Summary
How do we advance our professional practice, and decide where we invest in ourselves and our team? We start with a clear look at how our work is situated in the organization, and what it takes to build real impact through research. In this talk, Dave will walk through the core skill areas that researchers and research teams need to succeed in modern organizations, as developed from workshops involving almost 500 research practitioners. We will see how those skills evolve and support each other over time, and gain a new tool to 'map' a systems-view of professional growth, for individuals and for teams.
Key Insights
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Research skills divide into 47 craft skills and 13 human skills, with human skills valued equally and tied to organizational impact.
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Product analytics is a highly desired skill among researchers but is currently underutilized in practice.
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Research evangelization becomes the most useful skill for researchers with over 12 years of experience, underscoring the need to amplify research impact.
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Researcher growth involves expanding skill scope from individual execution to strategic influence across teams and organizations.
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Skill development progresses from unconscious incompetence to unconscious competence, with foundational tasks enabling higher-order skills.
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Research ops emerged to handle repetitive foundational skills, freeing researchers to focus on strategic and higher-impact work.
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Mapping individual and team skill profiles helps identify development gaps and guide hiring and training priorities.
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Skill patterns can be sequenced into adaptable project playbooks that preserve flexibility while standardizing research processes.
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The framework is designed as an open, living language that organizations can customize and evolve collaboratively.
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There is no clear career ladder beyond senior research roles, presenting a challenge in advancing research practice at leadership levels.
Notable Quotes
"Ten years ago, I did not know we could do research as a hired job now I stake my living on helping teams figure out what researchers do."
"We separate research work into craft skills and human skills because the human context is as important as the craft."
"Product analytics is much more desired than it is put into use right now by qualitative researchers."
"Research evangelization is the most useful skill once you get past 12 years of experience."
"Growth as a researcher means expanding your sphere of influence from yourself up to your entire organization."
"We see the emergence of research ops because foundational skills take time from practicing higher order skills."
"A skills map can help teams reflect on where they are, where they want to grow, and identify gaps in capability."
"Skills as patterns form a network where sequences become a playbook adaptable to many contexts."
"This framework could become a living language of practice that organizations fork, adapt, and contribute back to the community."
"There’s no clear path beyond evangelizing and strategic direction for senior researchers, which is a challenge we'll see discussed more in coming years."
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