Experience Research
Making Research Work at Scale in a Highly Regulated Environment
Making Research Work at Scale in a Highly Regulated Environment
Role
Director of UX → Vice President of UX — Leading Research and Design for the Organization
Context
A communications platform with FCC-regulated B2C products and enterprise B2B offerings where research was ad hoc, disconnected from decisions, and slow due to compliance and privacy barriers.
Mandate
Design and scale a research function that delivered insights quickly, safely, and reliably so product decisions could be based on evidence, not opinion.
Scope
Built research operations and framework from the ground up
Embedded research into delivery rhythms across multiple product teams
Balanced regulatory compliance with accessible user feedback
Enabled product prioritization with continuous feedback loops
Outcomes
Research became continuous and scalable, not ad hoc
Teams had a steady flow of insight they could rely on, instead of waiting weeks for one-off studies that arrived too late to matter.
Compliance issues dropped to zero
Research could move faster because legal and privacy concerns were addressed upfront rather than retroactively.
Teams gained access to previously unreachable users
New methods and partnerships expanded insight beyond traditional recruiting without violating regulatory constraints.
Research insights directly shaped product strategy and roadmaps
Prioritization decisions were grounded in user evidence instead of internal preference or anecdote.
Evidence replaced assumptions at decision time
Product discussions shifted from opinion-based debate to data-informed alignment, reducing risk and rework.
The Business Problem
The company had no central research practice. Insights were:
Spread across departments
Based on personal bias
Too slow to influence product roadmaps
This was worse because:
Users had diverse and complex needs
Regulations made access and recruitment difficult
Research efforts risked breaching compliance or privacy rules
Leadership needed proof that research could deliver meaningful, reliable insights at speed without risking legal exposure.
Designed the research operations model, established key partnerships, and embedded discovery into the product lifecycle.
Designed the research operations model, established key partnerships, and embedded discovery into the product lifecycle.
Designed the research operations model, established key partnerships, and embedded discovery into the product lifecycle.
My Role and Constraints
I was responsible for:
Designing a compliant research operations model
Embedding discovery into product lifecycle decisions
Scaling methods so that product teams could act on insight
Constraints included:
Legal and privacy requirements that added review cycles to all research outreach
Limited access to user segments due to regulatory compliance
Research expertise fragmented across departments
This was not a scenario where a typical research team could operate normally — it required building new infrastructure and trust simultaneously.
This team does everything; journey maps, competitive landscape, market trends, user interviews, personas, and more.
This team does everything; journey maps, competitive landscape, market trends, user interviews, personas, and more.
This team does everything; journey maps, competitive landscape, market trends, user interviews, personas, and more.
Strategic Decisions
01.
Compliant Research Operations First
Rather than start with sample recruitment or tools, I built a research ops approach that met legal, privacy, and regulatory requirements. This made research safe and repeatable, not risky and sporadic. This replaced slow, one-off research with a reliable foundation.
What this meant in practice
Wireframing and prototyping
User Interface design for web and mobile apps
Usability testing and user feedback analysis
Interaction design and micro-animations
What this meant in practice
Wireframing and prototyping
User Interface design for web and mobile apps
Usability testing and user feedback analysis
Interaction design and micro-animations
What this meant in practice
Wireframing and prototyping
User Interface design for web and mobile apps
Usability testing and user feedback analysis
Interaction design and micro-animations
02.
02.
Partnered with Internal and External Experts
Regulation limited direct access to some users. I expanded reach through partnerships with internal teams and external academic researchers. This mixed approach ensured data fidelity even when direct access was restricted.
How partnerships worked
Wireframing and prototyping
User Interface design for web and mobile apps
Usability testing and user feedback analysis
Interaction design and micro-animations
How partnerships worked
Wireframing and prototyping
User Interface design for web and mobile apps
Usability testing and user feedback analysis
Interaction design and micro-animations
How partnerships worked
Wireframing and prototyping
User Interface design for web and mobile apps
Usability testing and user feedback analysis
Interaction design and micro-animations
03.
03.
Equipped Teams for Lightweight Discovery
Provided tools, templates, and training so product teams could run quick, ethical studies without waiting for a central team.
Tactical enablers
Wireframing and prototyping
User Interface design for web and mobile apps
Usability testing and user feedback analysis
Interaction design and micro-animations
Tactical enablers
Wireframing and prototyping
User Interface design for web and mobile apps
Usability testing and user feedback analysis
Interaction design and micro-animations
Tactical enablers
Wireframing and prototyping
User Interface design for web and mobile apps
Usability testing and user feedback analysis
Interaction design and micro-animations
04.
04.
