Rosenverse

This video is only accessible to Gold members. Log in or register for a free Gold Trial Account to watch.

Log in Register

Most conference talks are accessible to Gold members, while community videos are generally available to all logged-in members.

Navigating the UX Tools Landscape
Gold
Friday, October 1, 2021 • DesignOps Summit 2021
Share the love for this talk
Navigating the UX Tools Landscape
Speakers: JP Allen and Holly Holden
Link:

Summary

Research has to come together somewhere, happen somewhere, live somewhere, and—in order for it to have an impact on product—it has to be effectively shared somewhere. There are more user research tools than ever, and choosing among them can be overwhelming. That’s why the team at User Interviews created the UXR Tools Map, along with a searchable database of over 200 user research tools. We’ll talk about the process behind creating the map, plus share insights and examples of how to create the best stack for your team, regardless of budget.

Key Insights

  • The UX Research Tools Map categorizes over 100 curated tools into five main research functions: research ops, passive insights, active research, insight management, and design tools.

  • A significant portion of UX researchers (44%) are uncertain about their research budgets, and only 8% report stakeholders frequently access research results.

  • Many UX research tools have expanded their scope, becoming multifunctional, complicating how they fit into research workflows.

  • The visual subway map metaphor helps users understand tools as single-function 'stations' or multifunctional 'interchanges' connecting multiple research tasks.

  • The tools map intentionally balances well-known products, enterprise-grade options, and innovative or lesser-known tools to avoid overwhelming users.

  • Design and curation are critical as new tools appear or existing ones evolve, requiring continuous updates and balancing complexity with usability.

  • There’s value in assembling tool stacks tailored to needs ranging from fully free DIY solutions to large enterprise setups integrating multiple platforms.

  • Qualitative data management remains a persistent challenge in UX research, requiring effective insight storage, organization, and analysis tools.

  • Some tools offer recruiting, scheduling, and incentives only through proprietary panels, leading to potential limitations in participant diversity and flexibility.

  • Collaborative tools like Figma, Miro, and Whimsical play key roles in prototyping and brainstorming during UX research to generate early feedback efficiently.

Notable Quotes

"User research is interdisciplinary; only two thirds of people who do research describe their job as primarily research."

"Only 8% of people we talk to said their stakeholders know how to access results and do so often."

"Choosing among all these research tools can be really overwhelming and intimidating."

"We took a little bit more of an editorial approach and kind of trimmed down the tools to keep it legible and usable."

"Our subway lines are tool functions, and stations are where single-function tools live."

"Multifunctional tools are interchange stations connecting several research activities."

"Sometimes we had to add bus lines simply because some tools couldn’t fit into the existing grid."

"Tools are getting much more complex and have more crossover, which made redesigning the map a challenge."

"Simple, low-fi prototyping tools can get you tons of feedback without much upfront design work."

"We’re always taking suggestions for new apps to add to the tools map for later iterations."

Ask the Rosenbot
Dave Malouf
Theme 3: Introduction and Provocation
2024 • DesignOps Summit 2020
Gold
Alana Washington
Theme 1: Introduction and Provocation
2024 • DesignOps Summit 2020
Gold
Laurent Christoph
Scale the impact of DesignOps in 3D: Diligence, Decision, Discipline
2025 • DesignOps Community
Marissa Cui
Climate Design Product Showcase
2024 • Climate UX Interest Group
Dan Mall
“Ask Me Anything” with Dan Mall, Author of Upcoming Rosenfeld Title, Design that Scales
2023 • DesignOps Summit 2023
Gold
Anupama Dhareshwar
From blueprint to bot: Designing resilient AI-powered services
2025 • Advancing Service Design 2025
Conference
Jim Kalbach
Jazz Improvisation as a Model for Team Collaboration
2017 • DesignOps Summit 2017
Gold
Ariel Kennan
Building a Design Culture
2017 • Enterprise Experience 2017
Gold
Alan Williams
Designing essential financial services for those in need
2022 • Civic Design Community
Mila Kuznetsova
How Lessons Learned from Our Youngest Users Can Help Us Evolve our Practices
2022 • Advancing Research 2022
Gold
Christian Crumlish
Introduction by our Conference Chair
2022 • Design in Product 2022
Gold
Lisa Gironda
Opener: Chief of Staff–An unexpected journey
2024 • DesignOps Summit 2020
Gold
Angelos Arnis
Navigating the Rapid Shifts in Tech's Turbulent Terrain
2023 • DesignOps Summit 2023
Gold
Holly Cole
Understanding Experiences: When you have to do more than work
2018 • DesignOps Summit 2018
Gold
Boon Yew Chew
Making Sense of Systems—and Using Systems to Make Sense of the Enterprise
2023 • Enterprise UX 2023
Gold
JD Buckley
COMMUNICATE: Discussion
2018 • Enterprise Experience 2018
Gold

More Videos

Rachel Posman

"We created separate tracks so people can self-organize, leverage the right skills, and grow their careers in focused ways."

Rachel Posman John Calhoun

A Closer Look at Team Ops and Product Ops (Two Sides of the DesignOps Coin)

November 19, 2020

Adel Du Toit

"We enable employees to provide unlimited comments which we analyze with Amazon Comprehend for sentiment."

Adel Du Toit

Get Your CFO To Say: 'Our Strategic Goal is User Obsession'

June 10, 2022

Jenny Price

"Invest in brand unification as a strategic tool to build stakeholder confidence and increase engagement."

Jenny Price

From Tradition to Transformation: Unlocking Startup Agility in a Legacy Enterprise

September 10, 2025

Jake Burghardt

"Research waste means customer insights that were unseen, ignored, or unintentionally left out of planning."

Jake Burghardt

Stop wasting research: Unlock more value from research insights

June 24, 2025

Jeff Gothelf

"The leadership gave five million bucks and said show me value in six months or we won’t give you the rest."

Jeff Gothelf

The Intersection of Lean and Design

January 10, 2019

Husani Oakley

"You can’t collaborate without communicating upfront and sharing context."

Husani Oakley

Theme Two Intro

June 6, 2023

Dan Willis

"The unsung hero of Enterprise UX isn’t the user or the researcher or the designer — it’s the person drowning in emails, Excel sheets, and project plans."

Dan Willis

Enterprise Storytelling Sessions

June 8, 2016

Shawna Hein

"Slack channels and weekly meetings encourage cross-contract collaboration, avoiding duplication and sharing learnings across teams."

Shawna Hein Kevin Hoffman

Create a Cohesive Civic Design Practice Across Agency, Vendors, and Contracts

November 17, 2022

Dane DeSutter

"You don’t need special software to get started analyzing gestures and embodied actions; you just need video and a notepad."

Dane DeSutter

Keeping the Body in Mind: What Gestures and Embodied Actions Tell You That Users May Not

March 26, 2024