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.
How to create actionable insight in the face of politics and silos [Advancing Research Community Workshop Series]
Summary
Three of your research colleagues discussed and defended their respective positions on creating actionable insight in the face of politics and silos. Pariticipants then engaged with them in a discussion and Q&A, facilitated by Robin Beers. “In organizations that may not incentivize informed decision-making, researchers need to study power dynamics, cultivate their political influence, and consistently communicate their value to the business.” – Sonja Bobrowska “AI tools will change the way people consume researchers, relying more and more on receiving personalized summaries. This will only exacerbate silos and lead to miscommunication. To avoid this, the best skill researchers can learn is creating compelling visual frameworks rather than weighty reports.” – Mujtaba Hameed “The best report and presentation ever do not necessarily mean your findings will be adopted. Insights virtually don’t exist if you aren’t able to make them stick by putting them to work.” – Josh Morales
Key Insights
-
•
Actionable insights are not just immediate decisions but include long-term organizational adoption and mindset shifts.
-
•
Time is essential for research findings to be digested and become actionable, sometimes taking years.
-
•
Building relationships and trust within organizations is key for researchers to influence decision-making effectively.
-
•
Researchers often perform 'invisible work' akin to political navigation to understand power flows and align insights.
-
•
Conflict from research crossing silos is not necessarily bad and can be a catalyst for better cross-team collaboration.
-
•
Success in research impact can be defined as enabling clients to gain influence and seat at decision-making tables.
-
•
Embedding researchers within product teams enhances collaboration and increases the likelihood of insights being used.
-
•
Different organizational cultures require experimentation with communication styles for insights to resonate.
-
•
Researchers should set low expectations and not take failures in insight adoption personally due to factors beyond their control.
-
•
Understanding organizational history and power structures supports more believable and impactful research narratives.
Notable Quotes
"If we only measure actionable insights by immediate changes, we are losing a lot of the power that research has."
"The one ingredient that made some of the insights work was simply time."
"I don’t care about what’s actionable for a company. I care about what’s actionable for my client’s career and influence."
"Insights virtually don’t exist if you aren’t able to make them stick by putting them to work."
"You need to build relationships and understand who needs to be convinced and what convinces them."
"Conflict is not bad if it leads to something more sustainable and teams realizing they work together."
"Silos naturally create power through isolation, so it’s helpful to think of them as a staple and work with them."
"The researchers’ work is just the tip of the iceberg; the invisible work is about politics, power, and relationships."
"If you have a terrible boss, you can do an ethnography of your own organization disguised as friendly connection."
"We need the serenity to accept things we cannot change and the courage to change what we can, and the wisdom to know the difference."
Or choose a question:
More Videos
"When I was head of product, I wasn’t enough of a domain expert or business model expert to scale the company."
Christian Crumlish Aditi Ruiz Johanna Kollmann Catt SmallMorning Insights Panel
December 6, 2022
"At the current rate, it will be 130 years before we reach global gender equality in political power."
Dr. Jamika D. Burge Mansi GuptaAdvancing the Inclusion of Womxn in Research Practices
September 15, 2022
"Our team’s improvement wasn’t the final state—we set ambitious goals to be in the 80th to 90th percentile next year."
Kim Fellman CohenMeasuring the Designer Experience
October 23, 2019
"Design always has a seat at the table at Pinterest because our co-founder is a designer."
Meredith BlackScaling Design Culture
November 6, 2017
"Prototypes are just a means to an end; their purpose is to spark conversation with end users."
Ed MullenDesigning the Unseen: Enabling Institutions to Build Public Trust
November 16, 2022
"Prioritization isn’t about scoring to pick projects, but about facilitating discussion and aligning the team’s understanding."
Chris GeisonWhat is Research Strategy?
March 11, 2021
"When you design for the edges you get the middle for free."
Sam ProulxAccessibility: An Opportunity to Innovate
November 16, 2022
"When we started, user-centered design was a relatively new concept to the organization."
Carla Casariego Sarah SpencerDesignOps in Wonderland
October 24, 2019
"The future isn’t a destination; it’s multiple locations, and climate futures aren’t just utopian or dystopian but can be mundane."
Jamie Beck Alexander Nina Gregg Shawn Petersen Bill DeRoucheyHow can you find your role in climate?
January 17, 2024
