Services
We create research that is sturdy enough to stand on. You can stress test it, argue with it, take it from the field into a boardroom and back out again, and trust that it will not fall apart.
WHAT MAKES US DIFFERENT
Research infrastructure you own
Your investment doesn’t evaporate when the project ends. We deliver infrastructure: answers, direction, and assets that compound in value. We deliver:
- Traceable findings
- Extensible research datasets with full transparency and documentation for future analysis
- Multi-format deliverables designed for different audiences
- Thought-leadership development and external publication support
- Participant-facing artifacts that validate and give back to research communities
- Insights built for implementation
WHAT WE CAN DO TOGETHER
Plan research:
When you know something needs to be understood but maybe not how to frame the right question.
Example
A client once needed to co-create a line of products with their customers, which is a great idea but requires customers to trust the people doing the research. So we designed the study backward from that moment. We used a longitudinal approach that was data collection and relationship-building in one. Small details helped like texts and calls instead of sterile check-in surveys, a single friendly point of contact, and periodic short interviews rather than one long one. By the time we arrived at participants’ homes to co-create, we weren’t researchers but friends and they were collaborators.
Conduct research:
When it’s time to go find out.
Example
A client once wanted to extend a product into different countries, including India. For that country alone, we discovered that a state’s relationship to language told us more about technology adoption than any industry report. So we went out and spoke to people in different communities based on their relationship to English, Hindu, their mother tongue, and multilingualism. We hung around internet cafes, haggled for phones in local markets, and staked out the print shops where people fill out government forms. This was crucial to get the right kind of data.
Analyze research:
When you have the data but not a defensible interpretation.
Example
In a study to measure how a local casino affects nearby youth, we had interviews with dozens of residents and survey data from hundreds more. The trends weren’t obvious until we combined the significant effects, k-means clustering results, coded interview data, and observational mapping. The quant provided the scaffold that the qual was able to complete.
Disseminate research:
When the findings need to reach people who weren’t in the room.
Example
In a project about how large accounting firms adopt technology, we designed it from the start to deliver to four different audiences: a strategic report for leadership, a detailed dataset the product team could query for years, an outline for future thought leadership pieces, and a reflective report back to the participants who helped shape the research. A well designed study should be useful to many stakeholders, in addition to answering specific research questions.
Evaluate research:
When you need to know if it’s working.
Example
Different teams across design, engineering, quality assurance, and marketing were working in parallel to build a single product, each team optimizing their own piece. We developed an evaluation approach that tested the whole: real users, guided missions, and systematic tracking of where the seams showed. This approach allowed the organization to pinpoint exactly what to prioritize and how to focus the different teams.
Design from research:
When data needs to become something.
Example
Years of resilience research in Bangkok eventually became a serious game called Arcadia. It models the intricate systems at play within different communities and initiatives throughout the city. This game is now used to ground justice policy discussions in Thailand, and it was recognized by the Association of Professional Futurists for participatory futures, experiential futures, and systems thinking.
Sophisticated Research.
Nuanced results.
617-807-0047
yuri@yzdesignworks.com