Summary
Product teams, including those I work with, struggle to overcome the grinding momentum of product delivery timelines to make room for adequate discovery, learning, and application through research. The game of product development becomes fiercer when it's not the first time, but the fourth team assembled to tackle a complex product space. In well-trod territory, strong opinions may abound, and talking past each other and rehashing approaches is rampant. Challenges that face researchers as partners in product development include establishing a sense of shared team vision, separating facts from fiction, and moving the team past hang-ups to establish a research strategy and product direction. This case introduces the idea of "grinding momentum" and outlines a stakeholder engagement process known as a FOG session that helps all team members across functional expertise areas claim voice, hear others, and share in collective aha moments that define next steps. Using a mixed-methods approach, a process is outlined to frameshift the value of existing knowledge spanning many departments within an organization, bring together distinct expertise vocabularies and analyses, and propel product partners to identify true knowledge gaps.
Key Insights
-
•
Research is often perceived as slow, but it can accelerate product development by providing clarity.
-
•
The Fog Method encourages teams to distinguish between facts, opinions, and guesses, fostering alignment.
-
•
Intuitive thinking can lead to overconfidence and errors in decision-making.
-
•
Organizational decision-making maturity evolves from intuition-driven to data-informed processes.
-
•
Grinding momentum occurs when teams rush decisions without adequate foundational knowledge or research.
-
•
A lack of analytical rigor can lead to repeated failures in product launches.
-
•
The Fog Method allows teams to gather and prioritize information collaboratively.
-
•
Changing perceptions of research from a cost center to a valuable knowledge partner enhances decision-making.
-
•
Effective cross-functional collaboration requires recognizing the strengths of both intuitive and analytical thinking.
-
•
Research should be integrated early in product development to guide effective decision-making.
Notable Quotes
"Research often gets dismissed as being too slow for decision-making."
"Intuitive thinking is automatic and can lead us to inaccurate conclusions."
"Successful organizations evolve from relying solely on intuition to incorporating data and insights."
"The Fog Method is about connecting existing knowledge and identifying gaps to promote clarity."
"Grinding momentum jeopardizes innovation because it prioritizes speed over understanding."
"Research provides a shared foundation for teams to explore assumptions and develop new strategies."
"A great idea is not enough; organizations need the tools to execute successfully."
"We have a responsibility as researchers to scrutinize the data and assumptions presented to us."
"Balanced decision-making comes from integrating fast and slow thinking processes."
"The Fog Method empowers teams to reflect on their understanding and cultivate shared knowledge."
More Videos
"It's vital to remind people in power that those they perceive as powerless often hold significant insight and influence."
Jennifer Strickland Lesley-Ann NoelFireside Chat: How Design Addresses a World on Fire
March 18, 2022
"Regularly revisit the rules of your design system; they might not apply as your product evolves."
Jaime CreixemsBest Practices when Creating and Maintaining a Design System
June 7, 2023
"It’s critical to center the voices and experiences of those directly impacted by trauma in research processes."
Uday Gajendar Rachael Dietkus, LCSW Dr. Dawn Emerick Dawn E. Shedrick, LCSWLeading through the long tail of trauma
July 13, 2022
"Trust is critical for marketplaces like Thumbtack, where customers invite pros into their homes."
Katie HansenExperimental research: techniques for deep, psychology-driven insights
March 12, 2025
"When we became our own business unit, we had our own budget and responsibility."
Dave MaloufTheme 3: Introduction and Provocation
January 8, 2024
"Design thinking and cloud computing profoundly changed my approach to work."
Jeff SussnaWhat DesignOps Can Learn From DevOps
November 6, 2017
"Focus on value first and then optimize on speed, productivity, recovery rates."
Dave MaloufClosing Keynote: Amplify. Not Optimize.
October 24, 2019
"Being participatory does not mean that you’re being trauma responsive."
Sarah FathallahA Typology of Participation in Participatory Research
March 28, 2023
"The stereotypes we hold about certain groups guide our research process"
Alba VillamilStereotyped by Design: Pitfalls in Cross-Cultural User Research
March 30, 2020
