getting work as an anthropologist in business settings?

September 11, 2015 8:52 PM

Hi Does anyone know the pathway for getting work as an anthropologist in a business setting, or technology? Is anyone actually working in this area? What's is is like? What at are the prospects for starting a business in this area? What qualifications are recommended? Any info or links much appreciated. Yes Ive heard of Genevieve Bell at (Intel?), that would be my ideal job except Im 60 and nearly finished my undergraduate degree
posted by sparkle55 to Technology (10 answers total)

Best answer: You will probably want to look at user research, usability, and customer experience as some starting keywords. Those are likely to be areas where an anthro background will help you, although the title "anthropologist" is much rarer.
posted by chesty_a_arthur at 8:57 PM on September 11, 2015 [2 favorites]

Best answer: Also, Genevieve bell says Intel originally hired her specifically to help reach international and female markets, so I guess internationalisation and market research might be keywords to keep in mind.
posted by lollusc at 9:26 PM on September 11, 2015

Best answer: Yes. I have a few friends that do this work. They, generally, have PhDs in Communication, Sociology, Anthropology, Human Computer Interaction, etc. Occasionally an MA is enough though. Many had strong academic careers before they made the move to industry but that isn't always the case. Many of my friends that work at Facebook, Pinterest, Uber, etc. Did summer internships as PhD students and transitioned into full time work after finishing.
These kind of positions have their pros and cons. Also, in my experience, these people sometimes feel insecure in their positions. Companies do worse and these positions are cut.
Look for terms like data science and usability.
posted by k8t at 9:30 PM on September 11, 2015 [1 favorite]

Best answer: Look for "market research"
posted by ellerhodes at 9:38 PM on September 11, 2015 [1 favorite]

Best answer: You may want to check out CultureBrain . It sounds like the kind of work you are interested in and may be a useful starting point for understanding how people are combining anthropology and business.
posted by Goblin Barbarian at 9:49 PM on September 11, 2015

Best answer: My work (mid size software company, not a huge internet company or anything) has a whole UX Research staff, and one person whose job title is Cultural Ethnographer.
posted by miyabo at 10:35 PM on September 11, 2015 [1 favorite]

Best answer: If you're 60 years old and completing a degree in anthropology, then you might do well as a consultant specializing in helping technologists develop for, or relate to, other people in your age group or older. Your course work would probably have let you look at your own culture, and the cultures of others in your cohort, with both fresh perspectives and long familiarity.

Regardless of what kind of anthropology you end up focusing on, you will probably be a kind of consultant, even if you do end up as a full-time employee of a company. By this, I mean you will be learning about a particular technological and social situation, then composing advice for others to act upon.

So, while you are still enrolled at the university, maybe you could look at courses that would help you do that kind of consulting work. If you can take some writing classes, especially business or technical writing, then I'd urge you to do so. These will help you immeasurably as you market yourself. More importantly, these skills will make the difference between success and failure as you execute contracts; as a consultant, you are essentially persuading your clients that you understand their circumstances thoroughly and that your recommendations will help them. They will have already been told a lot of conflicting advice; yours being stated clearly will mark you as a professional.
posted by amtho at 5:52 AM on September 12, 2015 [2 favorites]

Response by poster: what a great answer antho! thanks to everyone else as well, very helpful thanks. my degree is in sociology actually:)
posted by sparkle55 at 7:05 AM on September 12, 2015

Best answer: My undergrad stats work continues to be useful in user research, by the way. Really strong numbers people (of which I'm not one) who can combine empathy with understanding p-values and confidence intervals are extraordinarily valuable. As in, I worked with one once but he burned out.
posted by chesty_a_arthur at 8:37 AM on September 12, 2015

Best answer: podcast about new book about anthropology in business settings:
http://newbooksinanthropology.com/2015/01/16/rita-denny-and-patricia-sunderland-handbook-of-anthropology-in-business-left-coast-press-2014/
posted by Buddy_Boy at 11:33 AM on September 12, 2015 [1 favorite]