Looking back, moving forward

This week from People Nerds: an interview with Dana Chisnell, how to improve as a user researcher, and ways to nail your next job interview.

"Every day is a civics lesson" Dana Chisnell has spent her career championing and evangelizing the impact design can have on civic policy. Now, when public perception of the civic process is more fraught than ever, her work could not be more vital.   PEOPLE POWER Nail the interview (before the interview) Sometimes it feels like job interviews are won and lost before you even schedule a time to meet. Luckily, we have the steps you should take before each stage of the interview process to make sure you put your best foot forward.   NAIL IT Fail, learn, and improve It's easy to feel like your growth is stagnant. You hone your skills, get used to your role, and it's harder to get out of your comfort zone. Here's a basic template for improving your core research skillset and meeting key career growth objectives.  LEVEL UP More we're discussing: A UX case study offers a chance to showcase the wide impact of your work, not to mention the full breadth of your skillset. Here's a walkthrough guide for telling your project's whole story. Our conversation with Remitly's Crystal Yan explores the value of subject position in creating useful products and shares lessons for career growth from her time in the public sector. What we're hearing:  Assumption mapping can be a quick and effective way to prioritize items during a design thinking workshop. Matthew Weprin of Aetna UX has a few templates for starting. Estimating costs while freelancing can feel impossible, especially for design. Marc-Oliver of Appnovation created a thorough guide for equitably valuing the real costs of UX design. dscout is a company composed of People Nerds working to make context-rich human insight an everyday habit across organizations. The dscout platform—Diary, Live, Recruit, and Express—enables remote qualitative research that brings researchers into the moments experienced and shared by real people. Curious about the platform or working with dscout? Talk to an account executive.  dscout, 222 North LaSalle St. Suite 650, Chicago, Illinois 60601, (312) 880-9715 Unsubscribe Manage preferences

Making your case

This week from People Nerds: how to present case studies, the art of observing (while listening to) users, & how to manage short timelines.

Your best case (study) scenario Case studies are more than good additions to your portfolio. They're an opportunity to flex your skills while demonstrating your value-add to an organization. Here's how to create (and present) winning case studies.    CASE BY CASE Have them "show, don't tell." Users can't accurately predict their future behavior. They can misremember their actions. They often don't know what they want. That means successful usability testing involves observing, not just listening. OBSERVE AND REPORT Self-advocacy for "scrappy" times Just because you're on a lean research timeline doesn't mean you should sacrifice quality and rigor. In this stream-on-demand webinar, our expert panel shows you how to meet those challenges through the power of self-advocacy.    WATCH NOW More we're discussing: Gregg Bernstein interviewed dozens of user researchers to better understand the common paths to career success. Here's a look at what he learned. Implementing UX recommendations can feel daunting. Move from insight to action (and then solution) with the trusted "How Might We?" statement, and research's tail. What we're hearing:  Started a new role as a product leader? Congrats! Now read this piece from Jens-Fabian Goetzmann to get a sense of what the heck that entails, from vision to tactics. A UX review can help prioritize experience needs and create a plan. UX Planet has a flexible template to help anyone get started—regardless of UX experience. dscout is a company composed of People Nerds working to make context-rich human insight an everyday habit across organizations. The dscout platform—Diary, Live, Recruit, and Express—enables remote qualitative research that brings researchers into the moments experienced and shared by real people. Curious about the platform or working with dscout? Talk to an account executive.  dscout, 222 North LaSalle St. Suite 650, Chicago, Illinois 60601, (312) 880-9715 Unsubscribe Manage preferences

2 minutes?

Hi Wanto,

One of our big research resolutions for 2021 is to hear more from (and be more helpful to) the People Nerds community. 

As far as resolutions go, that's pretty vague. So to put it more concretely: we'd love it if you'd fill out this 5 question, less-than-2 minute survey for us. 

Any suggestions will go a long way towards helping us plan better articles, events, and initiatives. 

Click here to complete the survey; responses are anonymous. 

Thanks so much for your time, 

Ben Wiedmaier
Research Evangelist, dscout

PS: If you ever have feedback for People Nerds, you can always reply to our emails directly. We're eager to read, and will personally respond to, your suggestions. 

dscout,
222 North LaSalle St. Suite 650,
Chicago,
Illinois

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On creative approaches

This week from People Nerds: creative approaches to inclusive research, mastering "how might we" statements, and defining research timelines

Making the hard work worthwhile Through her work for Remitly and the USDS, Crystal Yan demonstrates how inclusive work can necessitate creative approaches. She talked with us about the responsibilities—to ourselves and to our participants—that govern our best work.    READ MORE A powerful tool for turning insights into opportunities So you've finished your project, wrapped up analysis, and presented everything to stakeholders. If you're stuck on what to do next to ensure action emerges from insights, try writing a "How Might We" statement.  TRY AS WE MIGHT Go beyond the "speed or quality" dichotomy UXRs regularly face shortening completion runways, leading to an either/or decision strategy. In this stream-on-demand webinar, our expert panel covers approaches for managing speedy, scrappy, agile UX research—without sacrificing rigor or quality.   WATCH NOW More we're discussing: Brush up on your remote project management with these suggestions. They'll support impactful research as well as team sanity. Finally secured more headcount? Make sure you're expanding your notions of an "ideal" candidate by considering alternative experience paths. As the world (cognitively) shrinks, it's imperative to design across, not just down. Our conversation with Senongo Akpem outlines ways to expand your cross-cultural design practices. What we're hearing:  UX books clubs are one way to keep connected and engaged during WFH time. UX Book Club Chicago has some suggestions for starting your own, and some learnings from their recent meetups. 2020's events spotlighted the importance for human-centeredness, but Hasso Plattner School of Design Thinking's Richard Perez wonders about fewer future opportunities. Pivoting a product or service experience to better reflect your customers' realties? BuiltIn suggests considering survival metrics to empower your team and meet needs. dscout is a company composed of People Nerds working to make context-rich human insight an everyday habit across organizations. The dscout platform—Diary, Live, Recruit, and Express—enables remote qualitative research that brings researchers into the moments experienced and shared by real people. Curious about the platform or working with dscout? Talk to an account executive.  dscout, 222 North LaSalle St. Suite 650, Chicago, Illinois 60601, (312) 880-9715 Unsubscribe Manage preferences