PRE-CONFERENCE WORKSHOP - UX SPRINT
Mon Nov 2
13:30 – 13:30
0 min
REGISTRATION AND WELCOME COFFEE
Mon Nov 2
14:00 – 14:30
Opening Keynote 30 min
UXR FOR THE AI-PRODUCT ERA: NEW USER EXPECTATIONS, NEW EVIDENCE, STRONGER FOUNDATION
- Shifting UXR expectations as users interact with intelligent systems (trust, control, and collaboration)
- Avoiding over-reliance on historical data or synthetic proxies when AI introduces net-new behaviors
- Treating culture and language as first-order variables in cross-market AI experiences
- Scaling delivery speed without compromising UXR fundamentals (rigor, ethics, judgment, and synthesis)
Mon Nov 2
14:30 – 15:00
30 min
TOPIC TO BE ANNOUNCED
Mon Nov 2
15:00 – 15:15
15 min
REFRESHMENT
Mon Nov 2
15:15 – 15:45
Case Study 30 min
THE NEW STRATEGIC ADVISOR: LEVERAGING UX RESEARCH FOR HIGH-STAKES RISK MANAGEMENT
- Risk in Design: Using UX research as an early risk radar. Articulating target design objectives, differentiating risk types, and informing UX and non-UX actions across iterative validation
- Strategic Influence: Elevating qualitative insight into decision-grade evidence. Using standardised methods, cumulative studies, and benchmarking to guide leadership thought processes
- The Will To Change: Build confidence through clarity and candour. Translating insights simply, reinforcing them consistently, and influencing change through evidence, empathy, and long-term trust
Vice President, UX Research
DBS
Speaker
Mon Nov 2
15:45 – 16:15
Case Study 30 min
BUILDING A RESEARCH OPERATING SYSTEM WITH BESPOKE AGENTS TO DRIVE BUSINESS IMPACT
- Positioning agents as operational partners that help teams find, reuse, and apply research insights faster
- Deploying a “librarian” agent (Khloe) to surface prior studies, evidence, and decisions, reducing duplicate work
- Using a question-reframing agent (Janneth) to translate ambiguous stakeholder requests into clear, researchable questions during intake, enabling citizen researchers to conduct high-quality research
- Tracking impact through operational outcomes, including shorter cycle times, stronger decision quality, and improved cross-functional alignment
Head of Design
Cathay Pacific
Speaker
Senior User Research Manager
Cathay Pacific
Speaker
Mon Nov 2
16:15 – 17:00
Panel discussion 45 min
DEFINING GOOD UXR IN THE AI ERA: NEW QUESTIONS, NEW SKILLS, NEW STANDARDS
- Evolving UXR from designing screens to designing systems of intent, evidence, and accountability
- Identifying the new UXR questions all researchers should be asking
- Building the skills and qualities UXRers need to succeed
Design Insights & Validation Research Manager
HP
Moderator
Head of Discipline, UX Design
Thales
Panelist
Head of UX Research
FairPrice Group
Panelist
Mon Nov 2
17:00 – 17:00
0 min
END OF UX360 SPRINT
Day 1
Tue Nov 3
08:00 – 09:00
60 min
REGISTRATION AND WELCOME COFFEE
Tue Nov 3
09:00 – 09:15
15 min
OPENING REMARKS BY MERLIEN INSTITUTE & CONFERENCE CHAIR
Head of Research and Trends
Circles.Life
Speaker
Tue Nov 3
09:15 – 09:45
Opening Keynote 30 min
THE NEXT STANDARD IN QUAL: KEEPING INSIGHT AHEAD OF BUSINESS SPEED WITH NEW TOOLS AND WORKFLOWS
- Historical Constraint: Historically, a researcher's time has been heavily consumed by operational realities—pitching projects, client engagement, and administrative setup—leaving only a fraction of time for actual analysis and insight
- Inverting the Approach: New AI tools and solutions offer an opportunity to "invert" this ratio. By leveraging new tooling and workflows to speed up non-core elements like project management, researchers can reclaim their time for deeper synthesis and judgment
