Summary
As the first-ever user researcher at McKinsey, Megan Blocker pioneered the practice of UXR at the firm, establishing and growing the team to more than 50 researchers, data analysts, and data scientists. But “growing up” as a user researcher in management consulting meant she was unburdened by many of the expectations researchers face in more traditional contexts - instead, she was able to combine the best of management consulting with research and design practices to break barriers for how and where research was applied. In her talk at Advancing Research, she’ll share how she applied core management consulting practices to her research work and how those same practices can help you succeed from study to study as well as when scaling research across your organization.
Key Insights
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Management consulting culture prioritizes getting to the point quickly with the so what upfront to ensure influence.
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Consultants embody an obligation to dissent, encouraging proactive problem solving rather than passive feedback.
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McKinsey’s decentralized network structure requires adept stakeholder navigation and coalition building for enterprise-wide initiatives.
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Dynamic, short-term teams at consulting firms demand a shared playbook and consistent communication norms for rapid high-quality delivery.
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User researchers often stop at insights, but consultants take bold stands advising on what should happen next, increasing impact.
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Expert interviews, underutilized in user research, yield valuable perspectives beyond user data to refine strategies and solutions.
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A relentless focus on outcomes with measurable behavior changes can accelerate team agility and clarity of success.
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Reusing and refining frameworks, or 'jewels,' from consulting libraries improves storytelling, saves time, and amplifies research impact.
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Building social capital by sharing research beyond immediate stakeholders helps establish trust and expert advisor status.
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Adopting consulting communication styles, such as writing clear executive summaries, ensures adoption where value is only realized if acted upon.
Notable Quotes
"But what’s the so what? means get to the point and don’t make me wait."
"The obligation to dissent is not if you see something, say something, but if you see a problem or opportunity, you should do something about it."
"McKinsey is almost like a hundred different small companies, each with its own focus and personality."
"There is a core difference between a launch and a landing to a consultant and you won’t be invited back if your recommendations don’t lead to the latter."
"Without adoption, value is zero."
"User researchers share meaning but often do not advocate for a direction — we should assert a provocative, inspiring vision for what comes next."
"Expert interviews don’t have to be as perfectly constructed as user interviews; be genuinely curious about their experience and impact."
"I try to suggest how teams might measure success of something they’re doing so the impact can outlive my involvement."
"Go find the big decisions, reach out to leaders, and ask about the questions they need answered to make those decisions."
"Building social capital by regularly sharing your research beyond your team will amplify your work with little additional investment."
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