We Are Not Born Human; We Must Become Human.
Why every company needs to stop calling itself human and start acting like it. Kokoschka had a point.
Standing in Vienna's Leopold Museum, I found myself impressed not only by the striking expressionist paintings of Oskar Kokoschka, but by a quote beside it. What I love about museums isn't just the art itself—because, as I always claim, "art is a mindset." What intrigues me are those unexpected moments when a single sentence stops you in your tracks. This was one of those moments, and Kokoschka's words struck a chord:
"We are not born human; we must become human."
At that moment, I realized this Austrian artist from the early 1900s had captured a fundamental flaw in modern business thinking: too many companies put humans at the service of technology instead of technology at the service of people.
When I speak about art, I’m often asked: To what end? This question comes up frequently, especially in business and technology circles. My answer? Art challenges how we see the world, disrupts the status quo, sparks imagination, and opens new possibilities. So in business and technology (and really in every field that involves creating something new), art helps us reflect on how we design, shape, and bring products and services into the world.
The same art way of thinking applies when building products and services with humanity at their core. It’s not just about function—it’s about intention. Humane products aren’t simply declared; they’re built—brick by brick, stroke by stroke—through deep observation, thoughtful questioning, and a commitment to meaningful impact.
The False Promise of Human-Centricity
Let’s be clear: Companies don’t magically “become human” by slapping friendly slogans on their homepage. Saying “We care about customers” without backing it up is like telling someone you’re a good person while ghosting them.
Capgemini’s Disconnected Customer report revealed a major gap between perception and reality: 75% of businesses believe they are customer-centric, but only 30% of customers agree. That’s like calling yourself an artist without ever picking up a brush (And since we’re on art metaphors, why not? 😉).
Salesforce's State of the Connected Customer report underscores this disconnect: 80% of customers say the experience a company provides is as important as its products.
The gap between claiming humanity and achieving it has never been wider.
The Elements of Business Humanity
Empathy > Efficiency
Stop treating customers like numbers on a report. Look, I get it—data is everything these days. But there's a fine line between using data to improve customer experience and using it to dehumanize them. The question isn't how many metrics you can track, but how deeply you can understand the human experience.
Take Apple’s approach in 2005, before the iPhone launched. The team faced a surprisingly tricky question: How big should the icons on the screen be? They could have debated endlessly or analyzed data down to the pixel. But Scott Herz, an Apple engineer, had a better idea.
He created a game.
Users were shown rectangles in various sizes and locations on the screen. All they had to do was tap them as fast as possible. No feedback until the end. Behind the scenes, the team tracked which sizes and placements were easiest to click. The winner? 57 pixels.
This wasn’t just about finding the right technical size—it was Apple’s way of saying, Let’s observe how humans actually behave. That’s empathy. They didn’t assume what would work; they tested it with real people.
The Technology-Humanity Disconnect
Here's an uncomfortable truth: Too often, tech teams fall in love with technology instead of falling in love with the humans who will use it. In countless boardrooms and development sprints, the question "Can we build it?" drowns out the more crucial question: "Should we build it? And for whom?"
This failure to prioritize human needs isn’t just a problem—it’s a pattern.
This disconnect is clearest when young teams design for older generations. A 25-year-old engineer might create a ‘simple’ interface that’s intuitive to them—but a nightmare for a 70-year-old (or even someone in their 40s—hey, that’s me!). The result? Technically impressive but fundamentally flawed products that ignore real human needs.
Consider these common scenarios:
Banking apps that showcase cutting-edge features while elderly customers struggle with basic transactions
A streaming service that makes switching between two live football games frustrating—when on cable, you could simply press ‘previous.’ How challenging, right? 😂
True human-centric businesses understand that being human-first means making tough choices. Sometimes it means choosing simpler technology over flashier solutions. Sometimes it means saying no to engineering aspirations in favor of human accessibility. Always, it means asking: "Are we solving for our users' real needs, or are we solving for our own technical ambitions?"
This isn't just about age/discipline gaps. It's about the fundamental choice between technical possibility and human necessity. The most authentic companies understand that being human-centric means putting people first, even when it's inconvenient. It means adapting, listening, and sometimes making tough choices to stay aligned with your values.
Authenticity > Artifice
You can't fake authenticity anymore than you can fake a masterpiece. Humans have an intuitive barometer for sincerity—we can tell when a brand's actions don't match its words. Authenticity isn't just what you say; it's what you do—especially when it's difficult or when there’s no immediate reward.
