MELISSA CEFKIN MARTHA COTTON ORGANIZERS The National Association for the Practice of Anthropology (NAPA) is pleased to welcome you to this third annual Ethnographic Praxis in Industry Conference. NAPA is a section of the American Anthropological Association and supports the work of practicing anthropology by helping practitioners refine their skills, develop their careers, and market their services. Dennis Wiedman, Florida International Univ – President Madelyn Iris, Council of Jewish Elderly – Past President Mary Odell Butler – President-Elect Christine Miller, Savannah Coll of Art and Design – Secretary Mark Curchack, Arcadia University – Treasurer Laurie Price, California State Univ – East Bay Kendall Thu, Northern Illinois Univ Elizabeth Nanas, Wayne State Univ The American Anthropological Association, the primary professional society of anthropologists in the United States since its founding in 1902, is the world's largest professional organization of individuals interested in anthropology. Setha M Low, City Univ New York - President Virginia Dominguez, Univ Illinois – President Elect Dan Segal, Pitzer Coll - Secretary Ed Liebow, Battelle - Treasurer Florence Babb, Univ Florida Theodore Bestor, Harvard Univ Charles Briggs, Univ California - Berkeley TJ Ferguson Monica S. Heller, Univ Toronto Jennifer Jackson, Univ Toronto Thomas L Leatherman, Univ South Carolina Ellen Lewin, Univ Iowa Sally Engle Merry, New York Univ Gwendolyn Mikell, Georgetown Univ Deborah L. Nichols, Dartmouth Coll Katherine Spielmann, Arizona State Univ American Anthropological Association 2200 Wilson Blvd, Suite 600 • Arlington, VA 22201 phone 703/528-1902; fax 703/528-3546 www.aaanet.org i Introduction to the EPIC 2008 Proceedings: The Fourth Annual Ethnographic Praxis in Industry Conference 2008 marks a special year for the Ethnographic Praxis in Industry Conference – we are delighted to be hosting this, the fourth annual EPIC conference, outside the US for the first time,. The addition of new perspectives resulting from the ever increasing range and varied contexts of presenters’ experiences promises to add a special richness to this year’s conference in Copenhagen, Denmark. The EPIC theme for 2008 is Being Seen: Paradoxes and Practices of (In)Visibility. On the streets of Copenhagen bicycles are seen everywhere. Around the world neighborhoods of the world's impoverished are as painfully visible to those who pass by or through them as they are invisible in the halls of Wall Street. Businesses attempt to make performance of their firm visible through numbers and spreadsheets, while creativity is frequently referred to as “thinking outside the box.” Composers bring their music to light through notations and scores, chefs bring their art into view only to have it disappear, and voters attempt to have their opinions represented through the choices they make at the polls. EPIC2008 is designed to explore the paradoxes and practices of (In)Visibility and bring to light the concepts, theories, plans, worries, approaches and ideas that can expand and advance the practices of ethnographic work in and of industry. (In)Visibility raises many significant questions on the practices and focus of attention of ethnographers and their interlocutors. • What important issues can ethnography in industry shed light on? • Are some ideas and things better left invisible? • How do we work with things which are themselves essentially invisible? • In what ways are we (in)visible as ethnographic practitioners in industry? In sites of scholarly production? What are ways of making the value of ethnographic work more visible to organizations, to participants and stakeholders, and to academic and other intellectual communities? • Is the invisibility of theory in much ethnographic work in industry a problem, a virtue, or both? • What invisible traces do we leave in industry? • What do different representational practices make visible, what do they obscure, and how do other senses come into play? • Does, and how does, ethnography's bias for observation work to balance other forms of understanding in the context of industry? ii In Thanks We owe particular gratitude to the attendees and presenters of EPIC 2008. Their participation, in its many rich and engaged forms, contributes to the discourse of ethnographic praxis in industry and is helping to build a vibrant and valued community. Our deepest appreciation goes to Jacob Buur, the Local Chair, and an energetic team of local supporters who contributed great ideas and tireless energy to the effort of making this conference happen. This year we were invited to visit and discuss with a number of Danish consultancies and design firms. We thank 1508, Antropologerne.com, Copenhagen Living Lab, CPH Design, E-Types, MindLab, People