Research at Achmea Venture Studios: Three Questions You Should Always Ask

Finding the sweet spot

You’re not a service provider—you’re a catalyst. You know what’s happening inside the venture, you sense where the momentum is, you ask the hard questions, and you’re not afraid to push back when needed. But the best moments? Those are when research not only brings direction but also accelerates progress.
Every day, we’re searching for the sweet spot between speed and depth. And that always starts with three sharp, simple questions I ask myself before every new project.

Can we go there?

Slack chats and Zoom interviews are great. But if you want to really understand how someone lives or works, you have to go on-site. Context matters. Often, the space around someone tells you just as much as what they say.

How does someone move through their day? Where do things get stuck? What’s happening between the lines? What role does the context play?
At most ventures, we’re sitting in people’s living rooms or offices in no time. What we get: sharp insights, real feedback, and usable content—in just one day. No weeks of scheduling, no endless reporting. Just go.

At one of our partners, two short site visits were enough to spot real opportunities for using AI in their workflow. No thick reports, just a clear sense of what’s really going on.

Should it be better—or just faster?

Sometimes you need to dig deep. Sometimes you need to keep moving. The key question: what impact are we aiming for, and are we actually getting there with this setup?

Coming from an agency background, I know the temptation to go all-in—to deliver something extensive and bulletproof. But in our reality, that’s rarely necessary. More often, we ask: what’s the leanest setup that still gives us trustworthy results?

That doesn’t mean we never go deep. We absolutely do—when it’s worth it.
In one venture, we test ideas online at lightning speed. Real-time feedback, minimal investment, maximum learning. In another, we do in-depth conversations with multiple user groups. So: rigour when it matters, speed when it’s smarter.

What can we do with these insights tomorrow?

The best insights aren’t always beautiful—they’re useful. Sure, we want things to look good, but the goal isn’t to make a report that gathers dust. The goal is to make things happen.
Sometimes a voice note is enough. Or a simple sketch. Or a sharp summary in Slack. Especially in teams that already have a strong research mindset.
So before you dive in, ask yourself: what does the team need to take action on this? Then build that