Log in or create a free Rosenverse account to watch this video.
Log in Create free account100s of community videos are available to free members. Conference talks are generally available to Gold members.
Design Research Strategy & Strategic Design Research
Summary
When scaling and democratizing research practices, how can you help ensure higher levels of value are delivered? In this interactive session, we discuss different items we can leverage to ensure design research is providing value to an organization by driving strategic decisions. Areas we cover include: Utilizing research repositories as strategic assets; Leveraging quant + quo data to track success; and Ensuring research can focus on the highest value work.
Key Insights
-
•
Research repositories should be designed like design systems—organized, accessible, and enabling holistic storytelling rather than just storing final reports.
-
•
Atomic insights or research nuggets capture rich, verbatim customer feedback that enhances empathy and informs design decisions more effectively.
-
•
Democratizing research to teams increases insight ownership but risks duplication and inconsistent results if not strategically managed.
-
•
Effective research strategy involves deciding what not to do to maintain organizational focus, echoing Michael Porter's definition of strategy.
-
•
Most organizations struggle to fully integrate user-centered research into decision-making despite having talent and data available, causing researcher frustration and turnover.
-
•
Combining deep usability study insights with broader, real-time listening posts enables a richer understanding of user pain points across contexts.
-
•
Qualitative UX research faces challenges in measurement and aligning results with business metrics, requiring new approaches beyond standard quantitative data.
-
•
Video and multimedia summaries of research insights can personalize findings and improve engagement across teams.
-
•
Building trust and relationships across departments (UX, strategy, marketing) maximizes the value of research data collected through various channels.
-
•
Investing time upfront in organizing and tagging research insights can save teams significant time searching and accelerate impactful outcomes.
Notable Quotes
"Strategy is telling organizations what not to do, not just generating new ideas."
"Research repositories often get a bad rap because people just dump final reports without thinking about how they'll be used."
"Atomic insights are nuggets that tag what customers actually said, including their sentiments and sometimes swearing."
"On average we spend 20% of our time just looking for things, which is not the best use of resources."
"Democratizing research can lead to duplication and even conflicting results if we’re not careful."
"I want to look at the discussion guides or listen to recordings to really get the emotional context."
"Organizations are slow to adopt the practice of making every decision from the voice of the customer, despite having talented people and data."
"Combining deep usability studies with site intercepts gives you both step-by-step insights and a moment-in-time view of user pain."
"Using video clips of insights creates a more personal connection and helps teams engage with the data."
"Building relationships with other departments helps us leverage information collected for different purposes in a structured way."
Or choose a question:
More Videos
"Inviting other teams into research sessions lets us triangulate findings by combining interviews, observations, and focus groups."
Joanna Vodopivec Prabhas PokharelOne Research Team for All - Influence Without Authority
March 9, 2022
"My husband told me to Pace and Brace—I was pushing too hard and burnt out within a year and a half."
Louis Rosenfeld Lashanda Hodge Senongo Akpem Chris HodowanecBecoming a Civic Designer: Making the Move from Private to Public Sector
November 17, 2022
"Lauren Cantor is our house librarian and has made an outstanding contribution to the conference."
Bria AlexanderDay 3 Welcome
September 25, 2024
"Yesterday we touched upon topics like chatDBT, chatbots, trust, intentionality, agency, and even alien interns."
Uday Gajendar Louis RosenfeldDay 2 Welcome
June 5, 2024
"Timely interactions that log users out without saving progress cause abandonment, especially for people with disabilities."
Sam ProulxOnline Shopping: Designing an Accessible Experience
June 7, 2023
"Buddy systems create leadership opportunities and a support network without changing org charts."
Russ UngerOnboarding: The Ecosystem, not the Afterthought
November 7, 2017
"The store mobile device is the indispensable silent partner enabling store employees to balance task productivity and customer engagement."
Catherine DubutBridging Physical and Digital Spaces: Approaches to Retail Service Design
March 18, 2021
"We think of AI not just as a maker of stuff but as an enabler of experiences."
Josh Clark Veronika KindredSentient Design: New Postures for AI-Mediated Experiences (2nd of 3 seminars)
January 29, 2025
"You need to ask, who are you excluding in the conversation? That’s the disservice to empathy."
Dantley DavisLeadership & Diversity—A Fireside Chat with Dantley Davis
September 17, 2020
Latest Books All books
Dig deeper with the Rosenbot
How can personal energy assessments and understanding control help in managing work stress and growth?
What are best practices for engaging C-suite executives and physicians as champions for B2B healthcare apps?
What are the benefits of linking AI-powered research repositories with tools like Slack for organizational adoption?