In a post‑session conversation at SXSW 2026, Raed and Margaret Spence reflect on their "core conversations" workshop, a small‑group format that brings together UX designers, AI developers, HR professionals, and students. They highlight how the session’s success stemmed from giving the audience power to talk, using flexible facilitation that could abandon a pre‑planned agenda when needed, and blending their expertise in change management, talent development, and purpose work. The dialogue surfaces two major takeaways: (1) facilitators must stay adaptable and trust real‑time audience feedback, and (2) participants need dedicated space to discuss fears and align around a shared purpose. They discuss common anxieties driving resistance to change—misalignment, loss of job or team, and lack of purpose—and explore how AI can be leveraged as a tool to help individuals and teams discover meaning at work. The conversation ends with optimism that the experience inspired attendees to embrace change and look forward to future sessions.
Chapters
Hello everybody from Austin, Texas at South by Southwest. We just finished our session at South by— we're excited. What did it happen, Margaret Spence?
I think it came out really good.
I think so too.
I think it did.
We had more UX designers and AI developers than HR people in the session. And I think you did a great job captivating the audience. You look at the different generations. There was, we had a very young student at the back who was even scared to talk, and it was great to listen to the perspective of the youngest generation, the future versus us, right? More senior people versus the designers with their vision. I think it was very interactive.
I think so too. This is the first year that South by Southwest has done core conversations, which is smaller groups a smaller group session with 50 to 75 seats in the room, and people in different disciplines get to talk to each other. So the one powerful feedback we got at the very end from everybody was, this was probably the best session because people got to actually talk to each other. We weren't the talking heads at the top of the room.
Yes.
We were basically delivering content. But prompting people to talk and igniting the facilitating and just guiding them, right?
Yeah. With our skills as facilitators, we gave the power to the audience. And I think that's why we got that feedback. We were able to talk to each other and see the gaps and we're not listening to each other. We're still repeating the same problems, lack of communication, clarity of goals, not a single purpose. Each team is doing their own thing. Raed, what's yours?
I think the biggest thing that we got from this is two big takeaways. The first one is the best planning you could do for a session could go out the window when you get there. You have to be flexible to adjust. Because at the very beginning, I said to everybody, we prepared a presentation, but we're going to let you all decide what it looks like. And that was the first shift, was saying that to them. And then being able to still steer the conversation with what we had planned.
We talk about change management, we talk about technology.
We were able to use our facilitation skills, plus our, our regular work, like his work is in purpose, mine is change management and talent development. We were able to bring the two things together in one place. Everybody in the room said something and contributed to the conversation.
And I think it's probably the beauty of South by Southwest that you have such a diverse audience of people.
The other big learning lesson is, I think as facilitators and as speakers, we have to trust our audience, right? And be able to take real-time feedback from our audience on what they need in the moment. Oftentimes speakers try to make this about them. It's about my content, what I've done. It's about what did this group of people need and what was the concept that South by Southwest had in mind when they developed this concept of core conversations. They wanted people to talk. And so we got people to talk. They engaged and they followed up. In the end, we saw people exchanging information with each other. We think about purpose and AI.
I think I am more driven to explore now AI and how I can use AI as a tool. To help people identify their purpose or still seek for meaning at work, right? Connected to your purpose by using the tool of AI. It taught me again that people need to have a purpose as a team and a purpose as an organization. And it's lacking everywhere in every organization.
I don't think there's anyone that has this down to a science. I think there's a lot of people who are learning and evolving in trying to implement change and get people comfortable, and people are still resisting and holding on to the way that they've always done it.
And we both do change work, so it's like back to the neuroscience of change. Everybody's resisting change. AI is a huge change. We have to adapt. And I'm not ready. And, oh, and when we ask the question, what are you afraid of? It came to the basics, right? Misalignment or teams. There's not a single purpose. We're afraid of what's gonna be my future look like. I'm gonna lose my job. I'm gonna lose my team. It's all about change. How do we adapt to change?
And how do we get people through the transition of change? Our big takeaway from the session was people need space to talk.
Um, they need space to move away from their current environment at work and have time to think and see the different opinions from others.
And we have to make space to address people's fear.
People, absolutely. Yes. That was one of our first questions. What are you most afraid of? People are afraid of a lot.
We had a great time here at South By. It was a great experience. The conversation was good and I'm super thrilled with what we got out of it and what we think our audience got out of it.
I hope we inspire them to pursue change, to adapt to change. See you next year.
