Aglet

Turn Recruitment Fit Findings Into Better Research

A recruitment miss teaches more when the team can see where fit was lost. Preserve the decision, the screener, the recruited path, and the finding that became uncertain. Then update planning so relevant contexts and access needs are considered before the next calendar is filled.

Keep the lesson for the next incident

  1. Save the coverage story

    Record intended segments, screening criteria, actual participant context, dropouts, and the decision affected. Include a case where a participant looked suitable but did not perform the task. Keep the evidence link instead of summarizing fit as a percentage.

  2. Improve recruitment planning

    Add context checks, access prompts, and a coverage review to the research brief. Show how the change would have caught this mismatch earlier. Allow a study to declare a narrow scope rather than forcing every round to claim broad coverage.

  3. Watch the next sample

    Set a signal such as identical recruitment sources, unusually high product familiarity, or missing access adaptations. Assign an owner to review the sample before sessions begin. Reopen the plan when the signal appears or a new segment changes the decision.

What to carry forward

The learning record should connect the recruitment mismatch to the changed planning practice and recurrence signal. State which findings were narrowed or retained. Treat coverage as a living decision boundary that can improve with each research round.

Technical background: GOV.UK user research guidance.

Keep the decision with the work.

Use a Work Item in Aglet to record the problem, the evidence you have, and the next decision. Add an owner and priority, then keep updates in the discussion so the next person can follow the reasoning.

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