Breaking Research Barriers: How Research-Operations Supports the Democratization of Research

Introduction:

This case study examines my personal experience successfully democratizing user experience (UX) research by implementing research operations and incorporating unmoderated research methodologies as a consultant. Stakeholders often struggle to recognize the value of UX research, considering it an additional cost and time-consuming process. Customers often provide poor data and analytics at the start of an engagement, hindering valuable insights. It fosters an environment that is impossible to measure success, or prove or deny any progress towards objective and key results (OKRs) and measuring key performance indicators (KPIs). The transient nature of consulting engagements hampers the ability to conduct longitudinal research and build a deep understanding of users. What this means is that in consulting, clients ask the consulting to meet them at scale to develop solutions. However, to foster long term engagement, we needed to find a way to not just meet clients at scale, but become a scalable solution for our clients. These challenges restrict the impact of UX research within the product lifecycle. By democratizing UX research, the agency aimed to involve a broader range of stakeholders, streamline the research process, and deliver more actionable insights for their clients.  

Background:

The consulting agency, specializes in providing user experience consulting services to various clients. Traditionally, UX research was conducted by a small team of dedicated researchers, limiting the agency's ability to scale research efforts and involve stakeholders from different departments.

Implementation:

Establishing Research Operations: Customers rarely come to the table with good data and analytics, I recognized the need for a systematic and scalable approach to UX research. To create generative research, that leads to informed and data driven design decisions, I standardized the research processes, managed research resources, and supported researchers and designers across the agency. This is ResearchOps, and it helped facilitate the democratization of research by providing the necessary infrastructure and support for efficient research operations.

Unmoderated Research Platforms: To involve a broader range of stakeholders in the research process, I implemented unmoderated research methodologies. This leveraged online platforms that allowed participants to complete research activities remotely, at their convenience. These platforms facilitated quick data collection, eliminated scheduling constraints, and reduced costs associated with traditional moderated research (by as much as 50%).

Training and Empowering Stakeholders: I was tasked by my manager and department head to conduct training sessions to equip stakeholders from different departments, including designers, developers, and project managers, with the skills and knowledge necessary to conduct unmoderated research. Training programs covered research methodologies, tools, and best practices, ensuring stakeholders had the confidence to independently contribute to the research process. 

Collaborative Research Analysis: The agency encouraged collaboration and knowledge sharing during the research analysis phase. Cross-functional teams consisting of researchers, designers, and stakeholders from various departments came together to collectively analyze research findings and generate actionable insights. This collaborative approach ensured diverse perspectives were considered and fostered a sense of ownership among stakeholders.

Results and Benefits:

The democratization of user experience research at this consulting agency yielded several positive outcomes:

Increased Efficiency: Unmoderated research methodologies allowed the agency to collect data from a larger pool of participants in less time and at a significantly lower cost. This increased efficiency enabled researchers to focus more on long-term success measurement, leading to quicker delivery of insights to clients from 3 weeks to just 5 days (in some cases even 2 or 3 days).

Broader Stakeholder Involvement: By involving stakeholders from different departments in the research process, we gained valuable perspectives from diverse disciplines. This multidisciplinary approach led to more holistic and well-informed decision-making, resulting in improved UX designs and products.

Cost Savings: Unmoderated research methodologies reduced the costs associated with recruiting participants, reducing tools used to conduct research, and scheduling constraints. The agency could conduct research at scale while maintaining a reasonable budget, making it more accessible to clients with limited resources. We started becoming a scalable option for our clients, not just meeting clients at scale.

Knowledge Sharing and Collaboration: The collaborative research analysis process fostered a culture of knowledge sharing and collaboration within the agency. Stakeholders from various departments gained a deeper understanding of user insights and research methodologies, facilitating cross-functional collaboration and improving overall project outcomes.

Conclusion:

By implementing research operations and incorporating unmoderated research methodologies, The agency successfully democratized user experience research within their organization. This approach allowed for broader stakeholder involvement, increased efficiency, and improved decision-making. The case study highlights the benefits of democratizing research through ResearchOps and unmoderated research, providing a framework for consulting agencies to enhance their UX research practices and deliver better outcomes for clients.