Fostering a Culture of Research within Agile Processes

Abstract

This project focuses on the integration of User Research in a Qualitative approach into an Agile work environment by conducting an in-house Case Study with Werkspot (Home improvement platform in the Netherlands). Customer expectations have hit an all-time high globally (Salesforce Research 2018) and as such, companies are expected to provide experiences beyond products (physical or digital). This has impacted the way companies must operate going forward, by recognizing and addressing customer involvement throughout the development process. The challenge relies in integrating two seemingly contradicting processes Agile development (fast-paced) and Qualitative Research practices (slow-paced) into a seamless operation. The objective is to include the end-users early in the development process. In this way, Werkspot is able to increase the chances of success of product features by implementing a validation phase prior to development process. This project makes a research distinction into Validative Research (concept or idea testing in an attitudinal level) and Explorative Research (learning from users on a behavioural level). Through the Research Case Studies (Section 04: ‘Research in practice’), Validative and Explorative research methods are tested and accelerated to operate under the Agile work setting from Werkspot. The result is a Qualitative Research Process for Werkspot, through this process, the company can continuously involve users in the development of the platform.