Collaboration for Impact: Involving Stakeholders in Ethnographic Research

Abstract

Over time, our corporate ethnographic methods have evolved to engage and involve stakeholders in our research projects to an increasing degree. Stakeholder engagement ranges from peripheral beneficiary to champion promoter, to research partner to study participant. This paper uses case studies to illustrate different kinds of collaborations we have used to engage stakeholders: 1) Advisory board, 2) Field visits with subject matter experts, 3) Analytic data sessions, 4) Co-design as an iterative research process, and 5) Competency transfer. Based on our experiences we discuss ways of managing stakeholder involvement and the impacts that our collaborations with stakeholders have had at all levels of the organization While it can be challenging to involve stakeholders in the research process, when they do become part of the research team, we have found that our research creates more impact. "Stakeholders can help us determine implications for research findings and they are often in the position to take action based on these findings, and/or to advocate for incorporating these findings in business process improvements and product development."