2020 - Present
Dining in the time of COVID-19 - Research
How can operators evaluate their diners’ expectations anymore if the in-person conversations and connections are temporarily lost?
During May and June of 2020, we dove into diners’ habits and explored how COVID-19 is impacting their behavior when dining out.
methodology
Generative Research: 90-minute individual interviews with 8 consumers across 6 states.
Online Diaries: 20 dscout diaries throughout 3 weeks across 13 states, age range, and household income.
Feature Research for BackOfHouse.io
How can we create a platform that helps operators find quickly, filter and connect with technology solutions?
In October and November 2020, we tested one of our beta ventures’ websites, Back of House, with restaurant operators to discover usability issues and identify new feature opportunities in order to create a cohesive product system, a memorable brand, and new ways to add value.
methodology
• Evaluative Research: 30-minute remote interviews with 8 operators testing the website.
• Prioritization Research: 30-minute remote interviews with 8 operators to test desirability.
• Two workshops with our internal teams and leadership to hone in viability and desirability.
Loyalty Program Research + Service Design
How can we define the role of Loyalty in the overall digital transformation strategy of a Foodservice Distributor?
[Ongoing] Create a program that allows us to start simple and launch quickly. Build an MVP that allows us to run a pilot, test assumptions, and understand if customers understand and respond favorably to the loyalty value proposition. Then build out a richer and better experience.
methodology
• Generative + Prioritization Research: 60-minute remote interviews with operators (only GFS customers) to understand what loyalty means to them and prioritize the potential program rewards.
• Rapid experimentation: Ongoing.
Volunteering - Illustration Work
Created 17 illustrations for a research project lead by ChiByDesign. Aiming to better communicate strategic concepts that could increase the number of graduates from The City Colleges of Chicago (CCC), a community college system that provides quality and affordable education and vocational training to Black and Latinx residents.
Tools
• Procreate
2018 - 2019
Local News Initiative Research
What is the future of the local news?
Local news coverage across America is shrinking. Without robust local news, citizens will not have the information they need for their everyday lives about their community’s government institutions, schools, businesses and neighbors.
What is the future of local news?
What are the needs, behaviors and attitudes of local news audiences to uncover new products, services and business models?
methodology
• 50 Online diaries using dscout across the U.S.
•18 In-homes to local news audiences and potential audiences in three cities; San Francisco, Chicago and Indianapolis.
Jesse Brown Research
What makes for effectively-designed medication education at hospital discharge? How can medication education be improved at ER discharge for people with COPD?
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) patients at a VA hospital in Chicago keep returning to the emergency department with pulmonary flare-ups. Every time they have an exacerbation, they lose a lung function percentage, leading eventually to death. How can design be used to create a better education document for ED discharge?
methodology
• 16 in-context interviews with attending physicians, nurses, ED pharmacists and ED clerks.
