Kristen Berman

Money is a constant part of life — for everyone. Yet despite its importance, more often than not, we end up making decisions that aren’t optimal. This talk will reveal how and why people are irrational with their money and how companies can design products and services that help people be smarter. Kristen will go over surprising experiments that her team has done and highlight just how easy it is to change behavior.

Too often, we assume that consumers make rational decisions. We take them at their word when we ask them about their behavior — they say they want this feature and we assume they will actually use the feature once we build it. But there’s a gap between what consumers say they’ll do and what they actually do. How do we bridge this gap and design products based on actual consumer decision making and behavior? This talk will get to the core of irrational decision making. Kristen will share funny stories about how we are irrational, while also providing novel and insightful ways to design products and services that align with these irrationalities.

Today’s product leaders often rely on the word of their customers when building their product road maps; whether it’s a customer survey or a phone interview, loads of qualitative data through these methods is being collected and used to dictate how to design and develop products. Seems like a foolproof plan, right? Actually, no — a reliance on customer input and feedback is built on an antiquated model of human decision making that assumes humans are rational. Kristen will go over her compelling research that highlights just how misleading customer research. She’ll take us through step by step the process that behavioral economists go through to understand behavior and then change it.

In an era where AI is pervasive, trust is paramount. This talk, aimed at tech leaders and AI developers, examines how to cultivate trust in AI systems. We’ll dissect the latest academic research and real-world case studies for how AI can create OR destroy trust. Drawing from behavioral economics and psychology, the discussion will highlight the role of human biases in AI perception and use. We will provide practical strategies for enhancing AI’s credibility, how to manage transparency, and balance giving users control and agency with ease of use. Expect a blend of theoretical insights and real-world applications, empowering attendees to build more trusted and effective AI solutions.

This session targets business leaders and managers grappling with AI tool adoption in their organizations. We’ll explore the behavioral dynamics influencing employee engagement with AI and the psychological barriers to adoption (“Will my job get taken?!”  “This AI is not as good as I am!”.)

The talk will offer a blend of dos and don’ts, focusing on how to combat the status quo, how to instill social norms throughout the org and behavioral incentives for effective change management. We’ll look at lateral categories to get inspired on how to think differently about change and reference academic studies that have shown real effects. The session will leave attendees equipped with actionable strategies for fostering a culture that embraces AI tools as part of their operational fabric.