The Human Side of Innovation
Chuck Jones (LA’81) has spent more than four decades solving problems.
Some have been relatively simple, like designing better office furniture or consumer products. Others have been far more complex, like helping shape the future of robotic surgery and healthcare technology used around the world.
Across six global companies, Jones has earned more than 1,000 international design awards, holds 43 patents and now serves as chief design officer for GE HealthCare. His work has been displayed in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art and The Louvre, and this year he was named a recipient of the Sagamore of the Wabash, one of Indiana's highest civilian honors.
Yet when Jones reflects on the experiences that most shaped his career, he doesn't begin with patents, products or awards. He begins with a communications class.
While studying industrial design and engineering, Jones enrolled in a communications course taught by Professor Emeritus James Diskin. At the time, it seemed to be simply another requirement. Instead, it became one of the defining experiences of his career, providing a leadership principle he still relies on today.
"There is not a speech I give, there is not a communication that I write, there is not an interaction that I have that in some way, shape or form I'm not falling back on what Professor Diskin taught us," Jones said. "He taught us to stop before we started and ask ourselves, 'What am I trying to accomplish? What's the outcome I'm trying to achieve?' I've used that simple idea every day since."
Jones earned degrees in industrial design and engineering, a combination that today reflects Purdue's Degree Plus program of obtaining a degree from the College of Liberal Arts and another school or college.
"I had double majored," Jones said. "One degree was in the College of Liberal Arts and one degree was in the School of Engineering. I have to be honest—the courses I took in CLA probably paid me the best dividends in my professional career."
That perspective has become even more meaningful as technology has transformed nearly every aspect of his work.
When Jones graduated from Purdue, designers worked with pencils, markers and drafting tables. Since then, he has navigated the transition to computer-aided design, digital interfaces, robotics and, now, artificial intelligence.
"I can think of at least eight times in my career where I have literally had to reinvent myself," he said.
While the tools and technology evolved, the questions Jones asked never really did. Throughout his career, he has returned to the same starting point of understanding the people behind the product.
At Purdue, he pursued industrial design alongside human factors engineering, studying not only how people physically interact with products but how they think, process information and make decisions. As an undergraduate, he co-authored research exploring how people build mental maps and navigate unfamiliar spaces.
Later, while working at Xerox PARC, Jones discovered anthropology as another lens for understanding people.
"You're really trying to pull from users what are their unmet needs,” he said. “And then how can you understand what might be the right solution to meet those needs?"
For Jones, successful innovation isn't about creating more technology. It's about making technology feel effortless.
"It's trying to make it easier for the user," he said. "'Surprise and delight' is the term I really like to use because it's like, 'Ah, this is way easier than I thought it would be.'"
Jones has carried that philosophy beyond his professional career as chairman of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum Board of Directors, where he continues to help shape experiences that connect with people.
Today, Jones spends much of his time mentoring designers and developing future leaders. Many of the young professionals he hired early in their careers now lead major design organizations of their own.
"As proud as I am of the things that I've designed, what I'm most proud of are the teams that I've built," he said.
Looking back, Jones doesn't credit a single invention, promotion or award with shaping his career. He credits the classes he almost didn't take, the conversations that broadened his perspective and the disciplines that taught him to understand people before trying to solve their problems.
Because while technology continues to evolve, Jones believes one thing won't.
The future will always belong to the people who know how to understand other people.