New report: Better Research, Better Design
We are pleased to announce the release of a new report, Better Research, Better Design: How to Align Teams and Build a Human-Centric Company Culture.
Sponsored by the Department of Anthropology at the University of Amsterdam and published by the American Anthropological Association, this report describes how companies can build better research teams, ultimately resulting in better product design, happy teams and happy customers. Based on interviews with researchers working in companies, it provides a toolkit and framework for researchers to implement micro changes into their work processes, teams, and their own practice.
The report provides a strategic and tactical template on how to move your team from low to high research maturity. It outlines four building blocks to help audit your values, roles, teamwork, and communication. This is accompanied by stories, challenges, and lessons faced by solo practitioners working alone or embedded in teams in various departments. The researchers’ experiences are sources of support, relief, inspiration, and laughs that can inspire others facing similar challenges. There is no better time than recovering from a pandemic to examine and align ourselves to a hopeful and meaningful work life.
The report includes a Foreword by anthropologist Gilllian Tett, author of Anthro-Vision: How Anthropology Can Explain Business And Life (2021, Simon and Schuster). Gillian notes:
“The pandemic has also highlighted a wider lesson about the need to be curious about strangers—and different cultures—in an interconnected world.”
Anthropologist Laurens Bakker, who is Associate Professor at the University of Amsterdam and author of Anthropologists Wanted: Why Organizations Need Anthropology (2021, Amsterdam University Press, stated:
“A very insightful and stimulating report that provides useful tools and background to practitioners and students alike.”
The report can be downloaded for free as a PDF or epub from the American Anthropological Association website. It can also be purchased in print form.
