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The Stepstone Group
When research isn’t part of planning, the organisation never sees the opportunities it’s missing
Repositioning Research to Shape Strategy at Stepstone
Case study - Position
2023-2024
How I repositioned research from a reactive support function to a strategic partner shaping discovery, roadmap planning, and cross-pillar decision-making across B2C and B2B
A leadership narrative about rebuilding the role of research in a global recruitment marketplace: untangling misalignment, creating shared ownership with Product Directors and Product Strategy, and establishing a planning rhythm where insight helped shape decisions rather than trailing behind them
MY ROLE
Director of User Research
SHOWCASING
Discovery planning · cross-functional influence · research operating model · QBR integration · product strategy alignment
Why This Work Mattered
Stepstone needed to move faster, innovate confidently, and bring customer understanding into an increasingly AI-driven product strategy. But research wasn’t part of the planning rhythm that shaped decisions.
Researchers were overstretched and reactive.
PMs were dictating methods.
Work was being done on topics that had already been deprioritised.
Insights were trapped within silos.
And research had no presence in the quarterly planning forums that set direction for the business.
Research was structurally positioned as a support function, not a strategic partner.
If research only enters after decisions are made, it becomes a validation tool. Shifting research into strategy means changing not just process, but perception.
The Before Picture
Stepstone is a leading global recruitment marketplace, operating at the intersection of a jobseeker marketplace (B2C) and an enterprise hiring platform (B2B). When I joined as Director of User Research, the organisation was preparing for an AI-driven transformation.
The SVP of Product had a clear ambition: to use AI as a once-in-a-generation opportunity to innovate and differentiate the business. Both sides needed to move faster, innovate confidently, and bring customer understanding into an increasingly AI-driven product strategy. But research wasn’t part of the planning rhythm that shaped decisions.
Researchers were overstretched and reactive. PMs were dictating methods. Work was being done on topics that had already been deprioritised. Insights were trapped within silos. And research had no presence in the quarterly planning forums that set direction for the business.
The SVP of Product saw research and design as essential to navigating this AI-shift, but the research function wasn’t positioned for strategic influence.
Challenges
There was good research happening, but no system to amplify it, align it, or use it strategically.
1. Misaligned ways of working
PMs treated research as a delivery function. Researchers were told what to do, rather than being engaged as partners in shaping discovery.
2. No strategic rhythm
Without visibility into roadmaps or priorities, researchers couldn’t plan ahead, and discovery was usually last-minute.
3. Siloed insight
Research in one area often wasn’t visible to others. Opportunities for shared learning or cross-pillar alignment were lost.
4. Confusion and frustration
PMs didn’t understand the intake process or why structure mattered
Researchers didn’t understand why certain work was asked of them
Product Directors had low visibility into how research was being used
Stakeholders had no clarity on research bandwidth
5. Cultural gaps between B2C and B2B
Different expectations, different cadences, different levels of research maturity, but research needed a coherent strategy across both.
Meanwhile, customer insight lived everywhere and nowhere - nothing was connected into a cohesive strategic picture.
The Turning Point
My first QBR was the moment of clarity. Two full days of roadmaps, decisions, priorities, alignment… and research was not involved.
Not a mention. Not a slide. Not a reference to insights, discovery, or customer understanding.
If research wasn’t invited into strategy, then research had to create conditions where it became impossible to plan without it.
I realised that the core problem wasn’t research quality - it was research positioning.
What I Did
1. Created the first unified view of research across the company
I manually mapped details of every active and upcoming study across B2C and B2B. This had never existed before, and it immediately revealed overlaps, gaps, and misalignment.
It became the first shared view the organisation had of what research was actually doing, and it gave researchers the clarity and confidence to push back when requests didn’t align with business priorities.
2. Co-owned discovery planning with all B2C Product Directors
To shift research into strategy, I partnered with all B2C Product Directors to plan discovery for the quarter ahead.
We scoped opportunities, mapped research to product goals, aligned priorities, and negotiated trade-offs.
This created shared ownership and established research as part of the strategic conversation rather than a service that was fulfilling requests.
3. Integrated research into the B2B & B2C QBRs for the first time
Working with ProductOps & Product Strategy, we reworked the QBR agendas to include insight. We added a Research Roundup after the SVP’s keynote, followed by pillar-level discovery insights and plans.
For many leaders, this was the first time they had seen the breadth of insight work happening across the business, and it set a new expectation that research would inform planning.
4. Brought clarity and structure to B2B through Product Strategy
B2B needed a different approach - more enterprise complexity, less research maturity.
I worked with Product Strategy to pilot a structured research & design planning cadence, introduce insight into B2B’s QBR, and help product leaders understand how to engage research effectively. This created a repeatable model for enterprise discovery.
5. Created a new relationship between research and product
Through listening, transparency, and proactive support, I helped shift the tone of collaboration.
We moved from dictating research methods to more open scoping conversations, from less last-minute requests to more planned discovery, and from research being seen as “slowing things down” to research being sought out for clarity.
PMs began asking better questions and engaging earlier, which set future collaboration on a good path.
How things shifted
By reframing research as a strategic partner, not a support function, Stepstone shifted from scattered, reactive work to a more structured, insight-informed planning rhythm.
Discovery became part of the quarterly cycle. Product Directors and PMs gained visibility across pillars. Insight-sharing increased. And research would have a consistent presence in QBRs going forward, which helped redefine how the organisation understood its customers.
Impact
Clarity over priorities & ability to say no
More strategic work, fewer low-value requests
Better collaboration within the research team
Less firefighting, more planning
Increased sense of influence and purpose
Stronger partnerships with Product, Design, and Strategy
For Stakeholders
Product Directors gained clarity and confidence in discovery
PMs learned when and how to partner with research
Design could take on evaluative work, freeing research for strategic work
Product Strategy embedded insight into their planning cadence
B2C and B2B gained visibility across all research work
For the Organization
Research included in QBRs for the first time
Discovery became part of quarterly planning, not an afterthought
Roadmaps became more evidence-informed
Cross-pillar collaboration increased
Organisational understanding of customers improved significantly
Research became a recognised partner in shaping Stepstone’s AI-led strategy
Legacy
The discovery planning model, unified research view, and QBR integration created a playbook for how research supports strategy across both marketplaces and enterprise products.
More importantly, the cultural shift from reactive requests to strategic partnership positioned research as a critical part of how Stepstone builds products and makes decisions.
This was operating model transformation, not process improvement. And it laid the foundation for deeper discovery, richer insights, and more confident innovation going forward.