Integrated Research into Decisions
Research shouldn’t just happen — it should change behavior. I built linkages between research outputs and roadmap prioritization. This ensured products were prioritized for what users truly needed, not what was assumed.
How integration worked
Wireframing and prototyping
User Interface design for web and mobile apps
Usability testing and user feedback analysis
Interaction design and micro-animations
How integration worked
Wireframing and prototyping
User Interface design for web and mobile apps
Usability testing and user feedback analysis
Interaction design and micro-animations
How integration worked
Wireframing and prototyping
User Interface design for web and mobile apps
Usability testing and user feedback analysis
Interaction design and micro-animations
What Changed
Research became continuous and accessible, not sporadic and siloed
Compliance risk dropped to zero — legal and privacy became partners, not blockers
Roadmap decisions were informed by real user patterns, not anecdotes
Teams could head off issues early rather than react later
Research insights became part of “how we think,” not “what we show”
This shift changed how roadmap planning worked — evidence, not opinion, became the norm.
Intermediate Success Indicators
Continuous feedback loops across platforms
Direct influence on roadmap decisions
Zero compliance issues during research outreach
Teams reached user segments previously inaccessible
These are not vanity metrics — they indicate that research became trusted and useful, not a theoretical nice-to-have.
Why This Matters
In regulated environments, research is often the first function to get sidelined because it’s perceived as slow or risky. In this case, research instead became:
a competitive advantage
a means to reduce risk and uncertainty
a consistent input to strategy and prioritization
Where mistakes were made, research helped teams course-correct quickly with confidence.
This is strategic research, not tactical execution.
More Projects
Experience Research
Making Research Work at Scale in a Highly Regulated Environment
Making Research Work at Scale in a Highly Regulated Environment
Role
Director of UX → Vice President of UX — Leading Research and Design for the Organization
Context
A communications platform with FCC-regulated B2C products and enterprise B2B offerings where research was ad hoc, disconnected from decisions, and slow due to compliance and privacy barriers.
Mandate
Design and scale a research function that delivered insights quickly, safely, and reliably so product decisions could be based on evidence, not opinion.
Scope
Built research operations and framework from the ground up
Embedded research into delivery rhythms across multiple product teams
Balanced regulatory compliance with accessible user feedback
Enabled product prioritization with continuous feedback loops
Outcomes
Research became continuous and scalable, not ad hoc
Teams had a steady flow of insight they could rely on, instead of waiting weeks for one-off studies that arrived too late to matter.
Compliance issues dropped to zero
Research could move faster because legal and privacy concerns were addressed upfront rather than retroactively.
Teams gained access to previously unreachable users
New methods and partnerships expanded insight beyond traditional recruiting without violating regulatory constraints.
Research insights directly shaped product strategy and roadmaps
Prioritization decisions were grounded in user evidence instead of internal preference or anecdote.
Evidence replaced assumptions at decision time
Product discussions shifted from opinion-based debate to data-informed alignment, reducing risk and rework.
The Business Problem
The company had no central research practice. Insights were:
Spread across departments
Based on personal bias
Too slow to influence product roadmaps
This was worse because:
Users had diverse and complex needs
Regulations made access and recruitment difficult
Research efforts risked breaching compliance or privacy rules
Leadership needed proof that research could deliver meaningful, reliable insights at speed without risking legal exposure.
Designed the research operations model, established key partnerships, and embedded discovery into the product lifecycle.
Designed the research operations model, established key partnerships, and embedded discovery into the product lifecycle.
Designed the research operations model, established key partnerships, and embedded discovery into the product lifecycle.
My Role and Constraints
I was responsible for:
Designing a compliant research operations model
Embedding discovery into product lifecycle decisions
Scaling methods so that product teams could act on insight
Constraints included:
Legal and privacy requirements that added review cycles to all research outreach
Limited access to user segments due to regulatory compliance
Research expertise fragmented across departments
This was not a scenario where a typical research team could operate normally — it required building new infrastructure and trust simultaneously.
This team does everything; journey maps, competitive landscape, market trends, user interviews, personas, and more.
This team does everything; journey maps, competitive landscape, market trends, user interviews, personas, and more.
This team does everything; journey maps, competitive landscape, market trends, user interviews, personas, and more.
Strategic Decisions
01.
Compliant Research Operations First
Rather than start with sample recruitment or tools, I built a research ops approach that met legal, privacy, and regulatory requirements. This made research safe and repeatable, not risky and sporadic. This replaced slow, one-off research with a reliable foundation.
