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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Building strong relationships is foundational to successful qualitative research and project outcomes in government service design.
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Thorough background research on community context and history (the 'flour') shows respect and builds credibility with stakeholders.
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Consistent, reliable communication and presence (the 'butter') deepen trust and enable reciprocal partnerships with government staff and clients.
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Trauma-informed research practices and humility (the 'eggs') help create ethical spaces for participants to share lived experiences honestly.
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Returning to clients multiple times to validate feedback both improves accuracy and strengthens human connection.
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In-person research during the pandemic was prioritized carefully, as remote methods often exclude the most marginalized.
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Including leadership in research by having them shadow interviews often builds advocacy and leads to structural changes.
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Recruitment strategies must be adapted to community norms; digital approaches can falter with some populations, such as Indigenous communities.
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Balancing feedback from clients and government partners requires transparency about project scope while fiercely advocating for clients.
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Small relational gestures and icebreakers in meetings significantly help build camaraderie and openness among diverse stakeholders.
Notable Quotes
"Without those relationships, you won’t get good data. And without good data, you won’t have good project outcomes."
"Flour gives the core structure of our relationships; the more gluten, the stronger the dough."
"We don’t probe for anecdotes or quotes; we answer real questions to provide actionable guidance that pushes projects forward."
"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."
"Consistently showing up builds reliable relationships that enable staff to enthusiastically reciprocate."
"When we make a mistake, we try to respond gracefully because the stakes are really high when considering relationships."
"Returning to the same clients multiple times lets us check if we understood their feedback accurately and builds human connection."
"We practice deep listening to treat every individual’s lived experience with care and to ensure they feel heard."
"We invited leaders to shadow our research sessions remotely, which has helped secure resources like client feedback panels."
"Small icebreakers and sharing pronouns or fun facts in meetings really help break the ice and build connection among partners."
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