Summary
What is “impact” in the context of research? Should we strive for influencing product decisions or shifting organizational thinking? Is it measurable or qualitative? And what does it take to achieve it? Join our expert panel as they share their unique perspectives on defining and achieving research impact, offering illuminating examples from their own experiences. Don't miss this lively, thoughtful discussion that transcends traditional metrics and explores the profound ways in which research can make a lasting difference.
Key Insights
-
•
Building relationships and trust within the organization is as vital as executing good research to gain influence.
-
•
Research advocacy and storytelling are inseparable from the research process itself.
-
•
A skilled researcher can have zero impact, while less-skilled researchers might achieve great influence through networks and culture.
-
•
Early stakeholder engagement and co-creation improve buy-in and help research outputs be adopted.
-
•
Organizational learning and influence often happen gradually over years, not instantly.
-
•
Impact should be measured in changed perspectives and conversations, not just concrete product changes.
-
•
Soft skills like persuasion, visual storytelling, and coalition building are critical for researchers' influence.
-
•
In some sectors, especially public, aligning research with the social mission is necessary for true impact.
-
•
Researchers have unique opportunities to influence by helping organizations diagnose real problems deeply and clearly.
-
•
Trusted advisor relationships built on credibility, reliability, and intimacy empower lasting researcher impact.
Notable Quotes
"I think you can't be good at research unless you're also good at getting that research across."
"You can be an amazing researcher and have zero impact, or a bad researcher and have amazing impact."
"Building those relationships, building trust, it will always pay off."
"It's not a match-winning pass if no one catches it."
"Sometimes it's just not even related to the research skills, sometimes relationships really matter."
"We don’t just stop the research project when we collect data; analyzing, extracting insights, and shaping the narrative is part of it."
"Impact can be about changing the way people talk about the problem and see the customer."
"Fall in love with the problem, not the solution."
"Good research can be the best thing for the diagnosis of the problem in a strategy."
"The greatest impact is when people call me directly or give a brief to me directly; it's about relationships."
Dig deeper—ask the Rosenbot:
More Videos
"It’s not about old versus new. It’s about trust and deeply rooted habits."
Maria SkaadenContinuous Design: One eye on the horizon and the other on the next wave
November 8, 2018
"Anytime you have to justify something by saying just this one time, you know you’re going down a bad road."
Dan WillisEnterprise Storytelling Sessions
May 13, 2015
"You can change the time zone on Rosenfeld Media’s website to reflect your local time."
Bria AlexanderOpening Remarks
January 8, 2024
"Being able to see faces and first names of people we're learning from makes those users tangible to the team."
Catherine DubutBridging Physical and Digital Spaces: Approaches to Retail Service Design
March 18, 2021
"Communication and processes are the core focus areas where design ops teams invest most of their efforts."
Angelos ArnisState of DesignOps: Learnings from the 2021 Global Report
October 1, 2021
"The kind of leadership I was craving was creative leadership, not people management."
Edward CuppsThe Principal Path: Journeying from Management to Individual Contributor
June 11, 2021
"Diagramming is kindness we give to ourselves and others to get our bearings on things we’re stuck on."
Abby CovertStuck? Diagrams Help
October 27, 2022
"Travel is impactful to let your remote teammates experience your context, which helps build empathy."
Jilanna WilsonDistributed DesignOps Management
February 26, 2019
"Life has a way of working itself out."
Maria GiudiceEmpowering change: Reigniting purpose, passion and impact in research
March 13, 2025
Latest Books All books
Dig deeper with the Rosenbot
How can enterprises manage over 90 theme variants in Figma despite its 40-mode variable limit?
How can design teams build effective feedback systems that scale across large organizations?
What responsibilities should design ops take on regarding frameworks like onboarding and career growth templates?