Awkward Silences

Erin talks with Auzita Irani from AirBnB about optimizing UX research efficiency. They cover strategies for doing more with less, balancing tactical and strategic work, avoiding burnout, and leveraging tools like AI. They also discuss the impact of research, adapting to blurred work boundaries, and predictions for the future of UX.

Three UX research experts, Judd Antin, Dave Hora, and Christiana Lackner, discuss the industry's evolution, adapting methods for team dynamics, balancing business and user focus, fostering shared understanding, planning strategically, and the promise of AI. They share insights on future-proofing research practice, creating business value, and building cross-functional partnerships.

Tyler Wanlass, lead product designer at CommandBar, shares practical strategies for user research for designers and PMs. He discusses scrappy approaches, creative participant recruitment, and mixed-methods continuous discovery. Tools like session recordings and account impersonation offer deeper insights. Proactive research, social listening, and competitive analysis are key. Helpful for those without a dedicated research team looking to build thoughtful products efficiently.

Claudia Natasia, CEO of Riley AI, discusses linking research to revenue, strategic frameworks for growth, leveraging competitive analysis, creating meaningful insights, tracking research impact, and elevating projects. She emphasizes triangulating data types, balancing primary research with existing information, and making impact with decision makers and executives.

Healthcare design advisor Nadyne Richmond discusses challenges in healthcare research, like engaging professionals and patients, legal requirements, and data protection. She emphasizes the rewards and intricacies of healthcare research, including the importance of thorough planning, sensitive topics management, and balancing objectivity with empathy.

Julian Della Mattia shares insights on starting a UX research team from scratch, including strategies for success, building bridges within organizations, essential processes, and scaling research capacity. He discusses balancing research with operational tasks, connecting insights from different teams, and aligning user research with core business goals to maximize impact.

Head of Growth at Wonder, Victoria Sakal, discusses the importance of desk research in projects. She explains the continuum between primary and secondary research and the benefits of combining them. Victoria shares best practices for desk research, strategies for different company growth stages, and the impact of emergent technologies. The episode also touches on the role of curiosity in research and the benefits of reading widely.

Lauren Stern, a research sample size expert, discusses tailoring sample sizes to research objectives, qualitative confidence, diverse methodologies in quantitative research, and engaging stakeholders. She provides insights on recruiting participants, analysis approaches, international samples, drop-off rates, and participant compensation strategies. The conversation highlights the importance of advocating for sample sizes and provides resources for making informed decisions.

Expert George Whitfield discusses using AI for consumer insights, importance of human oversight, enhancing discussion sections with AI tools, AI-inspired insights as inspiration, not guidance, and applying AI in user research and product development.

Explore measuring impact of UX research with Ruby Pryor, discussing insights, optimization, strategic decisions, and quantifying business value. Learn about prioritization, building momentum, and overcoming communication frictions. Dive into challenges of quantifying impact, strategic level, and measuring strategy impact on growth, revenue, and cost reduction.