What this meant in practice
Wireframing and prototyping
User Interface design for web and mobile apps
Usability testing and user feedback analysis
Interaction design and micro-animations
What this meant in practice
Wireframing and prototyping
User Interface design for web and mobile apps
Usability testing and user feedback analysis
Interaction design and micro-animations
What this meant in practice
Wireframing and prototyping
User Interface design for web and mobile apps
Usability testing and user feedback analysis
Interaction design and micro-animations
02.
02.
Partnered with Internal and External Experts
Regulation limited direct access to some users. I expanded reach through partnerships with internal teams and external academic researchers. This mixed approach ensured data fidelity even when direct access was restricted.
How partnerships worked
Wireframing and prototyping
User Interface design for web and mobile apps
Usability testing and user feedback analysis
Interaction design and micro-animations
How partnerships worked
Wireframing and prototyping
User Interface design for web and mobile apps
Usability testing and user feedback analysis
Interaction design and micro-animations
How partnerships worked
Wireframing and prototyping
User Interface design for web and mobile apps
Usability testing and user feedback analysis
Interaction design and micro-animations
03.
03.
Equipped Teams for Lightweight Discovery
Provided tools, templates, and training so product teams could run quick, ethical studies without waiting for a central team.
Tactical enablers
Wireframing and prototyping
User Interface design for web and mobile apps
Usability testing and user feedback analysis
Interaction design and micro-animations
Tactical enablers
Wireframing and prototyping
User Interface design for web and mobile apps
Usability testing and user feedback analysis
Interaction design and micro-animations
Tactical enablers
Wireframing and prototyping
User Interface design for web and mobile apps
Usability testing and user feedback analysis
Interaction design and micro-animations
04.
04.
Integrated Research into Decisions
Research shouldn’t just happen — it should change behavior. I built linkages between research outputs and roadmap prioritization. This ensured products were prioritized for what users truly needed, not what was assumed.
How integration worked
Wireframing and prototyping
User Interface design for web and mobile apps
Usability testing and user feedback analysis
Interaction design and micro-animations
How integration worked
Wireframing and prototyping
User Interface design for web and mobile apps
Usability testing and user feedback analysis
Interaction design and micro-animations
How integration worked
Wireframing and prototyping
User Interface design for web and mobile apps
Usability testing and user feedback analysis
Interaction design and micro-animations
What Changed
Research became continuous and accessible, not sporadic and siloed
Compliance risk dropped to zero — legal and privacy became partners, not blockers
Roadmap decisions were informed by real user patterns, not anecdotes
Teams could head off issues early rather than react later
Research insights became part of “how we think,” not “what we show”
This shift changed how roadmap planning worked — evidence, not opinion, became the norm.
Intermediate Success Indicators
Continuous feedback loops across platforms
Direct influence on roadmap decisions
Zero compliance issues during research outreach
Teams reached user segments previously inaccessible
These are not vanity metrics — they indicate that research became trusted and useful, not a theoretical nice-to-have.
Why This Matters
In regulated environments, research is often the first function to get sidelined because it’s perceived as slow or risky. In this case, research instead became:
a competitive advantage
a means to reduce risk and uncertainty
a consistent input to strategy and prioritization
Where mistakes were made, research helped teams course-correct quickly with confidence.
This is strategic research, not tactical execution.
More Projects
Experience Research
Making Research Work at Scale in a Highly Regulated Environment
Making Research Work at Scale in a Highly Regulated Environment
Role
Director of UX → Vice President of UX — Leading Research and Design for the Organization
Context
A communications platform with FCC-regulated B2C products and enterprise B2B offerings where research was ad hoc, disconnected from decisions, and slow due to compliance and privacy barriers.
Mandate
Design and scale a research function that delivered insights quickly, safely, and reliably so product decisions could be based on evidence, not opinion.
Scope
Built research operations and framework from the ground up
Embedded research into delivery rhythms across multiple product teams
Balanced regulatory compliance with accessible user feedback
Enabled product prioritization with continuous feedback loops
Outcomes
Research became continuous and scalable, not ad hoc
Teams had a steady flow of insight they could rely on, instead of waiting weeks for one-off studies that arrived too late to matter.
Compliance issues dropped to zero
Research could move faster because legal and privacy concerns were addressed upfront rather than retroactively.
Teams gained access to previously unreachable users
New methods and partnerships expanded insight beyond traditional recruiting without violating regulatory constraints.
Research insights directly shaped product strategy and roadmaps
Prioritization decisions were grounded in user evidence instead of internal preference or anecdote.
Evidence replaced assumptions at decision time
Product discussions shifted from opinion-based debate to data-informed alignment, reducing risk and rework.
