A Desktop Research Guide for co-design
Leveraging what is already known ensures your project occurs within the right context and builds on existing work.
Desktop Research frames and enhances co-design
Co-design is a collaborative approach to problem-solving that prioritises lived experiences but involves stakeholders from various backgrounds – so why are we talking about desktop research?
The short answer is that it's essential if you want to design a program or service that is fit for purpose.
At a minimum, desktop research ensures that you avoid common pitfalls and co-design within hard boundaries. In the best-case scenario, conducting desktop research will allow you to start a co-design process with an informed position. You can take advantage of the hard work done by others over the years and quickly advance the conversation.
The challenge is in ensuring that your desktop research doesn't lead to a ‘cookie-cutter’ or predetermined outcome.
In this article we'll explore why desktop research matters in co-design, the types of desktop research you can use to get to an informed starting point and a step-by-step guide to get you started in undertaking desktop research in your co-design process.
Why desktop research matters in co-design
Desktop research plays a critical role in co-design for several reasons:
Common language: provides an initial framework of existing information, giving participants common ground and a place to start.
Participant preparation: equips stakeholders with a solid foundation, enhancing the quality of their input.
Leverages knowledge: helps avoid duplication and starts in an informed position by acknowledging and building upon previous work and findings.
Contextual understanding: offers insights into the broader landscape, including federal, state and local policy.
Credibility: adds a layer of legitimacy to the co-design process by grounding it in established facts and findings.
Benchmarking: allows for comparisons with existing solutions or approaches, supporting continuous improvement.
Types of desktop research used in co-design
To illustrate the range of desktop research that can enrich a co-design process, let's consider a hypothetical project: improving access to after-hours health services.
The co-design process first aims to engage with members of the community to understand their experience when accessing health services in the after-hours and then work with health services (and community members) to design a model of care that meets the expressed needs of consumers.
The type of desktop research that would be useful could include:
Strategic environment: review national, state or local policies on after-hours healthcare to understand the strategic environment. You might look at:
Government publications
Policy briefs
After-hours strategies or plans
Operational context: study existing contracts and obligations tied to the delivery of after-hours services.
Operational guidelines of local services
Contracts of current service providers provider
Previous program reviews or evaluations
Funding environment: examine grants and funding avenues available for extending healthcare service hours.
Grants and tenders available for service providers
Existing fee-for-service structures (e.g. Medicare)
Previously reported issues and challenges
Service environment: look at what other organisations offer for after-hours healthcare to avoid duplication and identify opportunities for collaboration
Service provider websites
Service provider directories
Industry reports
Quantitative data: analyse local statistics to understand the need and usage patterns for after-hours services.
Existing needs assessment documents
Data sourced from public sources
Industry reports
Previous engagement reports: review patient engagement activities that focus on after-hours care.
Previous projects of a similar nature that capture results from focus groups or surveys
Reports from other jurisdictions who have aimed to explore after hours care through engaging with patients or stakeholders
Patient experience data or reviews
Academic research: consider academic studies that suggest best practices for after-hours healthcare delivery.
Peer-reviewed articles
Theses and dissertations
Conference papers
Comparable models: research other communities with similar after-hours healthcare initiatives.
Service provider websites
Published evaluations or reviews
Funder reports
Our step-by-step guide to conducting Desktop research in a co-design project.
Step 1: draft framing questions
Begin by defining your objectives for conducting desktop research research. Knowing what you aim to achieve will serve as the cornerstone for the framing questions that you develop. Once your objectives are clear, proceed to draft framing questions that align with each type of desktop research you intend to conduct.
These questions will keep your research focused and on target. The easiest way to think about framing questions is to align them with the types of desktop research listed above.
Take your pick from the questions below:
What does the strategic environment tell us about what a model like this should look like?
What does a model like this look like operationally and what is it mandated to do?
How does a model like this receive funding and what stipulations exist?
Do other organisations deliver this model and if so is it the same or different?
What does the data tell us about the scale and scope of the problem?
What do we already know from stakeholders and consumers about the needs of the target population?
What can academic research tell us about best practices?
Where else are organisations delivering this type of model and what can we learn?
Step 2: identify relevant source documents/data
After establishing your framing questions, create a research matrix (or, in simple terms, a Google Sheet or similar). This is a table where the rows are your framing questions, and the columns represent types of desktop research, helping you align each source to a specific question.
Aim to incorporate a variety of sources — academic articles, government reports, internal documents — to offer a rounded perspective. Not all sources are equally important, so establish criteria to prioritise which ones to delve into.
Step 3: conduct the research
Start this phase by planning the research. Estimate the time required for each type of research to ensure you manage your time effectively. Then, execute your plan based on the prioritised list of sources. As you proceed through each one, take notes or create summaries to capture essential information.
Keep in mind that research is an evolving process. If new information emerges that requires an adjustment to your framing questions or necessitates adding new types of research, be adaptable.
Step 4: develop themes/key points of interest
After gathering your research, the next step is to review your notes and summaries to identify key points and themes. Cross-reference these findings with your initial objectives and framing questions to ensure they align with what you set out to discover. Once you’ve established these themes, categorise them into groups that can be readily understood and acted upon.
Step 5: develop an engaging reporting product
Now, it's time to collate your findings into a report. Pick a format that aligns with the needs and preferences of your audience, whether it's a slide deck, document or alternative format like a video. Your key themes and points should be easily identifiable in the format that you choose.
Conclude the report with a call to action that outlines the next steps, whether that’s a discussion, a workshop, or further research. A good and engaging reporting product can be consumed by co-design participants before the conversation and will help move the conversation forward. Sharing a well-crafted report with co-design participants before a discussion can help in smoothly facilitating the conversation.
You are all set — get desktop researching
This guide offers a practical approach to integrating desktop research into co-design. Applying the steps will yield meaningful data and a more robust and credible co-design process.
Through desktop research, we can leverage existing knowledge, avoid duplication, and set the stage for informed collaboration. If co-design is on your agenda, a well-executed desktop research phase can significantly enhance the quality and impact of the project.
This guide aims to provide a thorough yet accessible framework for conducting desktop research. Following these steps will help you not only collect meaningful and relevant data but also present it in a manner that effectively advances the co-design process.
To dive deeper into co-design and ensure your projects are set up for success, visit Beacon Strategies' Co-Design homepage. Get started now by visiting www.beaconstrategies.net/co-design.
