Speaker presentation: Aino Vonge Corry

About Aino

Aino holds a master's degree and a PhD in computer science. She has 12 years of experience with Patterns in Software Development and 20 years of experience with agile processes in academia and industry. She also teaches how to teach Computer Science to teachers and thus lives up to the name of her company, Metadeveloper. In her spare time, she runs and sings (but claims not to do both at the same time).

Get to know Aino even more at metadeveloper.com or on her LinkedIn page.

The talk: Do You Want SERIOUS Play in Your Work Life?

LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® (LSP) combines the power of LEGO bricks with cognitive science to engage both “System 1” and “System 2” thinking, as defined in Daniel Kahneman’s Thinking, Fast and Slow. “System 1” represents fast, instinctive, and emotional thinking, while “System 2” is slower, deliberative, and logical. By integrating these systems, LSP enables teams to approach complex problems with both creativity and analytical precision.

This session will demonstrate how LSP enhances communication, collaboration, and strategic planning beyond traditional methods such as post-it notes or whiteboard sessions. By leveraging theories of constructivism and constructionism—principles that emphasize the brain’s ability to learn more effectively when constructing its own knowledge, especially through hands-on activities—participants use LEGO models as metaphors for their ideas and insights.

Drawing on Bent Flyvbjerg’s concept of “thinking slowly and acting quickly,” the session emphasizes thorough consideration of challenges to enable swift decision-making in dynamic IT system construction scenarios. Attendees will see how this method fosters deeper engagement, sharper insights, and faster alignment when addressing the complexities of large-scale IT projects.

The term “system,” as used in this workshop, refers broadly to people, roles, and teams but can also encompass IT systems, such as user interfaces or developer-database interactions. By building metaphoric LEGO representations, teams can surface hidden assumptions, enhance understanding, and align perspectives to optimize communication.

Aino will share some case studies on learnings from LSP sessions in real life.

Why I look forward to this talk

Aino is one of my heroes in the field. Her company is called Metadeveloper. How cool and multi-dimensional isn’t that?

That actually also represents how she's always a couple of years ahead of me in my development. Metaprogramming was just one example, her work on retrospectives and quality communication is another. And now she is into Lego for solving tricky problems! I envision an upcoming tool in my toolbox.

A clear sign that we at factor10 like Aino and find her to be super interesting is that this is the third time she'll be speaking at myConf. And the year she didn’t speak, she came and participated in all the discussions!

I was reminded the other day that Tetris is good for trauma treatment. As if getting help with solving tricky problems isn’t more than enough, maybe we'll learn in this presentation that Lego can heal trauma, too?

/Jimmy Nilsson, co-founder, CEO and consultant at factor10