Meetup #9: Crowdsourcing - How the Power of the Web Enables Better Design

Join us to learn more about how the internet and other platforms have transformed our ability to tap the minds of thousands of people around the world on design problems. We'll be joined by two exciting groups, Napkin Labs (http://www.napkinlabs.com) and NASA, to discuss their approaches to crowdsourcing and the impact it has had on design.

Agenda:
6:45-7:00pm: Networking and Introductions
7:00pm-7:10pm: Session Overview
7:10pm-8:00pm: Napkin Labs (Jeff Scurlock)
8:00pm-8:50pm: NASA (Jason Crusan)
8:50pm-9:00pm: Discussion and Future Topics

About Jeff Scurlock: Jeff Scurlock is a business development professional specializing in applying design thinking principals to demand generation processes for start-ups and other fast-growth organizations. He developed the Demand Engagement methodology while working with a snowboard company in Seattle, a surfboard distributorship in Australia, an adventure travel website in Colorado and a cloud-based CRM software company in Montana. He is currently the director of customer development for Napkin Labs, a community engagement application start-up that is redefining Facebook marketing and crowd-sourcing. He lives in Boulder, Colorado with his wife, twin daughters and golden retriever.

About Jason Crusan: Jason is the Chief Technologist for NASA Human Exploration and Operations. As Chief Technologist for Human Exploration and Operations of Space at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Jason is the principle advisor and advocate on technology policy and innovations leading to new flight and system capabilities. He also serves as the Advanced Exploration System (AES) Integration Manager, coordinating across the Program’s 20 elements, the Space Technology Program in Office of Chief Technologist, and the International Space Station Program, to maximize technical outcomes and demonstrate methods to acquire future capabilities for agency.

Working together with industry and academia, Crusan leads teams across multiple NASA Centers, developing instruments, ground systems and critical multi-million dollar flight hardware for NASA programs. He provides the advice and analysis needed to develop the right acquisition strategies, contracting mechanisms, investment models and partnerships—in short, he develops the innovative approaches needed to maximize NASA’s access to new technologies and to motivate private industry to develop them.

At NASA, Crusan contributed a critical role in the creation of the International Space Station National Laboratory, the first ever for NASA. The new National Lab will enable the non-NASA academic and commercial utilization of the International Space Station that will open up new paths for the exploration and economic development of Space, while also stimulating education in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) for American’s next generation.