- Increased Velocity: These tools allow everyone to move faster. Ultimately, this ensures that as the pace of business continues to accelerate, the journey to insight does not get left behind
Head of Brand & Consumer Insights, APAC
Google
Speaker
Tue Nov 3
09:45 – 10:15
Presentation 30 min
DESIGNING A CLOSED-LOOP CUSTOMER INTELLIGENCE RESEARCH OPERATING SYSTEM (INNOVATION-TO-POST-SALES)
- Aligning stakeholders on decision questions, roles, and handoffs across functions
- Standardizing qual workflows from intake to action and defining service levels
- Embedding research into CI/OE routines to run a closed loop from fixing, preventing to training
Senior Director - Global Consumer Quality Intelligence & Continuous Improvement
Pandora
Speaker
Tue Nov 3
10:15 – 10:45
Presentation 30 min
Topic To Be Announced
Tue Nov 3
10:45 – 11:15
30 min
NETWORKING BREAK
Tue Nov 3
11:15 – 11:45
Presentation 30 min
INCLUSIVE RESEARCH IN ASIA: DESIGNING FOR PEOPLE, PLANET, AND PROSPERITY
- Moving beyond profit and efficiency, a closer look into the rise of inclusive design research in Asia
- Broadening the value lens of qualitative research to include "planet" and "prosperity" considerations
- Addressing the lack of regional representation in global data models and how to find more relevant insights for the Asia region
Head of Design, Asia
Alstom
Speaker
Founder
Regenerative Nomads
Speaker
Tue Nov 3
11:45 – 12:15
Presentation 30 min
Topic To Be Announced
Tue Nov 3
12:15 – 13:15
60 min
NETWORKING LUNCH
Tue Nov 3
13:15 – 14:15
Interactive Workshop 60 min
WORKSHOP DETAILS TO BE ANNOUNCED
Head – Consumer Intelligence, & Brand Strategy
Flipkart
Speaker
Tue Nov 3
14:15 – 14:35
Presentation 20 min
Topic To Be Announced
Tue Nov 3
14:35 – 15:05
30 min
HUMANIZING CUSTOMERS: IMMERSION RESEARCH THAT REVEALS THE REAL “WHY”
- Bringing customer stories to life by combining quantitative signals with in-context immersion to uncover the “why” behind behaviors.
- Mapping journeys across channels to reveal moments that matter, friction points, and unmet needs across the end-to-end experience.
- Driving organization-wide action by turning journey evidence into prioritized service improvements that teams can adopt and scale.
Head of Growth and Innovation
Bank of the Philippine Islands
Speaker
Tue Nov 3
15:05 – 15:30
25 min
NETWORKING BREAK
Tue Nov 3
15:30 – 16:00
Presentation 30 min
Reserved Session
Tue Nov 3
16:00 – 16:45
Panel discussion 45 min
CHANGE MANAGEMENT PANEL: REBUILDING QUAL RESEARCH ORGS FOR VOLATILITY (BUDGETS, SPEED, AND ACCOUNTABILITY)
- How are leaders redefining the mandate for qual when budgets shrink but demand for speed increases?
- What governance mechanisms actually help teams decide what to pause, protect, or accelerate?
- Where are the biggest trade-offs between speed and rigor, and what “minimum quality bars” are non-negotiable?
- How are teams proving impact and accountability?
- What change-management moves worked (or failed) in your company so far?
Head of Research and Trends
Circles.Life
Moderator
Head, Digital Experience Studio
Great Eastern
Panelist
Insights & Analytics Director
FrieslandCampina
Panelist
Global Insights and Market Research Director
iNova Pharmaceuticals
Panelist
Tue Nov 3
16:45 – 16:50
5 min
CLOSING REMARKS AND TRANSITION TO ROUNDTABLE SESSION
Head of Research and Trends
Circles.Life
Speaker
Tue Nov 3
16:50 – 17:30
Roundtable 40 min
Roundtable 1: Rigor at speed: keeping depth in fast-turn qual
Go in-depth with your peers in our open roundtable sessions. Pick one of the below topics to openly discuss the topic of your choice in small, intimate groups.
