How can you present user research findings to stakeholders with limited time?

You need to understand the stakeholder's mindset and expectations because, for you, it's just a project, but for them, it's their one and only product. To comprehend their perspective, engage in conversations about products and delve a little into their personal preferences and thought processes. Show them images from Pinterest and other portals, seeking their opinions on design, colors, format, etc. This will define their preferences, and their input will assist you in visualising their expectations for both you and the product.

I'd do some prep work and figure out what metrics are the ones they really want to move the needle on. It can be really tempting to share all the insights you get because people are super interesting and you get all sorts of 'that's a banger quote' insights during a research study, but I'd shave it down to the insights that directly relate to the main metrics. For the actual presentation, I'd reemphasize the goal of the research, the main metrics we want to move, relevant findings and a couple of really impactful quotes (1 or 2). A good mix of numbers and qual would also probably have more of an impact. I've personally found ending with next steps is a good way to have a healthy discussion too!

'Understanding your client's unique perspective, age, and experience can dramatically impact the effectiveness of your presentation. Here's my pre-presentation prep routine: Discovery calls with a twist: During project kick-off calls, I go beyond gathering information. I actively listen to understand each stakeholder's 1. unique perspective on the project: Everyone has their own lens. Identifying these viewpoints ensures I address all angles. 2. Level of design knowledge: This allows me to adjust the technical depth of my presentation to avoid confusing jargon or overlooking crucial details. By putting in this early effort, I craft presentations that truly connect with my audience, increasing engagement and driving successful outcomes.'

Its important to be concise and clear while When presenting user research findings to stakeholders with limited time. here are some tips: - Focus on the most important findings: identify the key insights that are relevant to your stakeholders and present them in clear form. - Use visual aids: use infographics, this help to highlight your findings and insights _ Use storytelling: Use real-life examples and anecdotes to illustrate your findings and make them more relatable. - Provide actionable recommendations: your stakeholders will be more likely to act on your findings if you provide them with actionable recommendations. Make sure your recommendations are specific, measurable, and achievable.

In my experience tailoring your insights to your audience is a game-changer. Knowing their needs and expectations ensures relevance, keeping them engaged and receptive to implementing recommendations. It's not just about data; it's about crafting a narrative that resonates with the decision-makers, making your insights more impactful and actionable. - Audience Analysis: Understand their roles, interests, and expertise. - Relevance Prioritization: Highlight insights directly impacting their goals. - Engagement Tactics: Use interactive elements or anecdotes to maintain interest. - Actionable Recommendations: Present solutions aligned with their decision-making capacity.

Start with the conclusion / results of your research first. At Disney they use a great story telling framework to present ideas and thoughts that might be helpful while you craft your presentation. The Disney Storytelling format: The world is a certain way, There is a shift in the way the world works, The world is now different. Remember to craft a story around your research so that it is not just numbers and figures but rather actionable human insights supported by data and emotion.

Why is it necessary to present research findings to users? Users are primarily concerned with the final outcome and experience. However, when presenting findings to stakeholders, it is beneficial to use graphical and numerical representations, as they may not possess a deep understanding of design principles and usage. This allows us to elucidate the business aspects of our findings, demonstrating how they can enhance their product and contribute to customer satisfaction. we can present the research in a comparative format, accompanied by real examples from their competitors and existing products. This approach will assist stakeholders in comprehending the impact of their decisions or the functionality on their product and customers.

I totally agree to always start with summary or conclusion as people, especially working people tend to skim. This would be a good affordance to cater their need. Then, one thing that I've always found helpful from my professor is to ensure your first or last sentence as the main idea or conclusion of the paragraph. The first sentence should always communicate a crystal clear of what are you going to talk about and if people don't find it, they would jump to the last sentence.

When you're sharing your user research findings, it's smart to start with the results first, especially when you're dealing with stakeholders who have limited time. Make sure to highlight what's most important to them. Having a clear structure in your presentation is key. Begin with an executive summary on one slide, summarizing the main project insights, and use quotes or videos to illustrate them. This approach grabs the audience's attention and lets you explore specific topics more deeply if someone asks questions or needs more information.

the structure should also show the criteria for categorizing the results as successful and representative or not. If it could be the case that only 10% of the sample has an opinion and we decide to pivot or take action for that 10%, it is important to define what will be the criteria for acceptance of the results.

When my stakeholders have limited time, I've found the most success creating a 3 slide powerpoint that's easily digestible and can be distributed quickly. An easy structure to follow: 1. Slide 1 - the purpose of the research, specifically what were the business questions/goals that spurred the research in the first place. 2. Slide 2 - your findings with a distinct effort to prioritize based on user impact, need, frequency, brand perception etc. 3. Slide 3 - how those findings illuminate a path towards current business strategy and your recommendations (future research, product iterations, roadmaps, etc.)

What I've found helpful is to effectively communicate the insights gathered from the research in the best goal-oriented way. Highlight those insights that best answered your research questions You can use a power point slide to show this finding and give a short presentation to support the slides.

Guy Kawasaki who is one of Apple's first product and marketing evangelist, has a wonderful framework for being clear and concise. He has the 10/20/30 Rule of Presentation Design. A presentation should have ten slides, last no more than twenty minutes, and contain no font smaller than thirty points. Ten slides: Because human being cannot comprehend more than ten concepts in a meeting. Twenty minutes: You should give your ten slides in twenty minutes, even if you have a 60min time slot. Either use the balance of time to discuss next steps or save everyones time and let them leave early. Thirty-point font: Your slides should be a visual aid to what you are saying and not an essay. Use large font and know your content.

