Here's how you can build trust in your team and overcome the fear of delegation as a UX researcher.

I would love to recommend "Articulating Design Decisions" by Tom Greever To build trust within your team as a UX Researcher: 1. Communicate openly and transparently about research goals and findings. 2. Collaborate with team members, involving them in the research process. 3. Demonstrate expertise by consistently delivering high-quality insights. 4. Practice empathy and active listening to understand team members' perspectives. 5. Respect and recognize team members' contributions. 6. Be consistent, reliable, and follow through on commitments. 7. Provide constructive feedback and support professional growth. 8. Lead by example, embodying trust, integrity, and collaboration.

Clear Communication: Clearly communicate your goals, expectations, and vision for the project with your team. Transparency builds trust and ensures everyone is on the same page regarding project objectives and responsibilities. Empowerment: Empower team members by providing them with autonomy and ownership over their tasks. Encourage them to share their ideas, insights, and suggestions, and value their contributions to the project. Training and Support: Offer training and support to team members to develop their skills and confidence in handling delegated tasks. Provide guidance, resources, and constructive feedback to help them succeed.

I was really fortunate in my last role, in that there were colleagues from other disciplines who wanted to learn about user research. We started out with them moderating research sessions while I served as note taker. With constructive feedback and practice, they progressed to designing and leading their own sessions.

Regular meetings with individual team members are critical to establishing a productive feedback loop. Each member must feel respected, seen and valued. Prioritizing these meetings shows your commitment as a leader and enables you to stay abreast of developments as they occur. In this context, feedback should be as immediate and direct as possible. Follow through may be necessary prior to the next scheduled meeting and / or shared with the larger team. Your job as a leader is to model open communication and fluid response to challenges, using the wide range of abilities and interests on your team to enhance worker experience and product outcome.

Some of the greatest and most valuable lessons learned, come through failure. Insights deriving from failure are sometimes exponential as context and influencing factors are often hyper-analyzed. Creative thinking and innovation come through the liberty to explore, trial, and error, an essential aspect of research in general. Building trust within a team and keeping a constructive communication circle open is foundational to growth!