Senior Manager, Regional Market Research
Grab
Speaker
Tue Nov 3
16:50 – 17:30
Roundtable 40 min
Roundtable 2: Connecting consumer knowledge into one source of truth
Go in-depth with your peers in our open roundtable sessions. Pick one of the below topics to openly discuss the topic of your choice in small, intimate groups.
Regional Director, Product Experience, Greater Asia
IFF
Speaker
Tue Nov 3
16:50 – 17:30
Roundtable 40 min
Roundtable 3: Building trust and safety with anonymous or hard-to-reach participants
Go in-depth with your peers in our open roundtable sessions. Pick one of the below topics to openly discuss the topic of your choice in small, intimate groups.
Tue Nov 3
16:50 – 17:30
Roundtable 40 min
Roundtable 4: Automating analysis without losing the human “soul” of qual
Go in-depth with your peers in our open roundtable sessions. Pick one of the below topics to openly discuss the topic of your choice in small, intimate groups.
Global Insights and Market Research Director
iNova Pharmaceuticals
Speaker
Tue Nov 3
17:30 – 17:30
0 min
Networking Drinks by Merlien and END OF DAY 1
Day 2
Wed Nov 4
08:30 – 09:00
30 min
REGISTRATION AND WELCOME COFFEE
Wed Nov 4
09:00 – 09:15
15 min
OPENING REMARKS BY MERLIEN INSTITUTE & CONFERENCE CHAIR
Wed Nov 4
09:15 – 09:45
Presentation 30 min
EMBRACING QUAL: CREATING QUANT+QUAL SYNERGY IN TODAY’S INSIGHT REALITY
- Providing a simple framework to decide when qual is essential (even if time/budget are tight)
- Building a repeatable quant+qual operating rhythm that improves decision confidence
- Translating qual findings into stakeholder-ready evidence narratives
- Using qual to detect emerging behavior shifts before they show up in tracking
Wed Nov 4
09:45 – 10:15
Case Study 30 min
THE FIRST CONVERSATION WINS: HOW IN-STORE DISCOVERY SHAPES CUSTOMER DECISIONS IN MULTI-BRAND RETAIL
- Revealing what truly drives decisions by observing real in-store behavior, not self-reported surveys
- Tracking end-to-end shopper journeys to pinpoint the earliest moments that steer choices
- Identifying “first conversation” discovery interactions as decisive influence points in multi-brand environments
- Linking early QUAL discovery to brand choice, customer experience, and conversion outcomes
- Exposing hidden in-store dynamics that traditional research methods often miss
Chief Strategy, Research and Development ; Enterprise and Education Director
PT. Erajaya Swasembada, Tbk
Speaker
Wed Nov 4
10:15 – 10:45
Presentation 30 min
Reserved Session
Wed Nov 4
10:45 – 11:15
30 min
NETWORKING BREAK
Wed Nov 4
11:15 – 11:45
Presentation 30 min
HEARTWARE: THE MISSING LAYER BETWEEN AI AND CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE
- Shifting advantage as AI makes insights faster and cheaper—toward human understanding: interpreting behaviour, building trust, and designing experiences people actually adopt
- Using data to see what happened, behaviour to explain why, and heartware to decide what to do next
- Applying a simple 3-layer framework: Hardware enables / Software optimises / Heartware humanises
- Spotting weak signals in real behaviour (not just what people say)
- Translating messy human signals into clear CX and product decisions
Global Director of Marketing & E-Commerce
Plaza Premium Group
Speaker
Wed Nov 4
11:45 – 12:15
Presentation 30 min
RESEARCHING THE UNDERDESERVED POPULATION IN THE GLOBAL SOUTH: UNLOCKING THE POTENTIAL OF THE NEXT BILLION USERS IN ASIA
- Contextualizing research methodologies to authentically capture lived experiences of low-income communities in their natural environments
- Unlocking transformative potential through inclusion strategies tailored for underserved populations
- Building indigenous narratives that reflect billion-user realities rather than imposing external frameworks on Global South communities
Consumer Science and Product Experience Global COP Lead
Haleon
Speaker
Wed Nov 4
12:15 – 13:00
Roundtable 45 min
Roundtable 1: To Be Announced
THE RESEARCH HOT SEAT: ASK ME ANYTHING
Industry leaders sit at themed tables where attendees can ask them the questions they're actually thinking within the theme —unfiltered, unscripted, and zero marketing fluff.