and Product, Red Associates and Snitker & Company for opening their doors to us. We would also like to express our thanks to the 2008 EPIC program committee for their efforts in continuing to push at the boundaries of this emergent domain and for helping to facilitate a high quality and rewarding experience. The EPIC steering committee deserves a round of applause for its on-going support and guidance in making EPIC stronger each year. In addition, we’d like to thank all the reviewers for their tireless efforts in evaluating the submissions and providing feedback to authors. We would like to acknowledge the generous support of our corporate and institutional sponsors, the Dansk Industi (Confederation of Danish Industries), the Danish Enterprise and Construction Authority, Microsoft Corporation, IBM Corporation, Novo Nordisk, Hakuhodo, Intel Corporation, Lauritz Knudsen, Microsoft Research, SPIRE, Artemis Research by Design, Daishinsha, gravitytank, Pacific Ethnography, Pitney Bowes, Red Associates, Sapient and the American Anthropological Association and the National Association for Practicing Anthropologists for their contributions of people and financial resources. Without their support EPIC 2008 would not have occurred. Please enjoy these proceedings and consider bringing the conversations they inspire in you as you read through to EPIC2009. We look forward to your participation in next year’s EPIC conference! Melissa Cefkin Martha Cotton EPIC 2008 Co-Organizer EPIC 2008 Co-Organizer IBM gravitytank iii Moving EPIC across the Atlantic The choice of Denmark as the first country to host EPIC outside the USA came about because Denmark has seen a surge in interest in user- driven innovation these past years, and in particular in ethnography as a way of learning about people and inspiring innovation. With ReD Associates in the lead of a growing number of anthropology consultancies many corporations are gaining experience with ethnographic praxis. The Danish government has declared user-driven innovation an approach to boost competitive position for Danish industry and has launched two programs to support industry projects and research in 2007. Also, in 2008 Denmark established the strategic research center SPIRE to develop an approach we term 'participatory innovation' that unites design anthropology with participatory design and business. It was with some concern that the plans were made to shift the EPIC venue across the Atlantic: Would the conference be visible enough to attract European participants? Would we be able to solicit sufficient support in Denmark itself? With 350 participants, of which more than 100 came from within Denmark, that concern evaporated, and the conference turned into a success. Thanks are due to the University of Copenhagen for generously housing the conference in the beautiful old university building at Frue Plads in the midst of the city, to the local Organizing Committee, and to colleagues and students of the SPIRE Center and the Danish School of Design, who pulled a huge load in putting it all together. We have been proud to host EPIC 2008 in Copenhagen! Jacob Buur EPIC 2008 Local Chair SPIRE, University of Southern Denmark iv CONFERENCE ORGANIZATION Organizers Scholarships Committee Chair Melissa Cefkin, IBM Research USA Christina Wasson, Univ North Texas, USA Martha Cotton, gravitytank USA Local Organizing Committee Local Chair Anne Line Dalsgård, Univ Aarhus Jacob Buur, Univ Southern Denmark Astrid Søndergaard, Alexandra Institute Christian Madsbjerg, ReD Associates Papers/Panel Chairs Finn Kensing, Univ Copenhagen Donna Flynn, Microsoft, USA Kasper Tang Nielsen, Univ Copenhagen Jacob Buur, Univ Southern Denmark Kirsten Lauritsen, Ida Institute John Sherry, Intel, USA Lene Vibjerg, Danish Ministry of Economic Patti Sunderland, Practica, USA and Business Affairs Simon Pulman Jones, GfK, UK Peter Carstensen, Alexandra Institute Steffen Jöhncke, Univ Copenhagen Workshop Chairs Thomas Binder, Danmarks Designskole Thomas Binder, Danmarks Designskole, Trine Paludan, Danmarks Designskole Denmark Werner Sperschneider Wendy March, Intel, USA Steering Committee Artifacts Chairs Alex Taylor, Microsoft Research, UK Alie Rose, Copenhagen Inst of Interaction Christian Madsbjerg, ReD Associates, Design, Denmark Denmark Luis Arnal, in/situm, Mexico Christina Wasson, Univ North Texas, USA Michele Chang, ReD Associates, Denmark Edward Liebow, Battelle, USA Elizabeth Anderson-Kempe, Artemis Graphics Research by Design, USA Ida Sejlund, Denmark Elizabeth Churchill, Yahoo! USA Jeanette Blomberg, IBM Research, USA Web Solution ken anderson, Intel, USA Magnus Kempe, Artemis Research by Nina Wakeford, Goldsmiths Univ, UK Design, USA Rachel Jones, Instrata, UK Rick Robinson, Design Continuum, USA