Take Airbnb during the COVID-19 pandemic. Faced with financial losses, the company had to make the difficult decision to lay off 25% of its workforce. But instead of simply letting them go, Airbnb made sure to align its actions with its core value of care. They published a talent directory with the resumes of laid-off employees, making it public on their website. Their HR team was reassigned to help those employees find new jobs. Airbnb’s message was clear: We have to let you go, but we won’t abandon you.
Airbnb chose to be human at every step of the way.
The Canvas of Change
Many consultancy reports show that companies prioritizing human experiences see higher revenue growth. But here’s what these reports miss: The best results don’t come from treating humanity as a metric alone; they come from blending data with genuine care and intuition - basically doing the right thing!
Data is essential. It helps us measure, improve, and scale. But numbers alone don’t tell the full story—context, emotions, and human needs matter just as much.
The path forward requires three fundamental shifts—balancing data with deeper human understanding:
From Metrics to Meaning — Leverage data to enhance experiences, but ensure those experiences are designed with and for real people.
From Transactions to Transformations — Focus on how your business changes lives, not just how it processes payments.
From Efficiency to Empathy — Build systems that serve human needs, balancing speed with sensitivity.
If Kokoschka was right—that we must become human—then businesses face the same journey. It's not about declaring yourself human-centric; it's about earning that description every day through deliberate practice and conscious choice.
For business leaders, this means asking different questions:
Are we creating experiences that honor human?
Do our processes serve people or just our systems?
Are we building something meaningful, or just profitable?
Practical Steps to Becoming More Human-Centric
So if you’re wondering how to do that, sure, there are the usual business practices—like interviews. (Though I’d argue that great interviews require artistic skill, too—knowing how to ask the right questions.) But for me, it’s not just about structured processes. It starts with something deeper: observation.
Being human-centric isn’t just about listening to customers—it’s about seeing them. One of the most overlooked yet powerful skills in business is the ability to observe deeply, like an artist.
Studies have shown that practicing visual art enhances observation skills. And observation is crucial in innovation. Businesses that master this skill create products and experiences that truly resonate. Apple didn’t just study how people use tech; they noticed something deeper: the emotional moment of unboxing. When someone gets a new device, they don’t want to wait and charge it for few hours—they want to use it immediately. That’s why iPods came pre-charged. A tiny detail, but a powerful one.
Here are three things I do to train my observation muscle and bring more humanity into my work:
Keep the Vision Front and Center – I always keep my company’s vision physically in front of me—on a sticky note, a dashboard, or somewhere I can see it. Before diving into any task, I ask: Does this help achieve our bigger goal? If not, I reconsider. I also do a “vision check” at the end of the month, reflecting on two questions: What did I do that brought us closer? What pulled us away? It keeps me focused on what truly matters.
The “Why?” Test – I train myself to observe with intention. Whenever I enter a space and something feels off—whether it’s a frustrating product, an awkward layout, or a visual element that seems out of place—I don’t just move on. I pause. I activate my observation senses and ask: Why does this feel wrong? What is causing this reaction? I break it down, looking for patterns and underlying reasons. This habit helps me uncover deeper human insights that data alone won’t reveal.
Documenting Everyday Experiences – Observation isn’t enough; I make sure to capture what I notice. I constantly take notes on the products, services, and environments I interact with—whether it’s an intuitive airport sign or a needlessly complex app. I document both what works and what doesn’t, keeping myself aware of the design choices that shape real human behavior. Over time, this process of observation, questioning, and documentation sharpens my ability to design and create with true human needs in mind.
Great companies don’t just build for efficiency—they design for feeling. They notice what others overlook. And that begins with the simple but profound act of paying attention.
The Art of Becoming
The world doesn't need more companies claiming to be human-centric. It needs businesses that approach their work as artists approach their craft—with intention, empathy, and a commitment to creating something meaningful - by humans, for humans.
Tomorrow, when your team makes a decision, ask yourself: Are we just calling ourselves human-centric, or are we creating something that truly serves humanity? Because in business, as in art, the difference between claiming and becoming is the difference between mediocrity and mastery.
Kokoschka had it right: We’re not born human; we become human. The same applies to companies. They don’t declare themselves human-centric; they become human—one conscious choice, one meaningful action, one transformative experience at a time.
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Nir
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