Takayuki Kato

I uncover what matters to people through qualitative and quantitative research, translating insights into human-centered strategies that connect daily experiences to broader systems and opportunities.

Hi, I’m Taka.

Design Researcher
World Traveler

I’m a design researcher with 3+ years of experience in a U.S.-based innovation firm, and 11 years as a customer experience strategist across the public and private sectors in four countries. I bring a global, multilingual perspective and a human-centered mindset to every project—shaped by business insight, cultural curiosity, and having explored nearly 50 countries.

Selected Project

Decarbonization
in the Aviation Industry

Design Research, Business Design,
Service Design, Project Management

SMBC Aviation Capital, the fifth largest aircraft lessor as of March 2022, attempted to be market competitive while also contributing to the global goal of Carbon Net Zero by 2050.

Client: SMBC Aviation Capital (One of the largest aircraft leasing companies based in Ireland)

Goal: Create a new innovative business model for SMBC Aviation Capital to thrive in the market and lead the industry in decarbonization.

Solution: Short- and long-term solutions focused on both B2B (“Aviation Baseline Consortium” and “Low Carb Fund”) and passengers (“Diversifly“) were presented, and this proposal won the design competition.

Role: Design Researcher, Design strategist, Project Manager

Result: Won the 1st prize among over 30 teams. Honored of Fast Company’s 2022 Innovation by Design Awards in the Students category.

Team members:
- Aman Bhardwaj
- Simon Dunne
- Sophie Chen

🔗Institute of Design - ID students win 2022 Rotman Design Challenge

🔗Fast Company The best student design of 2022

🔗Rotman Design Challenge

“The solution was innovative and specific and considered both the industry and end users. Use of a technology platform to deliver these features to the customer was chimed well.”

– Rotman Design Challenge 2022 Judges

… my reflections

Human-centered design in a B2B context should include both employees and customers.
We mainly focused on employees as humans for human-centered design in the B2B context. However, judges commented that we should have also focused more on passengers. We learned each designer's perception of humans in a context differs, and we should have aligned our perceptions with stakeholders and judges.

Customers do not think in systems. We have to.
Legacy airlines didn't show a positive reaction to our solutions. They were not our target users, and the situation differed from Low-Cost Carriers. However, sometimes we would design something customers don't want but may need to take action for since customers don't see the whole picture or what may come in the future. How to navigate them and avoid any friction in advance is what designers should do.