Summary
Moving the research function out from UX can transform how insights influence product-making in an organization. In this talk, Nalini explains how and why she led this shift for her team at Salesforce, as well as the move’s effect on their work and impact. Nalini will also share lessons learned in the process - “the how to’s” and the “absolutely how not to’s” - that may inspire and guide leaders and individual contributors alike.
Key Insights
-
•
Decoupling research from UX can provide researchers with more agency to frame broader business problems beyond design.
-
•
Identity work is a fundamental challenge when moving research out of UX, requiring careful leadership attention.
-
•
Playing the long game through persistent business case building and internal socialization is essential for organizational change.
-
•
Research teams positioned alongside product management, engineering, and data science gain higher visibility and influence.
-
•
Measuring research impact becomes more complex but broader, shifting from simple metrics like study counts to influence and strategic involvement.
-
•
Research operations functions are crucial infrastructure that enable scalable, efficient research beyond UX.
-
•
Control over budget and headcount advocacy improves significantly when research reports outside UX.
-
•
COVID-19 amplified issues around identity and belonging for team members during organizational transitions.
-
•
In B2B companies like Salesforce, much product decision-making happens before UX, necessitating research involvement earlier in the lifecycle.
-
•
Providing reassurance and support for new research skills helps ease team anxieties during structural changes.
Notable Quotes
"What happens if research does not report into UX? What might happen if we uncouple research from UX?"
"We made this move in January 2020 — our research and insights team moved out of UX but stayed within product organizations."
"Conscious uncoupling is about identity — how one thinks of oneself defines oneself and how others define you."
"I believed we could do more — more for the company, customers, stakeholders, and ourselves if we had more agency."
"Our research practice was perceived largely as design testers, empathy vehicles, and policing functions — a narrow, reactive role."
"After the move, our work had more impact, more visibility, and we're present across the entire product life cycle."
"Research operations is the spine of any successful research and insights group."
"For the first time, I was able to advocate for funding directly for the research function at high executive levels."
"I underestimated how much identity our team tied to UX and how scary that loss felt to many of them."
"Our shift is structural, not because of personalities — it was needed to influence earlier, more business-centric decisions."
Or choose a question:
More Videos
"Design operations maturity has five levels: awareness, standardized, integrated, accelerated, and innovated."
Farid SabitovTheme Four Intro
September 9, 2022
"What if it’s all a hoax and we just invented a better world for no reason? That’s a good place to be."
Louis Rosenfeld Matt Jones Olga Khroustaleva Michael Leggett Karol MunozDo you want to work on climate? (Climate UX Discussion Series)
November 15, 2023
"Make a business case for yourself by bragging about your capabilities and making them applicable."
Deanna Washington Bria Alexander Jon Fukuda Saara Kamppari-Miller Farid SabitovConnecting the Ops: Plenary Panel and Closing Circle
September 9, 2022
"Design ops is not just about design; if we aren’t considering the system, then we’re destined to fail."
Jacqui Frey Alison RandSetting the Table for Dynamic Change
October 24, 2019
"Skills are modular tasks that bots can perform, triggered by specific commands or inputs."
Noz UrbinaRapid AI-powered UX (RAUX): A framework for empowering human designers
May 1, 2025
"If you organize your design system device agnostic, you can update one component with all desktop, mobile, and tablet versions inside."
Jaime CreixemsBest Practices when Creating and Maintaining a Design System
June 7, 2023
"Simplicity is the foundation of all complicated systems that work."
Daniel OrbachZero to One: Co-Creating Operating Models with your Team
September 23, 2024
"Queerness is change. The power to shape that change is within every one of us."
Dan WillisEnterprise Storytelling Sessions
June 3, 2019
"Project management was focused on outputs, assuming the correct feature was already defined."
Asia HoePartnering with Product: A Journey from Junior to Senior Design
November 29, 2023
Latest Books All books
Dig deeper with the Rosenbot
How do organizations integrate customer feedback, survey data, and interview transcripts into a single research repository?
Why is prior authorization such a persistent problem and how can patient-centered solutions be designed around it?
What role does vulnerability play in building customer trust and brand love?