Building a ReOps Function
To scale research operations, we improved and transformed our process to enable effective, efficient research across the company. We use smart integrations between Slack, Jira, and Confluence that leverage automation to save time, keep everyone connected, and track key details. All of the improvements are closely tied to organizational goals.
DELIVERABLES
Presentation, lesson design, flow charts, system map, knowledge base, templates
METHODS
Stakeholder interviews, co-design, needs & constraints assessment
ROLE
Lead
Objective
When I started at G-P, my objective was to create a companywide Research Operations (ReOps) function, establish processes for our team, and provide transparency to other teams working with Research.
To introduce ReOps, I created the following resources: An intro video, a detailed explainer PDF, and a 25 page Knowledge Base on Confluence.
Execution
Here’s how I laid the groundwork for the new ReOps process:
• Taxonomy audit of all the tools to create a single source of truth and lay the groundwork for the repository
• Automation audit of all the tools for inefficiencies and created a process map for new workflows
• Interviewed with teams on existing process
• Made templates (emails, analysis, and more)
• Created Research Knowledge base consisting of 25+ pages and Repository of 90+ research projects
• Met with leadership and aligned with the product process
We utilized custom Zoom backgrounds to reiterate important helpful process tips in our team meetings.
Collaboration
I worked with the Jira Cloud internal team to create multiple automations to streamline our involvement in the product development process, research intake, and documentation - from initial request through repository and storage.
Process map presented to leadership to align with other department’s processes
High level research process with the teams involved
Impact
The documentation I created gave our cross-functional team members valuable information to clarify and democratize our workflow:
Who we are and our assigned teams: We divide the product teams between the two of us so we can cover more ground.
What we do: List of our 'services' that we provide including the research methodologies we employ, and more.
Tools we use: A curated collection of tools, software, and resources that we use during the research process.
Working with us: Guidelines and best practices for seamless collaboration between researchers and teammates, ensuring a harmonious workflow and effective communication.
Your role in research: Clearly defined descriptions of each team member's role within the research team, outlining their responsibilities and areas of expertise.
Research process for projects: This section provides a solid foundation of our approach to conducting research.
Resources: These resources include links to our Product Research Repository (all existing research) Tools We Use, Information Architecture (Confluence, Jira, User Testing), Naming Conventions (Confluence, Jira, User Testing), Helpful tips for Analysis, Figma tips for usability testing, our Lucidspark templates for analysis, and more.
By utilizing the Knowledge Base, the company has access to our team's objectives, processes, and collaboration requirements. It serves as an invaluable reference point to dive deeper into our work.
Reflection
To ensure easy adoption, I made a presentation for the UX team along with a video explainer and lesson content for Product Managers (assigned to them). All educational content was well-received and shared on G-P’s enterprise learning tool.
Teammate recognition
Massive thank you! The time, effort and quality you put in to organizing customer emails, scheduling/facilitating research calls, and not to mention providing an excellent method for us to review and define our findings! Awesome work, looking forward to doing it all again.
- Product Manager
Amazing job with the definition of the research process and the Lessonly! We're so lucky to be able to have you. Thanks for all you do!
- Senior Product Manager
Wow Britt! Thank you for the amazing work you have done on the Research process and tools. Your dedication and hard work on this will be a huge benefit across the whole of G-P.
- My Director
Great work on setting up and documenting the new research process, tools, and templates. It was a huge undertaking and you did an amazing job of organizing and presenting a ton of information.
- My Manager
Engagement metrics from company learning tool