Project challenge
Employer: BetterUp
We hypothesized that the product team needed to change its approach to generating and testing new product ideas.
Project role
I reviewed 50 documents, presentations, and digital whiteboards related to product ideation development from the past 24 months.
Collaborators: VP of Design, Director of UX Research, and Staff Designer
Process highlights
Hypothesis
Our innovation processes need revision because current practices are ineffective.
Methodology selection
What method is appropriate to execute this research given time and impact considerations?
Presentation
What is the best way to share difficult-to-hear insights & recommendations?
Consulting
How do I navigate the conversations that my presentation and document led to?
Research tactics: Literature review, Affinity mapping, Heuristic evaluation, Design principles development
Strategy tactics: Process improvement & ideation principle development, Presentation, Jobs to be done
Sample contributions
Value delivered
600+ employees gained access to meta, tactical insights regarding what ideas we have come up with already, the success rate of those ideas, and what efforts will lead to dead-ends
“Wow, what a strategic gift you shared. Thank you! I think what resonates for me is we have a language and canonical examples of mental models from BetterUp past which is worth this team studying so we learn from our past efforts and have an opinionated view of what worked/didn’t work and why.”
Personal takeaways
Siloes and echo chambers are dangerous and can prevent organizations from reaching their full potential.
A UX researcher’s job is to deliver hard truths even if the news may be difficult for some (i.e., emphatic no, we should not do x anymore, or give a heavy critique).
Leadership ears perk up when you tell them what we need to start, stop, and continue, and have strong analysis to support your conclusions.