The ResearchOps revolution: how Wise and Monzo Bank lead the way

We sat down with Ed Gardner Lyon, Research Operations Lead at Wise, and Saskia Liebenberg, Research Operations Lead at Monzo Bank, to get an inside look at their ResearchOps strategies. 

Discover how these industry leaders streamline research, make it accessible across teams, and ensure it drives strategic decisions. 

With their practical tips, you’ll learn how to enhance your own research operations and deliver impactful insights.

How to set up your research operations

Setting up ResearchOps is more than just establishing processes—it’s about creating an environment where research can thrive. 

Ed emphasised the importance of simplicity and accessibility of research insights, especially in fast-growing organisations.

“When I started at Wise, the big need was for processes that were simple and accessible. We needed it to be easy to onboard and spread across lots of people quickly,” they said.

Saskia echoed this sentiment, highlighting the necessity of documentation, particularly if you’re in the position of just starting your ResearchOps journey. 

“If you’re the first person setting up processes for a research team, whether you are the only researcher or you’re a research lead, you are actually a ResearchOps person,” she said. 

“Making sure you document everything—what you’re doing, how you’re doing it, and all the research that’s been done—is crucial. This helps in planning, forecasting, and accessing past knowledge.” 

According to Saskia, the two key things to focus on early are documenting processes and creating templates for future use.

“If you have an example discussion guide or screener that worked really well, can you turn that into a template?” she said.

“As much as you can, create templates as you go so that you can have these resources available for others, and set yourself up for future success.” 

Creating a collaborative research toolkit

When creating a research toolkit for cross-functional collaboration, it’s crucial to understand the needs of your teammates. 

The best place to start, according to Saskia, is to get clear on who your collaborators are and what kind of collaboration they’re expecting. 

“A mistake I've made is thinking you can lift and shift research workflows for non-researchers—it's definitely not the case,” she said. 

“Work out what your collaborators need and constrain the toolkit to provide that, making it simple and smooth.

“As research ops teams of one, we need tools that are self-service, with built-in guardrails, governance, and compliance.” 

Ed added that it’s important to consider the scalability of tools, even from early in your ResearchOps planning.

“If a tool is only going to be used by a small group but has a significant impact, it might be worth it. But you need to think about how the tool scales across the organisation,” they said. 

Aligning research with strategy

For research to influence business strategy, it needs to be integrated into the organisation’s core processes. 

ResearchOps can play a vital role in this by ensuring that research processes are efficient and that insights are accessible.

For this, Saskia stresses the importance of knowledge management. 

“Having a database of previous research findings can make a big difference. It allows teams to access previous insights quickly, which is essential for making research be seen as a strategic partner rather than just a tactical tool,” she said. 

If you can show how research aligns with business goals and demonstrate its impact, Ed explained that it becomes easier to advocate for the time and resources needed for research. 

“Get comfortable with not being comfortable. If you're having the thought, ‘I don’t know if this is my place,’ it probably is,” they said. 

“You’ve been paying attention for years and have loads of evidence—you’re the person to make those strategic suggestions.” 

Ed shared that the ResearchOps journey is a long-term process, and to be realistic and kind with yourself. 

“This journey takes years, and it’s about communicating that your work operates on a different cadence.”