Panel: Excellence in Communicating Insights

Key Insights

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  Being known by leadership and consistently adding value is key to earning a legitimate seat at the decision-making table, as Andy experienced at Instagram.

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  Sitting at the table does not always mean speaking immediately; understanding why you are there and the power dynamics involved, as noted by Nini, is crucial.

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  Communication with executives extends beyond meetings via follow-ups and digital channels, leveraging multimodal opportunities to maintain influence.

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  Persistent repetition and 'beating the drum' helps reinforce important insights over time, especially when facing organizational resistance.

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  Tailoring communication to the specific audience’s needs and avoiding oversharing is a critical skill for researchers to remain effective.

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  A well-structured research artifact includes a clear insight (what), rationale (so what), and action plan (now what), holding individuals accountable.

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  Creating memorable frameworks or models can help research insights become part of organizational vernacular and influence culture.

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  Creative dissemination approaches, like Andy’s fortune cookie insights at Uber, can dramatically increase engagement with research findings.

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  Organizational readiness and timing heavily influence when research gains traction; good work may lie dormant until the market or internal priorities align.

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  Working simultaneously across short, medium, and long-term horizons ensures ongoing impact and prepares researchers for fluctuating organizational appetites.

Notable Quotes