The 8 Pillars of UX ResearchOps: A Practical Guide

By Philip Burgess - UX Research Leader

Introduction. In the fast-paced world of product design, UX research often struggles to keep up with demands. Enter ResearchOps—the practice of creating systems, processes, and infrastructure that allow research to thrive at scale. To understand how to build an effective ResearchOps framework, it helps to think in terms of eight core pillars.

1. Governance & Standards. Clear guidelines for research ethics, data handling, and consent processes. These create trust with participants and protect your organization legally and

ethically.

2. Tools & Infrastructure. Selecting and managing the right tools for recruitment, testing, analysis, and repository management. This ensures researchers spend more time on insights and less time wrestling with tech.

3. Participant Management. Systems for recruiting, scheduling, and compensating participants efficiently while maintaining diversity and avoiding over-researching the same people.

4. Knowledge Management. A central repository where all research data and insights live, searchable and accessible to anyone who needs it.

5. Templates & Frameworks. Standardized research plans, screeners, and report templates improve consistency and save time without stifling creativity.

6. Metrics & Impact Tracking. Measuring research outputs (number of studies) and outcomes (impact on business decisions) to prove the value of research.

7. Training & Enablement. Workshops, guides, and mentorship to enable not only researchers but also cross-functional partners to engage with research effectively.

8. Culture & Advocacy. Promoting research awareness, celebrating wins, and integrating user-centered thinking into everyday decisions.

Conclusion. The strength of your ResearchOps function depends on how well these pillars work together. Strong operations create the foundation for impactful, scalable research.