Navigating Research Findings and Researching Through Design
Check out our previous post: Observations to Opportunities: Mapping our Research Path
During Sprint 3, we continued to accumulate additional data through research and applied various tools and models to synthesize our findings. Additionally, we initiated the creation of a pretotype as an experimental approach to research through design.
Research Activities
Analysis-Synthesis Bridge model
This sprint began with our team developing an analysis-synthesis bridge model. This strategy enabled all team members to gain a shared understanding of our progress and the information gathered thus far. Within this framework, we translated our current status into abstract concepts and explored potential future models that could be beneficial for TMP. Moreover, it assisted us in identifying the resources required to achieve these envisioned future states, guided our research direction in defining TMP’s success metrics, and made plans to investigate capacity-building assessment tools for TMP clients. As our project evolves, we plan to refine and iterate on this model through continued research with various stakeholders.
Pretotyping activity
In our current phase of research, we have gained insights from synthesized data and brainstormed some options for design. To test the assumptions and better inform future design directions, we decided to give it a try (by prototyping it) as inspired by Albert Savoia’s work, Pretotype It. This approach serves as a means to assess our ideas and confirm assumptions during the initial phases of design, aiding us in making more informed decisions for subsequent design directions. After engaging in brainstorming sessions that generated a list of assumptions and potential pretotype concepts, our group selected the riskiest assumption and pretotyped a chatbot. The assumption we tested was whether customers would interact with a machine in their solution-exploring phase, considering our finding that TMP’s service presently relies on human labor.
Employing the Wizard of Oz method, we designated a team member to play the role of a “chatbot” interacting with customers to gather information and offer service recommendations given their requirements. Our pretotype aimed to explore if there exists a universal framework applicable to customers’ inquiries and to understand people’s expectations and needs in interactions between humans and machines as opposed to human-human interactions.
Capacity building activity with clients
To understand the actual outcomes, desired outcomes, and specific success metrics employed by TMP staff, we prepared a capacity-building activity for our client. This exercise focused on three key aspects: the training content TMP offers to its clients, the technical assistance provided by TMP, and the application of Salesforce. This activity provided us with significant insights into the current practices of TMP staff members and enriched our understanding of their roles within the organization. Moreover, it allowed us to empathize with TMP members’ challenges, which represent opportunities for our future prototype development. Furthermore, the success metrics we uncovered will guide us in evaluating whether our forthcoming solutions effectively meet the staff’s needs and enhance their operational efficiency.
Contextual inquiry plan
Regarding our future research, we believe that visiting the TMP office in person to immerse ourselves in the working environment of TMP staff will be valuable. This approach will enable us to uncover subtle details and contextual factors that impact the efficiency of the staff and TMP’s ability to build relationships with their clients. Consequently, we decided to conduct a contextual inquiry. The two primary activities we aim to observe and learn from are:
- Client Call: Observing a client call to see how TMP staff members interact with their clients. This will help us gain insights into the clients’ needs, understand TMP’s service delivery process, and identify potential areas for improvement that could benefit both TMP staff and their clients.
- Staff Meeting: Participating in a staff meeting as observers to understand the internal dynamics of the TMP team. This will provide us with a closer look at the roles TMP staff members assume within the team and how they collaborate to address clients’ needs and feedback.
These activities are designed to deepen our understanding of TMP’s operations and identify opportunities for enhancing both the client and staff experience.
5 Whys activity with faculty
The 5 Whys is a technique that involves asking “why” multiple times in succession to identify the root cause of a problem. The goal is to delve deeper into the underlying factors contributing to problems we have discovered so that we can address the root cause that would bring greater impact.
We conducted 5 Whys activities with both our faculties and within our groups and gained insightful findings. It helped us to think about possible directions to advance our research. For instance, when exploring the reasons for the current underutilization of technology, we examined factors such as the staff motivation, which could be further explained by relationships among stakeholders. To further validate the findings, we will incorporate new techniques and expand on existing ones, which also enhances the richness of our method map.
Literature review
To gain a better understanding of the theories and the mentoring system, we also review research papers covering various topics derived from our previous research (as shown in the screenshot below). To evaluate their applicability to our projects, we systematically documented the experimental methods employed and the variables in each paper. Below are our findings from the literature review.
Competitive analysis
The competitive analysis allowed us to draw insights from analogous domains. We conducted competitive analysis in both internal and external industries.
- Internal
The internal competitive analysis involves examining non-profit organizations engaged in mentorship to understand their offerings and success metrics. We explored the services these organizations provide to their clients, such as offering strategic support by facilitating discussions among members with deep expertise in specific areas to share and develop strategies. Additionally, we looked into the common success metrics they employ to evaluate the effectiveness of their programs. These metrics include assessing the impact through funds raised and evaluating the reduction in aggressive behavior among mentees following participation in mentor-mentee programs. The insights gained from this analysis help guide our subsequent research and integrate these findings into TMP’s operational strategies.
- External
The external competitive analysis included the non-profit organizations providing capacity-building services in diverse industries such as consulting, animal protection, healthcare, and more.
Our exploration involved understanding their success metrics, and we found useful resources like incorporating a rating system to quantify service quality. Furthermore, we uncovered intriguing insights regarding their interactions with diverse stakeholders and engagement with the public to amplify their business impact. These findings hold valuable implications for our future design considerations.
Next Steps
Combining all the activities we have done this sprint, we will initiate the drafting of success metrics and will continue our conversation with the client to refine these metrics. It would ensure that our design aligns with their expectations and carefully contemplates the potential short-term and long-term impact.
We also plan to consolidate our insights from previous research methods and integrate them into a comprehensive research guide for upcoming research activities, which will involve contextual inquiries and interviews with mentoring organizations and mentors.
Note: This project is not intended to contribute to generalizable knowledge and is not human subjects research.
