Research & validation — Field Notes

MICROSOFT WORKLAB

LDLR DESIGN FIELD NOTES

The transformation paradox, in data

Microsoft's 2026 Work Trend Index covers 100,000+ Copilot conversations and surveys 20,000 workers across ten countries. Only 26 percent say leadership is consistently aligned on AI.

BY MICROSOFT WORK TREND INDEX TEAM / MAY 5, 2026

Agents, human agency, and the opportunity for every organization

Workers are ready. Their organizations aren't.

Why it matters

— One in five workers sit in the Frontier zone.

— One in ten are ready individuals blocked by the organization.

— Only twenty-six percent say leadership is consistently aligned on AI.

— Sixty-five percent fear falling behind. Forty-five percent stay in old work.

Read on Microsoft WorkLab →

MICROSOFT DESIGN

LDLR DESIGN FIELD NOTES

When metrics optimize the wrong thing

Frontier AI teams optimize what's measurable, not what matters. Microsoft's user researchers want a seat at the evaluation table, as a safeguard against the metric chosen for being convenient.

BY MARTIN LINDE DANTY, RABEEZA A., ANNE KLÆRKE-OLESEN, MADHUMAY SINHA, MICHAEL O'SULLIVAN / APR 28, 2026

The missing seat at the frontier team table

When evaluation is driven primarily by available data, teams risk optimizing what is measurable rather than what actually matters.

Why it matters

— User research belongs in evaluation, not adjacent to it.

— Session-length looked strong. Task-completion cut repeat queries by a third.

— Sales-order workflow assumed isolation. Research surfaced cascading approvals.

— Concept tests caught a workflow misread that would have cost weeks.

Read on Microsoft Design →

Research & validation Cross-functional & process Critique & decision-making

NUBANK DESIGN

LDLR DESIGN FIELD NOTES

Killing darlings, statistically

Nubank ran a real A/B test on whether to scale or shut down an internal HR product. The data was unambiguous; the team's reaction to it was not.

BY NUBANK EDITORIAL / AUG 27, 2025

A/B Testing for Decision of scaling or decommissioning an Human Resources product

Increased usage didn't always translate to feeling recognized — a critical insight missed without experimental

Why it matters

— A/B testing applied to decommissioning, not just feature launches.

— Internal tools deserve the same rigor as customer-facing products.

— Usage below threshold: kill it. Above: scale it.

— Hardest part isn't the data, it's letting the team accept it.

Read on Nubank Design →

Research & validation Cross-functional & process Critique & decision-making