The Business Problem
The company had no central research practice. Insights were:
Spread across departments
Based on personal bias
Too slow to influence product roadmaps
This was worse because:
Users had diverse and complex needs
Regulations made access and recruitment difficult
Research efforts risked breaching compliance or privacy rules
Leadership needed proof that research could deliver meaningful, reliable insights at speed without risking legal exposure.
Designed the research operations model, established key partnerships, and embedded discovery into the product lifecycle.
Designed the research operations model, established key partnerships, and embedded discovery into the product lifecycle.
Designed the research operations model, established key partnerships, and embedded discovery into the product lifecycle.
My Role and Constraints
I was responsible for:
Designing a compliant research operations model
Embedding discovery into product lifecycle decisions
Scaling methods so that product teams could act on insight
Constraints included:
Legal and privacy requirements that added review cycles to all research outreach
Limited access to user segments due to regulatory compliance
Research expertise fragmented across departments
This was not a scenario where a typical research team could operate normally — it required building new infrastructure and trust simultaneously.
This team does everything; journey maps, competitive landscape, market trends, user interviews, personas, and more.
This team does everything; journey maps, competitive landscape, market trends, user interviews, personas, and more.
This team does everything; journey maps, competitive landscape, market trends, user interviews, personas, and more.
Strategic Decisions
01.
Compliant Research Operations First
Rather than start with sample recruitment or tools, I built a research ops approach that met legal, privacy, and regulatory requirements. This made research safe and repeatable, not risky and sporadic. This replaced slow, one-off research with a reliable foundation.
What this meant in practice
Wireframing and prototyping
User Interface design for web and mobile apps
Usability testing and user feedback analysis
Interaction design and micro-animations
What this meant in practice
Wireframing and prototyping
User Interface design for web and mobile apps
Usability testing and user feedback analysis
Interaction design and micro-animations
What this meant in practice
Wireframing and prototyping
User Interface design for web and mobile apps
Usability testing and user feedback analysis
Interaction design and micro-animations
02.
02.
Partnered with Internal and External Experts
Regulation limited direct access to some users. I expanded reach through partnerships with internal teams and external academic researchers. This mixed approach ensured data fidelity even when direct access was restricted.
How partnerships worked
Wireframing and prototyping
User Interface design for web and mobile apps
Usability testing and user feedback analysis
Interaction design and micro-animations
How partnerships worked
Wireframing and prototyping
User Interface design for web and mobile apps
Usability testing and user feedback analysis
Interaction design and micro-animations
How partnerships worked
Wireframing and prototyping
User Interface design for web and mobile apps
Usability testing and user feedback analysis
Interaction design and micro-animations
03.
03.
Equipped Teams for Lightweight Discovery
Provided tools, templates, and training so product teams could run quick, ethical studies without waiting for a central team.
Tactical enablers
Wireframing and prototyping
User Interface design for web and mobile apps
Usability testing and user feedback analysis
Interaction design and micro-animations
Tactical enablers
Wireframing and prototyping
User Interface design for web and mobile apps
Usability testing and user feedback analysis
Interaction design and micro-animations
Tactical enablers
Wireframing and prototyping
User Interface design for web and mobile apps
Usability testing and user feedback analysis
Interaction design and micro-animations
04.
04.
Integrated Research into Decisions
Research shouldn’t just happen — it should change behavior. I built linkages between research outputs and roadmap prioritization. This ensured products were prioritized for what users truly needed, not what was assumed.
How integration worked
Wireframing and prototyping
User Interface design for web and mobile apps
Usability testing and user feedback analysis
Interaction design and micro-animations
How integration worked
Wireframing and prototyping
User Interface design for web and mobile apps
Usability testing and user feedback analysis
Interaction design and micro-animations
How integration worked
Wireframing and prototyping
User Interface design for web and mobile apps
Usability testing and user feedback analysis
Interaction design and micro-animations
What Changed
Research became continuous and accessible, not sporadic and siloed
Compliance risk dropped to zero — legal and privacy became partners, not blockers
Roadmap decisions were informed by real user patterns, not anecdotes
Teams could head off issues early rather than react later
Research insights became part of “how we think,” not “what we show”
This shift changed how roadmap planning worked — evidence, not opinion, became the norm.
Intermediate Success Indicators
Continuous feedback loops across platforms
Direct influence on roadmap decisions
Zero compliance issues during research outreach
Teams reached user segments previously inaccessible
These are not vanity metrics — they indicate that research became trusted and useful, not a theoretical nice-to-have.
Why This Matters
In regulated environments, research is often the first function to get sidelined because it’s perceived as slow or risky. In this case, research instead became:
a competitive advantage
a means to reduce risk and uncertainty
a consistent input to strategy and prioritization
Where mistakes were made, research helped teams course-correct quickly with confidence.
This is strategic research, not tactical execution.