Chapter 4: Turn notes into decisions, lesson 1 of 7
Count people, not notes
Turn a pile of interview notes into patterns you can trust. Group notes by what people did, count the people behind each pattern, and trace every claim.
Warm-up
From last time. Would each screener question find people who organise lunch for a group?
-
Right, it's a question that finds the right people. It asks what they did, recently.
Not quite. It's a question that finds the right people. It asks what they did, recently.
-
Right, it's a question that lets the wrong people in. Titles don't tell you who orders lunch. Ken isn't an office manager, but he orders.
Not quite. It's a question that lets the wrong people in. Titles don't tell you who orders lunch. Ken isn't an office manager, but he orders.
-
Right, it's a question that lets the wrong people in. Anyone can enjoy lunch. It doesn't find the person who organises it.
Not quite. It's a question that lets the wrong people in. Anyone can enjoy lunch. It doesn't find the person who organises it.
Last time, you finished the interview week. Now Mia, Tiffin’s research lead, has a pile of notes. Peter, the head of sales, wants an answer by Friday.
You bet on what Mia should do first. She does what most researchers do. She puts each note on its own card, and groups the cards by what people did. Here are ten of them, from the five office managers.
Think first
- Anna:
Two people still haven’t paid me from July.
- Anna:
I’m out maybe a hundred, a hundred and fifty dollars a month.
- Ray:
The company pays for lunch. I just need one invoice for accounts.
- Ray:
The real problem is getting a tax invoice every single day.
- Sara:
I send a payment request and everyone pays within the hour.
- Sara:
The annoying part is the menu. It changes daily and I type it out for the group.
- Ken:
We rotate who orders each week. Whoever orders pays, and we settle at month end.
- Ken:
The month-end settling always turns into an argument about who owes what.
- Dana:
I keep a notebook of who owes me. I’ve lost count of what I’m owed.
- Dana:
I stopped ordering for everyone in August. Now everyone orders alone.
What’s the biggest pattern here, and how many people does it come from?
You
You
What this means
Count people, not notes. Six notes about getting paid back come from three people: Anna, Ken and Dana. Anna gives two of the most vivid lines, so it’s easy to hear her twice.
Group the notes by what people did
Practice
Put each note in a group. Each group is a thing people do, or a problem they have.
-
Right, it's about getting paid back. Anna, still owed money from a lunch two months ago.
Not quite. It's about getting paid back. Anna, still owed money from a lunch two months ago.
-
Right, it's about paperwork. Ray's company pays, so nobody owes anyone. His problem is the paperwork.
Not quite. It's about paperwork. Ray's company pays, so nobody owes anyone. His problem is the paperwork.
-
Right, it's about getting paid back. Ken: same problem, different way of paying.
Not quite. It's about getting paid back. Ken: same problem, different way of paying.
-
Right, it's about the menu. Sara's trouble is typing, not money.
Not quite. It's about the menu. Sara's trouble is typing, not money.
-
Right, it's something that already works. Sara has already solved the money. That matters too.
Not quite. It's something that already works. Sara has already solved the money. That matters too.
-
Right, it's about getting paid back. Dana gave up because of the money. It's the strongest sign in the pile.
Not quite. It's about getting paid back. Dana gave up because of the money. It's the strongest sign in the pile.
Now count the people in each group, not the notes:
- Getting paid back: Anna, Ken and Dana. 3 of 5.
- Paperwork: Ray. 1 of 5.
- The menu: Sara. 1 of 5.
Two people don’t fit the big pattern, and that’s useful. Ray’s company pays, so there’s nothing to get back. Sara solved the money herself. Neither is noise. Sara shows that a simple payment request can fix it, so Tiffin wouldn’t be the only fix. And Dana’s note is the strongest of all: she stopped ordering for her team because of it.
The mistake everyone makes
When I first did this exercise, on the same five people, I made the most common mistake there is.
Shirishfrom my own practice
Six notes, three people
I grouped the notes and wrote:
Payment settlement is 6 people and invoice problem is 2 people.
It was six notes from three people, and two notes from one. I’d counted notes, not people.
One loud voice can sound like a crowd. That’s called the single-voice trap. The fix is simple: next to every pattern, write the names, and count them.
Every claim needs a source
Once you have a pattern, you’ll write claims about it. Each claim should lead back to who said or did it.
Think first
Mia is writing up the pattern for Peter.
Which claim can someone check, by going back to the notes?
You
You
What this means
Every claim should lead back to a person, a quote or a number. If you can’t point to where a claim came from, it’s a guess dressed up as a finding.
What you just did
You did what researchers call coding: you labelled each note with what it’s about. Then you grouped the cards, which makes an affinity map. And you checked that each claim leads back to its source. That’s traceability.
Words from this lesson
- Coding
- Labelling each note with what it’s an example of. In this lessonLabelling Ken's note as getting paid back.
- Affinity map
- Notes grouped by what they have in common, before you name the groups. In this lessonMia's cards, grouped into getting paid back, paperwork and the menu.
- Traceability
- Every claim can be followed back to who said or did it. In this lesson3 of 5 managers, named, with Anna's $157.
Back to your first answer
Your first answer
The question
Your answer
Your answer will show here after you write one at the top of this page.
Your bet: what should a persona be built on?
Your bet
Peter likes the pattern. Now he wants something for the sales team.
Peter, head of sales: Can we make a persona? The typical Tiffin office manager.
What should that persona be built on? Make your bet, and say how sure you are.
You'll find the answer in Lesson 4.2: Make personas that change decisions.
Try this during the week: take five reviews of an app you use. Write each main point on its own line, group them, and count the reviewers behind each group.
Sources
- Jon Kolko, Exposing the Magic of Design, 2011. On coding notes and affinity maps.
- Erika Hall, Just Enough Research, second edition, 2019. On turning research into claims you can defend.
- The exercise is from my own practice. Tiffin and its people are made up for this course.
Written by