Summary
In our remote world, we as researchers need new ways to help our stakeholders cut through the noise to engage and digest our insights more meaningfully through thoughtful and intentional self-directed learning techniques. In this short session, we will discuss 4 key self-directed learning techniques to help you increase engagement around your insights during our debriefing sessions with your stakeholders.
Key Insights
-
•
Designing insight sharing with self-directed learning principles helps stakeholders engage in ways that suit their roles and goals.
-
•
Starting insight sessions with emotional or feelings check-ins enhances human connection and primes participants for productive engagement.
-
•
It is important to distinguish whether insights are shared to build awareness or drive action, as each goal requires a different context and facilitation style.
-
•
Blending synchronous and asynchronous collaboration in insight sharing allows quieter participants to contribute and surfaces richer conversation threads.
-
•
Sharing research reports for pre-reading and commenting before live sessions leads to more meaningful discussions and buy-in during meetings.
-
•
In virtual environments, emotional literacy and reading the room require new approaches since traditional physical cues are missing.
-
•
Involving stakeholders early in research planning and explicitly naming their input in reports increases their sense of ownership and engagement.
-
•
Focusing research communication on the most important and influential stakeholders rather than all possible audiences improves relevance and uptake.
-
•
Using digital collaboration tools, such as digital sticky notes and comments in shared documents, democratizes participation in insight discussions.
-
•
Intentional design of insight sharing journeys—from gaining clarity to enabling strategic action—supports stakeholder needs and organizational goals effectively.
Notable Quotes
"Change is the only constant, and it is really true right now."
"Self-directed learning means tailoring insights around stakeholders' strengths, needs, and interests so everyone can use them to get their jobs done."
"I literally do a feelings check-in, asking people how they are feeling before sharing insights to connect on a human level."
"Zoom fatigue is real, so sometimes moving from synchronous to asynchronous collaboration in the same session helps everyone engage."
"Instead of reading through every slide in a meeting, I send the report out for comments ahead of time to create a more discussion-focused session."
"Everyone loves to see themselves reflected in the research—they want to see their questions answered and named in the report."
"The loudest voices usually get heard the most, so asynchronous commenting helps surface quieter but important perspectives."
"You don't have to have everyone read the entire research; focus on the most influential stakeholders for better impact."
"Designing the context—the why and how of your insight sharing—is critical to ensure insights are heard and acted on."
"Caring for people emotionally during insight sharing equals people being able to show up and be productive."
Or choose a question:
More Videos
"Organizations don’t always need external training; they can facilitate internal learning and mentorship."
Shaping design, designers and teams
November 8, 2018
"In a false start, design is perpetually fixing what development has done and is reactive, not proactive."
Sabrina Mach Nina WainwrightHow to Design Your Design Operating Model
September 29, 2021
"People are disabled by environments, processes, or systems, not by their own bodies or minds."
Samuel ProulxInvisible barriers: Why accessible service design can’t be an afterthought
December 3, 2024
"One of the superpowers of Ops humans is that we’re really good at taking problems and gaps and making them visible."
Saara Kamppari-MillerDesignOps for Inclusive Design and Accessibility (Videoconference)
May 26, 2022
"The Photoshop AI design team fundamentally changed how Adobe products incorporate AI technologies."
Briana ThomasThe Quiet Force: Uncovering Hidden Leadership in High-Impact Design Teams
September 24, 2024
"I wish I could tell my 22-year-old self what to stop doing and what to embrace to be a better designer."
Adam Cutler Karen Pascoe Ian Swinson Susan WorthmanDiscussion
June 8, 2016
"It’s kind of difficult to break the rules when they’re not very clear and they’re not really there."
Operationalizing DesignOps
November 7, 2018
"Executives see research value when they’ve lost money on bad bets and want to mitigate risk for future decisions."
Leah Buley Joe NatoliAsk Me Anything with Leah Buley and Joe Natoli, co-authors of The User Experience Team of One (2nd edition)
October 8, 2024
"Design researchers know customers better than almost anyone else in the organization, yet they are rarely invited into strategy processes."
Nathan ShedroffDouble Your Mileage: Use Your Research Strategically
March 31, 2020