Tired of seeing research sidelined in strategic decisions? It’s time to make a change.

​Join Emily Barnes, Certified Askable Researcher, as she hosts Kat Herbert, Senior Manager of Customer Research at MYER for a session on transforming research into a core pillar of strategy.

​Together, they’ll share how MYER has made research central to their decision-making process, moving beyond surface-level insights to actions that drive meaningful change across the business.

​You’ll gain practical tips on how to assert research influence, leverage it as a discovery tool, and ensure it plays an indispensable role in every strategic move.

​Perfect for UX researchers, designers, and product managers, this session is packed with insights on advancing your research maturity and elevating your impact within your organisation.

​What you’ll learn:

• ​Embedding research into strategy: discover how to position research as an indispensable driver of business strategy.
• ​Centralising research as a discovery tool: learn ways to bridge customer gaps and optimise operations by integrating research at the core.
• ​Asserting strategic influence: understand how to turn research from a source of data into a catalyst for strategic decisions.

​Speakers

​Emily Barnes (Host)
Certified Askable Researcher, Askable

Emily believes that putting people and their needs at the heart of strategic decisions leads to better business outcomes. With over 20 years of experience in senior leadership and management consulting roles, she loves creating mutual value by helping businesses understand their customers and identify the right problems to solve.

​​​A notable Certified Askable Researcher, Emily excels in transforming customer insights into practical solutions for products, services, and communication strategies. She is also a dynamic leader, trainer, and facilitator, committed to inspiring teams with a clear vision and driving them towards innovative thinking and practices. When she’s not delivering projects as an Askable researcher, Emily provides customer experience design, employee experience design, service design and marketing strategy consulting services. Connect with Emily on LinkedIn.‍

Kat Herbert
Senior Manager, Customer Research at MYER

​Kat Herbert is an accomplished Senior Manager of Customer Research at MYER, with an extensive background in user experience (UX) research. Kat specialises in leading research initiatives that enhance product findability, streamline user flows, and refine customer journeys.

​Kat’s experience spans both front-end and back-end teams, and she is skilled at embedding UX practices within agile processes. She has been instrumental in introducing innovative tools such as Askable to enhance research efficiency and collaboration. Her career includes work across diverse industries—technology, healthcare, and retail—where she has consistently delivered impactful research projects that drive strategic improvements. Connect with Kat on LinkedIn.