aipmm ethnography

Ethnography: From Intelligence to Insights to Action

What is ethnography:• The term “ethnography” is used fairly loosely these days

and expectations and final outcomes vary as much as the people calling themselves ethnographers.

• Ethnography is more than a variety of methods, it is a wayof approaching knowledge and understanding the world.

• Before deciding to use an ethnographic approach, it is imperative to know what to expect.

What is ethnography:• It meets people where the action occurs

• It is inductive– Does not go into the field with answers running

• It is focused on systems, practices, and beliefs

• It is systematic

• It is best when it is exploratory

What is ethnography:• Everything is data

– Focused for business objectives– Best done in teams

• Uses culture and shared knowledge as the center of investigation

Culture… • Is often not conscious

• Is constantly changing/evolves over time

• Is Material

• Is Normative

• Is the Social Construction of Reality– Cultural relativity– What to do with cleaning teeth,

what to do with the dead

Ethnographic methods

Ethnographic methods• A core ethnographic technique is participant-observation,

where the researcher participates in and observes the behavior under examination.

– Observe– Interview– Interact

• Ethnographic research turns more traditional market research on its head, by treating the participant as the expert on the topic of interest.

Ethnographic methods• The goal of ethnography should be understanding:

– Unmet needs– Product usage and modification– A product category– The culture around a particular thing, activity, idea– How people interact or move through a space– The process people go through to choose a service or product– How things and contexts are connected and influence

each other

Ethnographic methods• Sampling people and contexts

• Finding the range of contexts where “X” happens

• What is the unit of analysis?

• How many is enough?– Remembering that the goal is not means-based statistical testing– Statistical versus Practical significance

What to expect with an ethnographic research project• Ethnography provides a vivid, real-world way of looking

at a problem or opportunity.

• Ethnography applies social and cultural understanding to the topic.

• The more strategic and exploratory the research question, the more likely that ethnography will be a good fit.

– Ethnography is really effective at uncovering new insights and ideas that can be used to further strategic goals.

What to expect with an ethnographic research project• Ethnography is not the panacea, there are certain research

questions/goals that make for a nice fit and others that do not.

• An experienced ethnographic researcher will guide the business in presenting results and help them communicate the knowledge throughout the company.

• An experienced ethnographer will work with a client to turn insights into action.

What to ask your ethnographer• Much of what is being referred to as ethnographic research is

not really ethnography. Following are a number of questions every ethnographer should be able to answer:

• Is my project a good fit for ethnography?– Your ethnographic provider should be able to suggest the

best methodology for your project, whether ethnography or something else, based on your business objectives, timeline and budget.

What to ask your ethnographer• Do ethnographers have a discussion guide

like focus group moderators?– Yes, they create a fieldguide to help frame the

business need. However, each ethnographer has a different style of inquiry, and will not repeat verbatim what is in the fieldguide. The fieldguide is a tool for the ethnographer, not a questionnaire.

• What is the ethnographic analysis process?– Ethnographers should be able to explain and

describe their analytical process and this description should include a reference to social and cultural theory. It should also involve an iterative process of data collection and examination.

What to ask your ethnographer• How can I be sure I can use the results from ethnographic

research to support decision-making?– A good ethnographic research provider will work

with you to plan a research project that is designed around your business objective. A good ethnographer understands the difference between interesting and actionable findings.