Rosenverse

Log in or create a free Rosenverse account to watch this video.

Log in Create free account

100s of community videos are available to free members. Conference talks are generally available to Gold members.

Start Small for Big Impact (Videoconference)
Wednesday, May 15, 2019 • DesignOps Community
Share the love for this talk
Start Small for Big Impact (Videoconference)
Speakers: Saskia Liebenberg
Link:

Summary

Organizations often start thinking about implementing operations support when they get to a certain size - when things start breaking or something goes massively wrong, when it becomes an imperative for existence. But there is massive benefit from building a research ops function much earlier on in your team growth. Saskia Liebenberg will explain how she's implemented research ops at Deliveroo in a team of 10 researchers, and how she's used the ResearchOps framework to build a strategy that supports the team in their specific context.

Key Insights

  • Starting research operations proactively with a small team (5-10 researchers) creates big impact before complexity becomes overwhelming.

  • A project manager background can translate effectively to research operations without deep prior research methodology expertise.

  • Manual, hacky systems like spreadsheets and Trello boards are highly effective initial tools for tracking research projects and resources.

  • Standardizing folder structures and applying project codes greatly improve data organization, retrieval speed, and GDPR compliance.

  • In a small, co-located team, research Ops can be fully integrated, closely collaborating via one-on-one interviews and frequent check-ins.

  • Dedicated recruitment coordinators supporting researchers with participant sourcing and logistics significantly boost research throughput.

  • Research Ops roles are most effective when carefully distributing workload to avoid team burnout and keeping well-being top of mind.

  • Research and design operations teams benefit from early collaboration and shared infrastructure in growing organizations.

  • Scaling research Ops requires hiring specialized roles, e.g., knowledge managers and tools integrators, beyond a single generalist.

  • Implementing governance and reusable processes early increases research capacity, morale, and retention within research teams.

Notable Quotes

"Proactive research Ops means starting before something breaks, not reacting when everything is already overwhelmed."

"It was daunting and controversial to rename project folders, but it helped me learn the work and improve consistency."

"If you solve the problems your users experience, they will trust you and come back to you."

"Our project codes make GDPR compliance easier and help track qualitative data context alongside quantitative data."

"Research Ops is not a one-person job; you will need more headcount sooner than you expect."

"Working embedded in a smaller team made it easier to consult the whole research team and create solutions together."

"The biggest thing I look for when hiring is someone who enjoys helping people with a self-directed and organized mindset."

"Researchers running like mad want to focus on craft, not logistics, so Ops removes that mental load from them."

"Aligning with other departments like legal is slow work, and you won’t always be a priority."

"Starting small and manageable allows rapid impact, enabling teams to move faster and be more efficient from day one."

Ask the Rosenbot
Sam Proulx
Mobile Accessibility: Why Moving Accessibility Beyond the Desktop is Critical in a Mobile-first World
2022 • Advancing Research 2022
Gold
Kristin Skinner
Group Activity: A Deep Dive Into Value and Outcomes
2019 • DesignOps Summit 2019
Gold
Bria Alexander
Day 3 Welcome
2024 • DesignOps 2024
Gold
Josh Clark
Sentient Design: New Postures for AI-Mediated Experiences (2nd of 3 seminars)
2025 • Rosenfeld Community
Chris Geison
What's Next for Research? (Videoconference)
2021 • Advancing Research Community
Catherine Courage
The Enterprise UX Journey: Lessons From the Voyage & The Opportunity Ahead
2015 • Enterprise UX 2015
Gold
Kate Kalcevich
Designing inclusively with AI
2024 • Designing with AI 2024
Gold
Sarah Alvarado
How to make UX research leadership more effective [Advancing Research Community Workshop Series] (Videoconference)
2023 • Advancing Research Community
Sarah Brooks
Theme Three Intro
2022 • Civic Design 2022
Gold
Alfred Kahn
A Seat at the Table: Making Your Team a Strategic Partner
2023 • Design in Product 2023
Gold
Amanda Kaleta-Kott
The Joys and Dilemmas of Conducting UX Research with Older Adults
2022 • Advancing Research 2022
Gold
Edgar Anzaldua Moreno
Using Research to Determine Unique Value Proposition
2021 • Advancing Research 2021
Gold
Mariah Hay
BUILD: Discussion
2018 • Enterprise Experience 2018
Gold
Susan Weinschenk
Evaluating the Maturity of UX in Your Organization (Videoconference)
2020 • Enterprise Community
James Chudley
Decarbonising User Journeys: How minimising enables us to do more with less
2025 • Climate UX Interest Group (Rosenfeld Community)
Lily Aduana
5 Reasons to Bring Your Recruiting in-House (and How To Do It)
2021 • Advancing Research 2021
Gold

More Videos

Angelos Arnis

"AI easily manages many tasks but still struggles with soft skills like cultural nuances and ethical considerations."

Angelos Arnis

Navigating the Rapid Shifts in Tech's Turbulent Terrain

October 2, 2023

John Calhoun

"Spreadsheets might just be the best tool for everything in design ops."

John Calhoun Rachel Posman

Bring your DesignOps Story to Life! The Definitive DesignOps Book Jam

October 3, 2023

Alfred Kahn

"If design is not viewed as a player moving the needle on business strategy, designers feel disempowered and frustrated."

Alfred Kahn

A Seat at the Table: Making Your Team a Strategic Partner

November 29, 2023

Dan Willis

"It’s never all or nothing — product success must balance user needs and business constraints."

Dan Willis

Enterprise Storytelling Sessions

June 3, 2019

John Maeda

"Designers still love Adobe Photoshop even though the tooling hasn’t moved as quickly as other fields."

John Maeda Alison Rand

About Design Organizations (Videoconference)

May 13, 2019

Anat Fintzi

"We consolidated over 10 configurable tools into one holistic supply chain management tool this year."

Anat Fintzi Rachel Minnicks

Delivering at Scale: Making Traction with Resistant Partners

June 9, 2022

Uday Gajendar

"Craft cultivates customer satisfaction, loyalty, and even forgiveness when functional issues arise."

Uday Gajendar

The Wicked Craft of Enterprise UX

May 13, 2015

Kristin Skinner

"There was a need around definition but also understanding the value our teammates would find in this role."

Kristin Skinner

Theme 1 Intro

September 29, 2021

Maish Nichani

"Singapore is a nation by design. Nothing we have today is natural or happened by itself—somebody thought about it and made it happen."

Maish Nichani

Sparking a Service Excellence Mindset at a Government Agency

December 9, 2021