Throughout the last few years, the concepts of “consumer centricity” and “customer centricity” have become increasingly common terms in the insights industry. Just look at any market research conference agenda for evidence: human-centered design is everywhere, and it starts with research initiatives.

The popularity of these terms isn’t without reason; we know that companies that leverage customer insights perform better. And we know that to perform better, our industry must deliver experiences tailored to the wants and needs of customers.

The principles of human-centered design ensure companies create products and potential solutions for the human beings that are their customers. Yet as these consumer-centric concepts continue to evolve, our industry will need to dig deeper into what it takes to truly achieve them. More specifically, how can we put forth experiences that streamline insights management? The answer lies in human centricity. 

What is a human-centric theory in market research?

The term “human centricity” is increasingly gaining momentum. But the use of the term in the context of knowledge workers, and specifically insights teams, deserves more attention. What does it actually mean to prioritize the human experience in the insights industry?

When applied to customers or consumers, it invokes a sense of focusing on their full personhood to create efficient and reliable solutions. It’s the constant reminder that individuals are not just people who have bought or will buy products or services. Simply put, they are human: with changing needs and habits that make them unique, yet in many ways in line with others. And we must design our products, systems, and solutions with this concept in mind so that we can truly achieve customer satisfaction through centricity.

Insights teams are in a unique position to show the industry what’s possible, influencing the creation of human-centric products, experiences, campaigns, and solutions through human-centric ways of working.

How does human-centered technology help?

To create human-centric experiences, our industry must be tech-forward. In order to put humans first, companies need to actually be more technologically advanced by exploring ways of working that make life easier and better for everyone.

The right technology will remove obstacles and free up time, energy, and headspace that can be devoted to the hardest part of achieving human centricity: changing the way humans work. The right tech isn’t one-size-fits-all either. It needs to be flexible, tailored, and intuitive.

For example, the ultimate goal of an insights archive is to ensure that insights are integrated into decision making. But in order to achieve that outcome, individuals must actually use it. That means avoiding insights technology that consistently comes up short or lacks a user-friendly interface – essentially, if it doesn’t actually work, people won’t use it.

To ensure that people actively want to use an insights solution, providers need to make them feel like the technology is built for them (hence, being human-centric). This involves customizing their experience on the organizational, team, and individual level to maximize relevancy.

As technology continues to integrate deeper into our lives, more questions will arise around our relationship with it and the subsequent impacts on our wellbeing. This journey can be complicated, but it doesn’t have to be. A simple solution lies in putting humans first to create the coveted customer-centric experiences.

Building a human-centric culture

It will be near impossible to cultivate the creativity and critical thinking required to make human-centric decisions unless organizations equip the humans that keep them running with resources.

Building a human-centric culture is difficult because it requires assessing on a practical level what human-centric work looks like in any given organization. Because while there are certainly best practices out there, the success of those best practices depends on them being tailored to each individual company.

Effective communications strategies and knowledge sharing are critical here, requiring humans to ensure they are tailoring the way they share information with others.

Asynchronous communication has gained a lot of attention recently due to both globalization and the increased move to remote work. Used effectively, it enables individuals to collaborate and share background information. Yet, synchronous communication remains vital with meetings – virtual or in-person – enabling humans to connect.

Ultimately, the notion of human centricity cuts through all the noise. We need to unify the endless to-do lists, goals, objectives, strategies, and directives under one single intention: to put humans first.