Editor's note: Automated speech-to-text transcription, edited lightly for clarity. 

At The Quirk’s Event - LA, Head of Research and Design at Pinterest, Cassandra Rowe, gave a presentation in which she discussed how she leveraged her skills to make a mid-career pivot. Rowe then recorded the session to be broadcasted as part of Wisdom Wednesday on March 15. 

Joe Rydholm: 

Hi everybody. I’m Quirk’s Editor, Joe Rydholm. Welcome to our webinar “Transformation: Leveraging Your Research Superpowers for a Mid-Career Pivot.” Before we get started let’s just quickly go over the ways you can participate in today’s  discussion. You can use the chat tab to interact with other attendees and you can use the Q&A tab to submit questions to the presenter during the session and we’ll answer as many as possible during the Q&A portion. Enjoy the presentation! 

Cassandra Rowe: 

Hi everyone. Thank you so much for joining me. My name is Cassandra. For the next 20 minutes, we'll be talking about transformation, specifically how you can leverage your research skills to transform your career. 

So good morning, good afternoon, or good evening to you all. I'm coming to you from Oakland, California. Today will cover off on a handful of things. 

First, I'll introduce myself, I'll talk to you a little bit about Pinterest and how the research team at Pinterest functions. Then I'll define transformation so we're all on the same page, and I'll share a few examples of how I've pivoted throughout my research career and share some learnings that I've gained along the way. Lastly, close for a few minutes of Q&A. 

So let's jump in. 

As I mentioned, my name is Cassandra, and currently I'm the head of research and design at Pinterest. I've been at Pinterest for the last eight years as it has grown from a small scrappy startup to a global household name to ground yourself. In the conversation today, I wan...