Have you ever stopped to wonder why we do the things we do?
Why do we hesitate to step onto a quickly filling train, resolving to wait for one that’s less crowded? Why do we always reach for the product a few rows behind the one on display?
The study of the little contradictions that make us human is behavioural science. Companies and businesses use these sciences too.
Everyone knows about the “-99 pricing”. There is a negligible difference between something costing THB 499 versus THB 500, yet people are more willing to purchase the former over the latter.
Identifying this behaviour and using it is known as applied behavioural science, and it is more common than you think.
Sectors ranging from tech to healthcare all employ behavioural science principles to connect with you, the user.
Masala had the pleasure to speak with Rupali Babu, co-founder of BCX Design, about all things behaviour and her journey into this field.
Can you tell us a little bit about your journey to the present day?
My father was in the Navy, which meant I moved around a lot across India and went to many schools, as is true for many military brats, not just myself.
At the age of 20, I left India to pursue further education in Canada, completing a second undergraduate and a post-graduate degree there.
I proceeded to work in Canada for the next decade where I also met my husband.
After my husband and I got married, we made the decision, for personal reasons, to move back to India.
Seven years ago, I was in Bangkok teaching a masterclass at a conference. I made a comment to my husband along the lines of, “I could see us living here,” and a year later… We moved.
Now, I don’t know if you could call it serendipity, but it certainly felt like God’s plan.
After your postgraduate studies, what was your career trajectory?
I was a banker. That was actually how I met my husband, Dave. We both worked at Scotiabank, one of the Big Five banks in Canada.
I covered a vast area of subjects during my tenure as a banker from corporate lending to private wealth management. It was easy to think I would be a banker forever.
Life, however, had very different plans, and I have been very fortunate because I managed to switch careers completely when I moved to India.
When I returned to India, my career in the civil society sector started out as a happy accident. Long story short, I went to volunteer and came back hired.
Through the years, I have learned so much about strategic frameworks, system changes, and the variety of ways one can campaign and advocate.
My affinity for numbers meant I could transfer my skills from my banking career into a career of fundraising, strategy, and performance monitoring and evaluation.
What inspired you to found your own company as opposed to continuing to work for other businesses?
After almost a decade working in the civil society sector, I began to feel like, although I had done quite a lot, I wasn’t moving ahead. Progressing, so to speak.
BCX Design was actually founded in India. During COVID-19, after we had moved to Bangkok, it became difficult to administer the company when the operational logistics were still based in India.
Thus, my husband and I made the executive decision to headquarter BCX Design in Singapore.
In the initial years, my husband, Dave, was front and centre of the company while I spent more time behind the scenes, working on operations and strategy.
While my husband and I had maintained a separation of our professional lives, when we started working together, we realised our shared experiences in the banking sector allowed us to work in tandem.
In fact, banking was actually one of the first sectors that took wholeheartedly to behavioural science.
Additionally, we found similarities in our approaches to running digital transformation projects and in designing strategies.
What exactly is BCX Design, and what does it do?
At the heart of it, BCX Design is an applied behavioural science consultancy.
We work with clients to advise them on strategy, innovation, and change.
Specific areas include digital transformation processes, AI implementation, product design, and, of course, improving customer experience, employee engagement, and localisation.
For those out of the know, could you explain how behavioural science can be incorporated into businesses?
Applied behavioural science operates with the goal of redesigning the environment, communications, or processes (from policy to product design) to influence user choices.
This is sometimes called choice architecture.
If you were, for example, a grocery store trying to raise the sales of high quality products like imported cheese, applied behavioural science would suggest changing the store’s physical layout to encourage more shoppers to walk past the high-margin items first, on their way to buying everyday items like milk and vegetables.
By strategically placing frequently bought items at the back corners of the store, the store ensures that every customer must navigate through those aisles where the tempting impulse buys are located.
With AI permeating so many businesses, how does BCX tackle the question of AI?
I would say we are an AI-forward company, and the reason is that we recognise this emergent technology is here to stay.
So, we look at AI and its usage through the behavioural science lens.
Implementation of AI is not just a technological intervention; it has to take into account how humans are going to behave with respect to it.
As a woman in business, are there any unique struggles you have faced?
There are experiences that are specific to women, and particularly women from the Global South, that I have experienced.
An example that comes to mind is that I am still in meetings where it’s an all-boys club.
I’ll be with my husband, and even though we are equal co-founders of the company, the men will shake hands with him while I am treated like a passive entity.
It was so funny because we were working on a proposal for a client on which I was a lead consultant, and the generative AI tool wrote accolades and glowing praises for Dave, while all I got were cut-and-dry bullet points.
It’s bad enough having to navigate bias in inter-personal settings and now I also have to handle an AI tool?!
As a woman, you have to lean into the notion of making your space felt. Sometimes, the response is positive, and other times, you may just have to grin and bear it.
It’s been a long journey to get where I am today. From time to time, I still find myself silenced by the stereotypes that play out in business spaces.
I am a professional so I’m not going to lose my cool but I am still angered by it all the same.
Even so, it feels great to see other women leaders, to be able to talk, support, and even mentor them whilst sharing our experiences.
Outside of work, how do you recharge?
My husband and I are foodies.
In the sense that we like the history of food and the different ingredients a dish is made up of, and the historical and cultural influences on the dish itself.
We also travel when we can.
Food and travel are linked, actually, because I don’t think we have ever travelled to a place without wanting to know what the food culture is like there.
Other than that, we are big readers. [Laughs] It’s quite cliched.
What advice would you like to give to those reading, especially to girls and women?
To girls and women, something I wish I knew then, which I know now, is not to be apologetic for being women.
We, as women, take on a lot, but we also have a tendency to play down our achievements, our work, and our experiences.
Something I’ve learned from the men around me (and am envious of) is how unapologetic they are. Even grasping 60 percent of that attitude should be the goal.
And above all else, we should be kind.
We often set very high standards for ourselves, and it is okay to treat ourselves with kindness.
I no longer believe in the permanence of established plans.
I think when opportunities come your way, they exist to give you exposure to a new path.