#175 - The Scourge of Wasted Research with Jake Burghardt of Integrating Research

#175 - The Scourge of Wasted Research with Jake Burghardt of Integrating Research

Author: User Interviews October 28, 2025 Duration: 50:18

Ben sits down with Jake Burghardt from Integrating Research to discuss his new book Stop Wasting Research and how organizations can maximize the product impact of their customer insights. Jake breaks down the critical problem of research waste, where valuable insights from studies get left behind instead of informing future decisions and planning cycles.

Jake introduces his framework of three root causes driving research waste: preparation, motivation, and integration. He emphasizes practical solutions like creating insight summaries with stakeholders, building cross-silo research communities, and establishing recurring touchpoints beyond traditional study deliverables. The conversation covers actionable strategies for researchers at all levels, from individual contributors looking to extend their impact to research leaders building organizational initiatives that elevate research as a collective stakeholder voice.

Highlights

  • 08:15 Defining research waste and value
  • 14:48 Identifying research waste in organizations
  • 21:36 Breaking down research silos
  • 30:21 Creating insight summary statements
  • 37:38 Integration and recurring stakeholder touchpoints
  • 42:52 Building research initiatives not individual efforts

Resources

  1. Conducting Better Stakeholder Interviews
  2. The 2025 State of Research Strategy Report
  3. The Research ROI & Impact Calculator

Awkward Silences is a conversation about the human side of building things. Hosts Erin May and Carol Guest, both VPs at User Interviews, don't just talk about theory-they get into the messy, real-world practice of talking to users and making sense of what they say. Each episode pulls back the curtain on the craft of user research, featuring candid chats with the practitioners who do this work every day. You'll hear stories about navigating tricky interviews, the weight of interpreting qualitative data, and how genuine understanding directly shapes better products and smarter business decisions. This isn't a dry lecture; it's a geeky, relatable dive into the questions and quiet moments that define UX research. The Awkward Silences podcast lives in the intersection of technology and business, focusing on the people and processes that connect them. Listen for practical insights, empathetic strategies, and the occasional shared laugh about the inevitable fumbles that come with trying to understand anyone. It’s for anyone who believes that building effectively starts with listening well.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 50

Awkward Silences
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