Improving UX Research Quality with Cross-Department Collaboration

Collaboration across departments is essential to enhance the quality and impact of research outcomes. This talk offers practical strategies for leveraging cross-functional teams to achieve superior research quality.

Key Topics Covered:

1. Introduction to Cross-Department Collaboration

- Importance of collaboration in enhancing UX research quality
- Personal experiences and insights from a research operations manager


2. Building Effective Collaborative Structures

- Identifying and leveraging key roles within the organization (e.g., PMs, Devs, UX Researchers, Designers)
- Utilizing operations teams as the connective tissue to foster collaboration


3. Maximizing Research Impact

- Techniques for presenting research findings in an impactful way
- Importance of executive summaries and tailored presentations for different stakeholders


4. Following Through on Research

- Ensuring continuous follow-up on research to track its impact
- Strategies for confirming next steps and validating research outcomes


5. Breaking Down Research for Broader Application

- Concept of Atomic UX Research and its application
- Storing and managing research data in repositories for easy access and reuse

1. Improving
UX Research Quality
with Cross-Department Collaboration
Photo by Mel Poole on Unsplash

2. I’m Kasey Canlas.
2
Hello!

3. I don’t know how to do this…
3
…all by myself
Photo by ÉMILE SÉGUIN on Unsplash

4. •PM, Dev, and UX are equal partners.
•Globally-dispersed.
•Centralized UX team, individuals
dedicated to products.
•UXR and UXD may be across several
products, due to size.
•Larger companies may have PM, Dev,
and UX have operations team
members.
Cross-functional Structure
4
Product Product
UXR/ UXD
PM
DEV
PM
DEV

5. Process
5
PM and UX
collaborate
on
generative
research
UX develops
wireframes and
prototypes
If all goes well,
DEV resources are
scoped and build.
Product
released
UX tests
concepts,
then
usability.
Final reviews,
beta if needed
Track
analytics to
determine
success

6. 1. Less is more.

2. Follow that research.

3. Break it down

4. Find the right people
TOPICS

7. Less
is More
Else, people may die of boredom.

8. Please no.
8
…an old mother pig had three little pigs and not enough food to feed them. So when they were old enough, she sent them out into the world
to seek their fortunes. The first little pig was very lazy. He didn't want to work at all and he built his house out of straw. The second little pig
worked a little bit harder but he was somewhat lazy too and he built his house out of sticks. Then, they sang and danced and played together
the rest of the day. The third little pig worked hard all day and built his house with bricks. It was sturdy, complete with a fine fireplace and
chimney, and it looked like it could withstand the strongest winds. The next day, a wolf passed by the lane where the three little pigs lived; he
saw the straw house and smelled the pig inside. He thought the pig would make a mighty fine meal and his mouth began to water. So he
knocked on the door and said: Little pig! Little pig! Let me in! Let me in! But the little pig saw the wolf's big paws through the keyhole, so he
answered: No! No! No! Not by the hairs on my chinny chin chin! Then the wolf showed his teeth and said: Then I'll huff, puff, and blow your
house down. So he huffed, puffed, and blew the house down! The wolf opened his jaws very wide and bit down as hard as he could, but the
first little pig escaped and ran away to hide with the second little pig. The wolf continued down the lane and he passed by the second house
made of sticks; and he saw the house, and he smelled the pigs inside, and his mouth began to water as he thought about the fine dinner they
would make. So he knocked on the door and said: Little pigs! Little pigs! Let me in! Let me in! But the little pigs saw the wolf's pointy ears through
the keyhole, so they answered back: No! No! No! Not by the hairs on our chinny chin chin! So the wolf showed his teeth and said: Then I'll huff
and I'll puff and I'll blow your house down! So he huffed and he puffed and he blew the house down! The wolf was greedy and he tried to
catch both pigs at once, but he was too greedy and got neither! His big jaws clamped down on nothing but air and the two little pigs
scrambled away as fast as their little hooves would carry them. The wolf chased them down the lane and he almost caught them. But they
made it to the brick house and slammed the door closed before the wolf could catch them. The three little pigs they were very frightened,
they knew the wolf wanted to eat them. And that was very, very true. The wolf hadn't eaten all day and he had worked up a large appetite
chasing the pigs around and now he could smell all three of them inside and he knew that the three little pigs would make a lovely feast. So
the wolf knocked on the door and said: Little pigs! Little pigs! Let me in! Let me in! But the little pigs saw the wolf's narrow eyes through the
keyhole, so they answered back: No! No! No! Not by the hairs on our chinny chin chin! So the wolf showed his teeth and said: Then I'll huff and
I'll puff and I'll blow your house down. Well! he huffed and he puffed. He puffed and he huffed. And he huffed, huffed, and he puffed, puffed;
but he could not blow the house down. At last, he was so out of breath that he couldn't huff and he couldn't puff anymore. So he stopped to
rest and thought a bit. But this was too much. The wolf danced about with rage and swore he would come down the chimney and eat up the
little pig for his supper. But while he was climbing on to the roof the little pig made up a blazing fire and put on a big pot full of water to boil.
Then, just as the wolf was coming down the chimney, the little piggy pulled off the lid, and plop! in fell the wolf into the scalding water. So the
little piggy put on the cover again, boiled the wolf up, and the three little pigs ate him for supper.