Stakeholders are typically business-oriented individuals rather than designers. Even if you attempt to present and explain everything, they may struggle to comprehend and could lose focus. Therefore, it is crucial to be very precise in discussing features and how these features or improvements can enhance revenue and customer satisfaction. Focus on presenting the sections that require their opinion and consent. Additionally, strive to communicate everything in graphical and numerical formats, as these are formats they understand better.

One thing I’ve found immensely helpful is the emphasis on prioritization. It’s crucial to select the most impactful findings aligned with research goals and design objectives. This ensures that the limited time available is utilized optimally, delivering valuable insights without overwhelming stakeholders with excessive information. However, I’d slightly disagree with the notion of entirely avoiding technical terms. While simplifying language is essential for clarity, occasionally, technical terms can efficiently convey specific insights to the relevant stakeholders. The key is to strike a balance: simplifying complex concepts while using technical terms judiciously to maintain accuracy and depth in the presentation.

Leveraging visuals and compelling narratives offers several advantages in presenting information effectively. It boosts engagement, making data relatable and memorable. Visual elements aid in swiftly comprehending complex information, saving time. Stakeholders respond well to stories and visuals, streamlining decision-making. To enhance storytelling, use user experience maps for a holistic view of a persona's journey and verbatim quotes for empathy. When communicating challenging information, employ design techniques and adapt content to the audience's language. Recognize individual motivations and tailor your narrative to capture attention and maximize impact.

Storytelling could be enhanced by - 1) User experience maps can help communicate the needs, behaviors and opportunities across the phases of a persona's journey all at once. 2) Verbatims to build empathy

Create a presentation summarizing key insights, use visuals like charts or graphs, focus on actionable recommendations, and be prepared to answer questions efficiently to make the most of limited time.

Let stakeholders hear the respondents. Show that behind the insights and recommendations that result from them are real people who use this product. People who have problems, needs, goals, and their own perspectives. Stakeholders often have limited time, so when presenting research results, I often create 2-3 minute video compilations with the most important and interesting statements. Those that allow a better understanding of users, and consequently, empathizing with them. And better understanding the inisights and recommendations that can be translated into the company's or product's strategy.

In my experience visuals do make impact. Use of charts, graphics and short videos make a great impact. Storytelling is human touch point and is a memorable experience.

While presenting your findings, always ask for their opinion because, as a designer, your expertise lies in design, whereas stakeholders possess a deeper understanding of business insights. After all, it is their product, and they are more familiar with it than you are. By seeking their opinion on your findings, you may discover new insights that will undoubtedly help you refine the research findings and enhance the design.

You can also ask if there are any questions or clarity needed before moving to the next slide. "Any questions before I move on?" It opens the floor for a conversation which makes a presentation more dynamic.

In my experience, if I had a limited time to present results, it was always best to leave the questions and answers at the end of the presentation, warning the audience about this and asking them to prepare the questions in advance. Many times during the presentation, the person's doubts were already resolved, and if it wasn't, they had a record of the questions that could be answered even after the meeting

Asking for feedback on your findings is crucial not only for the development of the project at hand but for your career growth as it would help you in discovering areas you might have missed and possibly things that you could improve upon in the current project or next. Ensure you are well informed about your findings and can easily provide extra data if needed. Be open-minded to opinions from stakeholders and do not be emotional about your own opinions, rather ensure your decisions are data-backed.

There's a couple of enhancements to the regular Q&A approach that I can recommend. If you have time, you can always test your presentation on prospective audience members, teammates, or willing bystanders (check your NDA, though!). Ask them, 'what questions would you have if you were in my audience?'. Make the presentation document available before your presentation, and invite people to reach out with questions. If presenting to a large audience, consider including a live survey so the questions can be collated in one spot. And always have backup. Make sure someone else in your team is available to watch all the comms channels so you don't miss any questions -- especially if you're presenting virtually.

One thing I think is important is to always follow-up with a detailed documentation that will be shared with the stakeholders after the presentation. While the presentation may be brief, provide detailed documentation for stakeholders to refer to later. Include a comprehensive report with in-depth findings, methodology, and any additional insights. This is crucial for ensuring that stakeholders have access to more in-depth information and can refer back to the presentation as needed. Break down the key insights into more granular details within the report. Include visualizations, charts, and graphs used in the presentation within the documentation. Most Importantly, Encourage stakeholders to provide feedback on the detailed documentation.

Presenting research findings doesn't always have to be an actual presentation that you give during a meeting! I found that it's super valuable to experiment with different methods to communicate research findings - it'll help you understand what kind of content your stakeholders engage with. My favourite was sharing pre-recorded videos (eg. using Loom) to walk them through a research project. It's such flexible format, and works great as an async communication tool in distributed teams across different timezones.

Numbers numbers numbers, quantify, use % for better feel to the data impact and monetise the results where possible and they’ll pay attention, I.e the loss of a certain clicks on a button, for whatever reason it was, was 60% that’s £100,000 potential loss in sell.

When designing for the unique, new context of emerging tech products (Web 3.0, AI), aligning user needs to data is a key step that is often missed out in UX Research. Technical feasibility of user needs needs to comes in. For AI products etc, we need to align user needs to achieve able data inputs and AI outputs. After defining user needs and insights from UX Research, we need to then: 1. Define the data inputs: What data needs to be collected to address this user need? 2.Define AI outputs: What is the intended user value? What business impact will it bring?

Rehearse with a peer in accordance to the meeting time. Just to ensure we are able to pace the meet well by giving time for audience to consume and question. Logical pauses wherever can. Less words and more visuals with relevant data to support. In cases where there’s very limited time there’s no harm in upfront asking for additional time as findings may alter the course of actions for stakeholders. So time is essential.