Research that changes decisions
Research that is read and forgotten is theatre. The measure of a study is the decision it changed and how quickly.
The most expensive research is the kind that confirms what the team already believed and changes nothing. The cheapest is a handful of conversations, run this week, aimed at a decision that is genuinely open.
Start from the decision
Before planning any study, name the decision it will inform and the date it will be made. If nobody can name the decision, do not run the study. If the decision has already been made, do not run the study either. Research is for open questions with a deadline.
Small, frequent, and close to the product
Five conversations every two weeks beat one large study a quarter. Sit people in front of the real product, or the closest thing to it, and ask them to do the thing they came to do. Watch where they hesitate. Hesitation is the most reliable signal in product work.
Share findings as decisions, not reports
A forty page report is where insight goes to die. Share three things. What we saw. What we now believe. What we will do differently on Monday. Put it in the channel the team already reads. Then check in a month later whether Monday actually changed.
Evidence before opinion. The product itself settles most debates if you let it.