Research is Only as Good as the Relationships You Build
Summary
Without relationships, qualitative research findings will be filed away and forgotten. By focusing on two core types of relationships, researchers can make their findings relevant and impactful. First, researchers must build trusting relationships with those they aim to learn from: clients of government programs, frontline workers, and community-based organization staff. And in order to do anything with the collected data, researchers must also build relationships with those who have the authority to actually improve the government programs and systems. In this session, speakers will share how they’ve realized the full potential of research through building authentic, trusting relationships to influence change.
Key Insights
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Successful civic tech projects depend as much on relationship-building as technical development.
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Thorough background research and respect for existing community and policy contexts form a strong relationship foundation.
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Consistently showing up and integrating into government partner processes builds trust and makes projects more collaborative.
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Returning to the same clients multiple times deepens trust and improves the accuracy of research feedback.
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Trauma-informed, humble, and empathetic research practices enable participants to share vulnerable experiences safely.
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Using client vignettes instead of composite personas humanizes the research and influences design with real stories.
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Recruitment methods must be culturally and contextually appropriate; digital methods aren’t always effective for all communities.
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Balancing feedback from government partners and clients requires clear honesty about project scope and systemic constraints.
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Inviting leaders to shadow research sessions cultivates empathy and can lead to systemic improvements.
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Simple icebreakers and attention to meeting composition encourage openness and partnership in research and design collaborations.
Notable Quotes
"Without good relationships, you won’t get good data. And without good data, you won’t have good project outcomes."
"Flour is the core structure of our relationships. Like gluten makes dough stronger, background research makes relationships stronger."
"Butter is about consistently showing up and being present so people don’t forget you."
"Eggs are the binder — humility and trauma-informed practices that keep relationships and research together."
"We’re not probing for interesting anecdotes or seating quotes for a slide deck. We’re answering real questions to provide actionable guidance."
"I just feel like you’re talking to robots in the system a lot. They don’t have any awareness of other people’s cultures or worldviews."
"Recruiting for indigenous participants via Craigslist missed the unique role community ties play, so we regrouped and connected through community organizations."
"We fight fiercely for clients, but we’re honest about government limits and project scope to build trust."
"Inviting leaders to shadow research sessions helped one department hire a client feedback panel representing marginalized voices."
"Starting meetings with simple icebreakers or sharing pronouns and locations really breaks the ice and builds relationships."
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