9. Three little pigs
9
Illustration by L. Leslie Brooke from the 1904 version of the Three Little Pigs

10. Make it easy to find and understand.
10
▸Write an executive summary about why this project was
done and 3-5 important details.
▸Reports and presentation decks should be placed in a
location that everyone in the company can access.
▸Include the recording of your presentation (if possible).
▸Include links to prototypes.

11. 11
When
everything
is important…



nothing is.

12. PM
Product
Management
▸User needs
▸Dev effort and feasibility
▸Prioritized findings/recommendations
▸Usability and desirability
Need to know
▸Adoption of features.
▸Efficiency by the user in the product.
▸Empathy for users through quotes,
videos, and stories.

Place value on

13. DEV
Developers
▸Clear designs and specifications
▸Acceptance criteria

Need to know
▸Confirmation through user behavior,
quantitative data, and benchmarks
▸Clarity. The less specific and clear,
the more room for error.


Place value on

14. VP+
Executives

▸Impact to business goals
▸Competitive advantages
▸Any issues? List potential solutions

Need to know
▸Visualize quantitative data
▸Executive summaries to provide
context and important details.


Place value on

15. Follow that
Research
Don’t just wave goodbye and let it go off on its own.

16. What happens at the end of a project?
16

17. Talk to Stakeholders.
17
After your final presentation
▸Verify all research questions were answered and
recommendations are clear and actionable.
▸Confirm the next steps verbally and written.
▸Schedule future check-ins:
╺Did research inform decisions? Were recommendations
followed? Why or why not?
╺(after release) Did the decisions informed by the research
generate measurable value?

18. Break
It Down
Not in a dancing sort of way

19. Think product vs project
Break down the research study into smaller parts.
19
▸Experiments Explain the research methodology and
the steps followed
▸Facts Document the main findings evident from the
data gathered
▸Insights Capture the key insights extracted from
analyzing the research data
▸Opportunities List the decisions and action items
resulting from the research analysis
Credit: Atomic UX Research by Daniel Pidcock
Photo by Nike on Unsplash

20. More evidence for decisions
20
Credit: Atomic UX Research by Daniel Pidcock

21. •Shared knowledge library- includes all
your user research data, UX research
reports, and deliverables.
•Researchers are often the primary
contributors, but everyone can benefit
from the knowledge of past projects.
•Allows everyone access to user insights
to inform themselves and enables
research-driven decisions.
User Research Repository
21
Photo by Martin Adams on Unsplash

22. •Structure your repo for your visitors.
•A well-defined research taxonomy.
Tags categorize the data so it can be
located easily.
•Company-wide access to insights.
Limit raw data to those who need it.
•Maintenance is required.

What Matters Most
22
Photo by Jo Szczepanska on Unsplash

23. Find the
Right People
Quality participants means quality research.

24. Generative Interviews
24
Elementary science teachers

25. The right users
25
Elementary science teachers

5+ years of experience

26. The right users
26
Elementary science teachers

5+ years of experience
Specialize in STEM integration

27. Once long ago,
in a far far land.
27

28. Employees
who interact
with
customers
▸Reassurance that research
participation will not negatively
impact their relationship with their
customers.


Need to know
▸Insights from participants.
▸Customers feel valued.
▸Notified if their participants want to
participate again.

Place value on

29. 1. Less is more.

2. Follow that research.

3. Break it down

4. Find the right people
TOPICS

30. There is no
one-size-fits-all
approach..

31. Thank you!

32. https://www.uxmatters.com/mt/archives/2018/07/providing-better-ux-rec
ommendations.php
https://www.ere.net/articles/impress-your-ceo-by-focusing-on-the-things-
they-care-about
https://maze.co/blog/user-research-repository/#definition
https://blog.prototypr.io/what-is-atomic-research-e5d9fbc1285c
https://www.nngroup.com/articles/common-ux-deliverables/





Resources: