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Simple etnography

Simple Ethnography empowers teams to uncover fresh insights and practical improvements by observing real-world experiences. 
What Is Made Possible
  • Deep understanding through immersion: Participants step into the shoes of frontline colleagues or users to observe what people actually do and feel - not just what they say.
  • Discovery of hidden insights: By witnessing real behaviors and interactions, teams can uncover tacit knowledge and unspoken needs that often go unnoticed.
  • Faster innovation and improvement: Observations spark ideas that can lead to quick performance gains and faster prototyping of solutions.
  • Pattern recognition: When multiple participants share their observations, it becomes easier to spot recurring themes and systemic opportunities for change.
  • Empathy and connection: It builds stronger understanding and respect between teams and the people they serve or support.

  • Time needed

    75 minutes - 7 hours

  • Preparation

    1. Miro Board (online) or paper (F2F)
    2. Turn or recoding (F2F and Online)

  • How to start

    1. Invite participants to silently observe people with experience relevant to the challenge at hand and then follow up with interviews for more insight

  • Step-by-step and timing

    1. Explain the problem to be solved and the current understanding of the situation. (5 min)
    2. Identify sites to observe and people to shadow that will reveal user experience in depth. (5 min)
    3. Invite participants to visit sites and observe without speaking interactions and activities, recording details and internal reflections as they go (10–180 min)
    4. Ask participants to then select behaviors observed that address the challenge in a novel fashion and follow up by asking the individuals they observed what they were feeling and doing as they engaged in the behavior. (20–180 min).
    5. Reconvene the group of ethnographers and use 1-2-4-All to compare notes and find patterns across observations (15 min)
    6. Write up observations or compose stories that highlight needs and opportunities. (10–20 min).
    7. Feed insights into brainstorming and prototyping efforts. (10 min)

  • Hints

    1. Avoid adding meaning and interpretations too quickly to the observations
    2. Be prepared to repeat steps if the core-group members don’t feel they have a particularly powerful new approach to prototype

  • Examples of use

    1. Help invisible routines become visible
    2. Identify fundamental needs and innovative solutions
    3. Good for shadowing and mentoring

  • Link with other Liberating Structures

    Link with:

    1-2-4-All

  • Link to Liberating Structures page

    Simple etnography

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