Positioning and pitching for design research in an enterprise environment is a completely different ballgame. Though organizations are spending millions on newer technology, artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML) and digital transformation projects; users' (read employees) insights & preferences are often neglected which results in poorer adoption of these tools or in building ineffective products. To gain a positive ROI, design research should be pitched and integrated within the transformation approach. Planning design research for internal assignments requires a different approach from a regular external user research program. I will deep dive into the approach, best practices for transformation vs AI/ML projects, case studies, and lessons learned while implementing large-scale digital transformation and re-platforming projects.