The Research Lab | Oak Street Health | 6 Months | Sr. UXD

Better Research = Better Products

Lisa, a UX researcher, struggled with vague interview responses, scattered data, and slow-moving projects. Insights took too long to surface, stalling innovation and causing burn out.

Then came The Research Lab—a streamlined system that centralized data collection and analysis.

Now, Lisa gathers insights faster, helping teams make smarter decisions.

With 95% of researchers calling it “helpful” and project timelines cut by 25%, innovation finally moves at the speed of ideas.

Project Overview

THE BREAKDOWN

The Research Lab Solution

Through a 4 week process, designers are able to run their project through TRL.

They are given:
1. Research plan
2. Optimal research techniques
3. Group of participants
4. Scheduled meetings
5. Data presentation
6. Benchmark pre-post study

How do we improve Oak Street Health’s research process, resulting in better products in a shorter timeframe?

PROBLEM TO SOLVE
The research process is often treated as a checkbox rather than a crucial step in design. Designers rush through it, missing essential insights needed for optimal product creation.

GOALS
1. Get PMs, Devs + UXD aligned on research from the beginning
2. Show stronger value for UXD
3. Create a System to Flow into TheyDo
4. Utilize Product Ops
5. Rinse + Repeat, Build Autonomy
6. Research is a Non-Negotabiable

PAIN POINTS
✖️ Hard to recruit participants for research
✖️ Designers using vague testing techniques
✖️ Projects taking a long time to complete due to many rounds of iterations and feedback
✖️ Designer burn out

The Process + Findings

To build out TRL, I did a beta group for 6 months to test various research techniques, fine tuning out the final process.

I used my On-Boarding + Continued Education project to test to process.

Project Retro

Project Retro

What I’ve Learned

The Good

HUGE Improvement to Research
TRL showed the importance of stellar research and helped other people to see how small changes on their research methodologies can completely change the trajectory of their project outcome and timeline.

Built Trust with Stakeholders
Having solid research on hand is the quickest way to get stakeholder buy in

The Bad

Slow Adoption
I learned you just can’t throw a whole new process at people. You have to slowly introduce it for it to succeed and be sustainable.

Research Methods
1. Have only 1 session per month > more people = better engagement
2. Stronger recruiting
3. Miro is frustrating for non-tech people > makes people feel insecure, awkward way to start session

Opportunities

Stay Ever-Growing
Think of ways to automate by using new AI software

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