With the digital acceleration fast-tracked by the pandemic, the pace of research needed by business stakeholders has quickened, and researchers are grappling with how to provide quality data very rapidly. For this type of research — data that provides quick answers for smaller decisions — agile is the go-to tool in a researcher’s toolbox.
But how should researchers use agile research for maximum impact? Who better to answer this question than Feedback Loop’s vice president of research, Roddy Knowles? Roddy talked about all things agile on a recent Greenbook webinar, “Agile Research in Practice: Maximizing the Impact.”
Traditional research will always have its place, but it doesn’t work for the kind of quick, iterative insights needed now more than ever. It just takes too long and costs too much. And it puts researchers in an uncomfortable position. From the outside, researchers are often seen as gatekeepers who are not providing the fast-but-reliable information other teams need to inform everyday decisions. This can result in stakeholders making decisions without any real consumer data at all, which is the worst possible outcome.
With agile research, it never needs to be this way.
“The role of research is to empower others to impact more parts of the business and support decisions with data,” Roddy says. Researchers working with an agile research platform can be true partners to product and innovation teams. Moreover, it can transform researchers into much more than gatekeepers. They can enable other stakeholders and other people within the organization to have access to the data that they need.
“Agile really provides a unique opportunity to create research evangelists, to have people who are champions for research who are not researchers,” Roddy says. “This may mean democratizing research — giving them the keys to conduct some research on their own. … Involving them in the process, making people understand the value of research, changing their view of research, and in many ways, bringing them along, so research can be more infused within the organization.”
All that, he says, increases the visibility of research and insight teams, and gives researchers a seat at the table. If you’re seen as transactional, or even worse, a roadblock, you’re going to keep waiting for that invite to the table for a long time.
Roddy talks in detail about how researchers can maximize agile methods to inform and de-risk important decisions quickly. Watch the webinar for expert insights from Roddy, including:
- Using agile research to be more predictive in the changing digital marketplace
- The best use cases for agile research, including real-world success stories
- How to use agile research in tandem with other research approaches — and when not to use it at all
- How to use guardrails to democratize safely and ensure data quality
- The four things to do to set yourself up for success with agile research
Roddy empowers researchers to use agile methods to empower their stakeholders and maximize the positive impact on their businesses. Don’t miss this informative webinar recording!
