NIDOS Academy

12/10/2021

As a UX Researcher, empathy is a 360° effort.
Listen to Varun Murugesan on 'UX Research Helpline' about why that is and how it is done (https://open.spotify.com/episode/4OwjFB1VOGq9oH5lD5uysh).

06/10/2021

'Research Debt' is the consequence of repeatedly taking shortcuts during User Research, seriously affecting the long-term impact of your work.
Our latest blog piece tries to shed light on the issue and suggests a checklist that can help you prevent Research Debt in your organisation.

https://www.nidos-academy.org/blog/research-debt

UX Research in very fast-paced teams can lead to too many compromises that add up to huge 'Research Debt'. Learn what that means and what you can do about it.

04/10/2021

User Research is not a means to delegate design work. Yet, it seems common that interviewers ask users 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘢 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘪𝘨𝘯 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘣𝘦 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘥. That's OK. The problem is, when user’s design specs are reported as action-items. Or when feature request surveys are turned into product roadmaps.

Instead, it makes more sense to dig deeper why they want this change. What they want to achieve with it. How important that change is to them. Let designers and product people figure out what’s feasible and “what could be?” as Jakob expressed it.

For the full picture, watch Jakob Nielsen’s in one of his many insightful videos (https://www.nngroup.com/videos/designers-are-not-users/).

22/09/2021

We all had at least one stakeholder like this, right? Let's do research for them anyways, rain on their parade - and that way, help them succeed.

This and many other insights about the human mind can be found in Daniel Kahneman's book Thinking Fast and Slow. Odds are you have already read. If not - it's time to catch up.

13/09/2021

Research Thinking is the art of asking the right questions - not just when interviewing participants, but also in order to understand purpose and goals of a study before you even start it. Our online course, designed for anyone doing customer or user research in a business context (Designers, PMs, founders, researchers), teaches you strategic skills that will help you design and run better research studies.

Check it out and let us know what you learned:

Online course explaining you step by step how to think like a researcher first and dive into research next. Nina Schacht walks you step-by-step through a qualitative research study - starting from kick-off down to insights analysis.

07/09/2021

Have you ever battled with Imposter Syndrome, especially at the beginning of your career as a user researcher? You are not alone.

We asked 8 accomplished researchers (some of whom are quite recognisable faces) about their early years in the industry, their initial challenges, and their experiences with Imposter Syndrome.
Check our blog and stay tuned for part 2 and 3 of our new mini series FIRST STEPS IN RESEARCH.

Experienced researchers share stories of doubt and struggle from the beginning of their careers. And how it became a secret superpower.

07/09/2021

The MythBusters already knew: “The difference between screwing around and science is writing it down.” - So how can you take notes during your research without slowing everything down nor losing critical insights?

We've got you covered. Check our 4 favourite note-taking techniques and in what context we recommend them.

Learn about 4 fast & lean strategies on how you can take notes during a (remote) usability test or user interview - so that you can later save time on analysis.