Research Ops: learning from other Ops
In recent years all kinds of Ops have emerged in tech space and organizations— People Ops, Sales Ops, Revenue Ops, Dev Ops, Design Ops, Product Ops, Research Ops, and so on. And there is a growing body of content and dedicated resources for each kind of Ops — articles, podcasts, Slack groups, meetups, webinars, conferences, etc.
I am also one of the Ops — Research Ops and I have my professional tribe of experts, a list of resources, and go-to places to grow and learn more about how to tackle the different and often unique challenges in the Research Ops area. Be it knowledge management, insight sharing and socialization, the democratization of research and self-serve resources, or different kind of operational improvements and efficiencies.
That is all super helpful, but I also have to recognize that our stakeholders from day-to-day work usually have their own expert tribe, list of resources, and go to places that even when talking about the same things might use slightly different vocabulary, emphasis, or lense.
Thus to help myself and help others I have been trying to keep open eyes and ears to other kinds of Ops. For example, Design Ops — is a practice often seen as a parent tree for Research Ops and a practice a bit older and a bit more established.
Thus, for me, Design Ops have been crucial for:
— thinking about the scope of Ops efforts as well as operational models,
— design and UX needs and processes in an organization
— as well as effective visual communication & vocabulary
More recently, I have also dived into Product Ops as it offers a different perspective. One from a stronger intersection between engineering, business, and design. And thus helps to better understand:
— product development lifecycle
— thoughts about how to unlock and connect multiple data and insight sources across an organization
— as well as have a stronger lens on business perspective and priorities compared to DesignOps and Research Ops
At times that seems a lot. There is no way to keep up to date with everything and there is no need to go that far. Nevertheless, Ops and Research Ops in particular offer this uncharted territory and practice in organizations. A need to figure things out while on the go and here the sneak-peaks into other Ops offer that cross-functional element and voices needed to move forward or return for a trial number 2 and iterations.