Senior Director - Global Consumer Quality Intelligence & Continuous Improvement
Pandora
Speaker
Wed Nov 4
12:15 – 13:00
Roundtable 45 min
Roundtable 2: Linking early QUAL discovery to brand choice, customer experience, and conversion outcomes
THE RESEARCH HOT SEAT: ASK ME ANYTHING
Industry leaders sit at themed tables where attendees can ask them the questions they're actually thinking within the theme —unfiltered, unscripted, and zero marketing fluff.
Chief Strategy, Research and Development ; Enterprise and Education Director
PT. Erajaya Swasembada, Tbk
Speaker
Wed Nov 4
12:15 – 13:00
Roundtable 45 min
Roundtable 3: Maximising value through the ai-human co-working partnership
THE RESEARCH HOT SEAT: ASK ME ANYTHING
Industry leaders sit at themed tables where attendees can ask them the questions they're actually thinking within the theme —unfiltered, unscripted, and zero marketing fluff.
Wed Nov 4
12:15 – 13:00
Roundtable 45 min
Roundtable 4: Building cultural fluency at scale
THE RESEARCH HOT SEAT: ASK ME ANYTHING
Industry leaders sit at themed tables where attendees can ask them the questions they're actually thinking within the theme —unfiltered, unscripted, and zero marketing fluff.
Wed Nov 4
13:00 – 14:00
60 min
NETWORKING LUNCH
Wed Nov 4
14:00 – 14:30
Presentation 30 min
FROM AMBIGUITY TO ACTION: LEADING HIGH‑IMPACT RESEARCH TEAMS WHEN BUDGETS, TIMELINES, AND STAKES COLLIDE
- Translate executive ambiguity into decision questions, evidence standards, and a rapid qual plan.
- Reducing bureaucracy and removing organizational barriers to accelerate innovation without sacrificing research rigor
- Fostering the behavior and mindset shifts needed to sustain progress and mature leadership skills at all levels of the research organisation
Head of R&D Centre of Excellence
Bayer
Speaker
Wed Nov 4
14:30 – 15:00
Presentation 30 min
THE SYNTHETIC USER SANDBOX: DEFINING GUARDRAILS FOR BOUNDARIES AND TRUST IN NEXT-GEN RESEARCH
- Clarifying when synthetic approaches are appropriate in research—and when they are not
- Ensuring synthetic methods strengthen, rather than erode, the credibility of qualitative insight
- Identifying high-value use cases for synthetic users while setting clear boundaries for high-stakes decision-making
- Establishing validation practices so synthetic outputs meet rigorous standards of quality, transparency, and accountability
Wed Nov 4
15:00 – 15:45
Panel discussion 45 min
THE FUTURE OF QUAL: WHAT DRIVES QUALITATIVE EVOLUTION BEYOND TOOLS
- Building empathy as a system and creating repeatable practices that protect human nuance while teams move fast
- Adding guardrails for speed so agility does not dilute depth or rigor
- Making insights travel to equip cross-functional partners to apply qualitative learning, not just read it
- Evolving the researcher skill set for AI-enabled work, including sensemaking, decision facilitation, and model oversight.
Head of Market, Sensory and Consumer Insights, APAC Taste, Nutrition and Health
Symrise AG
Moderator
Regional Director, Product Experience, Greater Asia
IFF
Panelist
Director, APAC Marketing Centre, Consumer Business Group
3M
Panelist
Wed Nov 4
15:45 – 16:45
60 min