Navigating organizational systems: Rethinking researcher’s role in driving change
This video is featured in the PDI 2026 playlist.
Summary
Organizations are organic, evolving systems with complex relational dynamics and power structures, both within the system and among its people. These systems are being reshaped by shifts in culture and technology, just as the research function and methodologies are. As researchers take on a more powerful, holistic role as knowledge curators, we must rethink how we communicate and navigate these complexities to drive meaningful change. By considering these changed relational dynamics, we will explore how researchers can center themselves to transform insights into received wisdom that has the power to shape and influence organizational systems at scale.
Key Insights
-
•
User research has become overly focused on transactional, prototype-driven insights limiting broader organizational impact.
-
•
Researchers' core purpose should be to help organizations learn about customers and themselves through systemic feedback loops.
-
•
Gareth Morgan's organizational metaphors reveal how dominant lenses shape what organizations see and ignore.
-
•
The 20th-century 'machine' lens emphasizes breaking problems into parts, efficiency, hierarchy, and control but neglects holistic complexity.
-
•
The 21st-century 'techno-optimist hacker' lens prioritizes rapid innovation and growth but often creates blind spots and social consequences.
-
•
A living systems lens sees organizations as dynamic networks of relationships, encouraging systemic thinking and long-term effects consideration.
-
•
In an era of perpetual upheaval, the essential leadership ability is navigating complex, ambiguous systems through learning and adaptation.
-
•
Researchers must develop consulting, facilitation, and influencing skills to become effective agents of organizational learning.
-
•
Practicing systems thinking can start with small, tactical actions like mapping stakeholders and processes to reveal hidden misalignments.
-
•
Sensemaking is the researcher's superpower to integrate fragmented information, reveal organizational lenses, and drive better decision-making.
Notable Quotes
"Simon Roberts calls this the UX ification of research, which leads to a more transactional focus on informing technology requirements."
"The only thing any of us can control is how quickly we learn and then act based on that learning."
"Researchers make customers visible inside the organization, but also help the organization learn about itself."
"A metaphor is like a flashlight—it shines on some things and keeps others in the dark."
"The machine lens gave us hierarchy, bureaucracy, and a focus on efficiency and control, but it sidelines holistic thinking."
"The techno-optimist hacker lens believes growth is the only metric that matters, enabling disruption but causing blind spots."
"A living systems lens urges us to see wholes, holes, and interdependent relationships in organizations."
"We’re not going back to stability; we’re riding this wave of perpetual upheaval and must learn to surf it."
"Learning is the new knowing, and researchers are catalysts of organizational learning."
"Sensemaking is your superpower as a researcher to amplify your impact beyond user experience mechanics."
Or choose a question:
More Videos
"Testing price effects requires careful design because user behavior can be irrational when prices are shown or hidden."
Michaela MoraAdvanced Concept Testing Approaches To Guide Product Development and Business Decisions
March 11, 2022
"It was like publishing the family secret recipe, but sharing usability patterns was crucial for advocacy."
Rob Mitzel Sébastien MaloThe Tale of Two Companies: Building a Successful UX Practice in a Century-Old Enterprise
January 8, 2024
"You have to know what the development roadmap is to ensure design system changes are properly integrated and prioritized."
Dan Mall“Ask Me Anything” with Dan Mall, Author of Upcoming Rosenfeld Title, Design that Scales
October 2, 2023
"Markdown is very concise and useful, and GitHub can render it into human-readable, nicely formatted pages."
Bryce Benton[Demo] AI-powered UX enhancement: Aligning GitHub documentation with USWDS at Austin Public Library
June 4, 2024
"We’re in a stage where AI is causing an explosion of crazy uses that are not very good right now, like the early days of laser printing."
Frances Yllana Jorge Arango Maria Taylor Briana ThomasThe Big Question about Impact: A Panel Discussion
September 24, 2024
"The themes this year include transforming century-old industries, startup to enterprise, the outsider’s perspective, and partnering to transform."
Bria Alexander Louis RosenfeldWelcome
January 8, 2024
"Tomorrow of design ops belongs to those who lead with foresight into designs and designers future, to stay human and resilient."
Ebru NamaldiDesigning the Designer’s Journey: Scaling Teams, Culture, and Growth Through DesignOps
September 11, 2025
"Progress and innovation happen when you create unrealistic goals, but it goes too far when it's impossible."
Joshua GravesWe Need To Talk: Managing Ludicrous Requests at Work (Part 3 of 3)
May 12, 2025
"We prioritize speaking with people who are most in need of support so we can better understand and design for all potential users of PFML."
Lisa Spitz Nikki BrandBuilding Trust Through Equitable Research Practices
November 18, 2022
