The Future of Research Practices in Tech Companies: The Urgent Need to Evolve

The landscape of research in tech companies is undergoing a significant transformation. No longer confined to specific domains such as UX, market, or product research, the role of researchers is becoming increasingly strategic and integrated. This evolution is essential as companies shift their focus from rapid growth to long-term profitability and strategic alignment.

The Shifting Role of Research

Traditionally, research teams in tech companies have been seen as service providers, fulfilling specific requests from various departments. This fragmented approach often limits the potential impact of research, making it seem less relevant. CEOs and decision-makers are beginning to recognize the need to embed a user-centric approach into the core of their business strategies. However, there remains a gap in fully leveraging research teams to foster this mindset company-wide.

As tech companies transition from growth-centric to profitability-focused strategies, the role of research must evolve. Future research teams will become more centralized and strategic, similar to those in established corporations but with necessary adjustments. These teams will focus on managing and processing insights, outsourcing operational research tasks to specialized agencies. This new model promises to enhance the relevance and impact of research within tech companies.

The Need to Redefine Our Role to Be More Strategic

The future of research in tech companies will blur the lines between UX research, market research, and product research. Instead, the focus will shift towards the strategic role of the research team, where researchers are versatile and act as the 'insights owners.' This integrated approach combines various research methodologies and perspectives, providing a comprehensive understanding of the user and market landscape.

"Researchers need to move beyond testing products to actively shaping and informing the product and business strategy."

Strategic researchers must adopt a holistic approach, incorporating insights from all kinds of feedback from different teams (CX, marketing, customer service, sales, community, etc.). This multidisciplinary perspective allows for a more comprehensive understanding of the business context and user experience. Researchers need to move beyond testing products to actively shaping and informing the product and business strategy.

This involves mastering multiple research methodologies, from qualitative and quantitative research to market analysis and business metrics. Leveraging AI for tasks such as shaping discussion guides and data analysis can further enhance research capabilities, allowing researchers to focus on strategic insights. This is by no means an easy task; I have been struggling (and still am) to find the right balance and get the buy-in to implement this. But these are some of the key focus points that, for me, work to achieve the desired state:

Creating Tangible Products

To ensure research remains indispensable, teams must create tangible products that continuously demonstrate their value. Similar to how design and product teams have flagship products, research teams should have a tangible product/system. For me, it’s an insights dashboard. This dashboard should be used to understand the holistic view of the insights universe.

We should aggregate and triangulate data from various sources, providing a live, continuously updated view of user and market insights. If one research project is one piece of a puzzle to understand our users, this dashboard should aim to paint the whole world of our users. By having this product, we provide a common language and system to understand our users to everyone.

And by owning this comprehensive view of data, researchers can showcase their value and drive informed business decisions. It’s a drastic approach compared to the usual way of work, but from my experience, stakeholders will appreciate if we try to bring user experience into a more tangible form that can be understood easier and better.

Maintaining Regularity

A dashboard is an excellent start, but it is not enough. Insights must be communicated regularly and be accessible to stakeholders. Instead of relying on sporadic reports, researchers should continuously provide stakeholders with updated insights. This regular communication helps integrate insights into stakeholders' daily routines, making user and market understanding a part of their intuition and decision-making processes. This will also create access for researchers to have more healthy and constructive discussions, arguments, and negotiations with stakeholders.

Collective Learning

User and market insights should be accessible to everyone within the company. By collaborating with other teams that generate insights—such as customer experience, user experience, sales, product, marketing, engineering, and customer success—researchers can make the learning process accessible to everyone. This collaborative approach makes research less expensive, more inclusive, and more impactful. It breaks down silos and ensures that everyone benefits from shared insights, driving collective business growth.

Conclusion

The role of research within tech companies is at a crucial juncture. By adopting a more strategic, collaborative, and continuous approach, researchers can significantly enhance their impact and relevance. Embracing the principles of creating tangible products, maintaining regular communication, and fostering collaboration will help research teams align their work with company goals, driving both user-centricity and business success. As we move into this new era of integrated research, it is essential to build on past learnings, continuously innovate, and remain adaptable to the ever-changing landscape of technology and business.