patents with a further 25 pending on topics that range from interaction methods, ubiquitously connected societies and seamless communication.

Jan is part of a team of more than 250 people, representing 25 different nationalities, working around the globe. This includes industrial designers, colors and material experts, graphic designers, psychologists, researchers, anthropologists and technology specialists.