Stop UX Research being a Blocker. How to fit UX research into agile teams. UX research can’t be rushed but it also can’t be uncapped. Some research activities will take longer than others, but it’s most important to differentiate between research that provides specific value in the moment vs. research that pays off strategically in the long run. Foundational research methods will help you decide where you want to go, while directional methods will give you turn by turn directions for how to get there.

2. UX Research is very valuable and
should be done.
Agile is proven to be the most
effective way of developing
software and products.
I’m starting with
2 assumptions:
ASSUMPTION ONE
ASSUMPTION TWO

3. Work iteratively and listen to your users.
PUT SIMPLY

4. Hi, I’m Ben!
Desirability
Feasibility
Viability
*Where the fun stuff happens

5. Everything is always changing
Artefacts capture <10% of the insight
Researching is more valuable than research
UX Research goes stale over time
All research artefacts that we create should have a ‘best before’ printed on them.

6. CANNED MEAT & VEG
Having artefacts that will last a long
time isn’t the goal

8. “I can’t be bothered cooking tonight,
let’s get KFC.” – Ben
“You can’t eat KFC all the time
and expect to be ok” – Katherine
“I’ll start tomorrow” – Ben

9. • Diverges and converges
• Is iterative and ongoing
• Includes many members of the team
• Includes a diverse set of users
• Includes a broad range of methods
A balanced UX Research diet:
Agile
Agile
Agile

10. How can we be deciding what to build, while we are in the
middle of building it?
UX researcher part of the
cross-functional agile team
Split out as their own separate
business function
Embedded
Approach One
Abstracted
Approach Two
Where to put the UXer?

11. Agile without UX

12. Embedded but blocking

13. Abstracted but without influence

16. 1. A mind shift change
2. Be more specific in how we categorise research techniques
How can we do this?

17. Instead of being a
scientist, be a detective.

18. The differences between being a scientist and
being a detective:
Be a detective
Detectives need to be thorough,
accurate and have evidence to back
their claims. They solve their cases
not in the lab, but in the field — talking
to people, asking questions,
understanding motivations and
looking for behavioural clues.
Not a scientist
This isn’t your life’s work. You’re
not writing a PhD or building a
rocket! The stakes are much lower
than with ‘pure scientific research’,
and so too the amount of scientific
rigour expected.

19. 1. A mind shift change
2. Be more specific in how we categorise research techniques
How can we do this?

20. Foundational vs. Directional Research
What needs to stay in the team? What can be safely spun out?
FoundationalDirectional
Foundational research is the user
interviews and ethnographic research
that creates a solid foundation for
decision making.
Directional research is the pointed
usability experiments you run that
answer specific user questions to
shape the day-to-day direction of the
product.
What can be spun out into a parallel UX process?

21. The turn-by-turn directions to get
you to your destination
Deciding on the destination
FoundationalDirectional

23. Directional research
• Is pointed and has a short life span.
• Answers specific usability and product desirability
questions.
• Lives within, and is directed by, the team.
• Gets communicated simply.
The output A specific yes/no answer, or a ready-to-
implement recommendation – not a 14-page report.

25. Question
Should the button label be ‘Submit’ or ‘Register and Continue’?
Answer
We ran an A/B test of 500 visitors, and ‘Register and Continue’
performed 20% better.

26. Question
Are there any usability issues with the current screen designs?
Answer
We conducted a usability test with 6 participants and found
4 potential issues. We recommend that you (1) make the
registration button more prominent, (2) change the format of
the address field to accept P.O. boxes, (3) move the …

27. Hypothesis
We believe that by adding a new feature, our first-time users
will find the product more helpful and upgrade to the payed
version.
Answer
We ran a usability test on an early prototype and found that
first-time users were overwhelmed by features and did not
upgrade.

28. Foundational research
Aims to understand your users’ wants, needs, goals and
motivations
Stays relevant for much longer (but not forever)
Needs time to be conducted well.
Output
An artefact that captures the spirit of the findings and is
presented in a way that makes people want to continually
reference it

29. Side Note
As a UXer, you need to do a little research and
learn what Developers, PMs and Testers want
to get from your research.
What is the best format to present that in?

31. Examples
Discovery or ethnographic research
User interviews
Personas
Journey maps
Empathy maps
JTBD

33. IMPROVING WITH TIME
DIMINISHING RETURNS
INSIGHTS THAT HOLD THEIR VALUE
INSIGHTS THAT ARE RELEVANT FOR A MOMENT IN TIME
Directional Research
Foundational Research

34. Agile Research Planning
THEME
EXPERIMENT 1 EXPERIMENT 2 EXPERIMENT 3 EXPERIMENT 4 EXPERIMENT 5
QUESTIONS ASSUMPTIONS
OUTCOME
FOUNDATIONAL 1 FOUNDATIONAL 2 FOUNDATIONAL 3

35. Agile Research Planning
THEME
EXPERIMENT 1 EXPERIMENT 2 EXPERIMENT 3 EXPERIMENT 4 EXPERIMENT 5
QUESTIONS ASSUMPTIONS
OUTCOME
FOUNDATIONAL 1 FOUNDATIONAL 2 FOUNDATIONAL 3

36. Agile Research Planning
THEME
EXPERIMENT 1 EXPERIMENT 2 EXPERIMENT 3 EXPERIMENT 4 EXPERIMENT 5
QUESTIONS ASSUMPTIONS
OUTCOME
FOUNDATIONAL 1 FOUNDATIONAL 2 FOUNDATIONAL 3

37. Agile Research Planning
THEME
EXPERIMENT 1 EXPERIMENT 2 EXPERIMENT 3 EXPERIMENT 4 EXPERIMENT 5
QUESTIONS ASSUMPTIONS
OUTCOME
FOUNDATIONAL 1 FOUNDATIONAL 2 FOUNDATIONAL 3

38. 1. Your agile team is always the central and guiding force
2. Be clever with batch sizes and time boxing
3. Use the power of the team to experiment
4. Find time to re-factor
5. UX is a true cross-functional skill and responsibility
6. When in doubt, embrace the Lean UX principles
Recommendations

39. 1. Your agile team is always the central and guiding force
2. Be clever with batch sizes and time boxing
3. Use the power of the team to experiment
4. Find time to re-factor
5. UX is a true cross-functional skill and responsibility
6. When in doubt, embrace the Lean UX principles
Recommendations

40. 1. Your agile team is always the central and guiding force
2. Be clever with batch sizes and time boxing
3. Use the power of the team to experiment
4. Find time to re-factor
5. UX is a true cross-functional skill and responsibility
6. When in doubt, embrace the Lean UX principles
Recommendations

41. 1. Your agile team is always the central and guiding force
2. Be clever with batch sizes and time boxing
3. Use the power of the team to experiment
4. Find time to re-factor
5. UX is a true cross-functional skill and responsibility
6. When in doubt, embrace the Lean UX principles
Recommendations

42. 1. Your agile team is always the central and guiding force
2. Be clever with batch sizes and time boxing
3. Use the power of the team to experiment
4. Find time to re-factor
5. UX is a true cross-functional skill and responsibility
6. When in doubt, embrace the Lean UX principles
Recommendations

43. 1. Your agile team is always the central and guiding force
2. Be clever with batch sizes and time boxing
3. Use the power of the team to experiment
4. Find time to re-factor
5. UX is a true cross-functional skill and responsibility
6. When in doubt, embrace the Lean UX principles
Recommendations

46. TheFlightPlan.io

47. @ben_ralph