User Researcher (For independent contractors)

The User Researcher demonstrates critical thinking beyond business requests. They operate independently in all operational research tasks. This role leads core end-to-end research activities - including driving research objectives, hypotheses, methodology, execution, analysis, and communication.

Key Responsibilities

Research Skills

• Shows good judgement when evaluating research opportunities, e.g. determines the importance, urgency, and impact for team

• Reasonably challenges details of inbound research requests, and proposes solid research solutions.

• Exhibits research excellence by executing projects with existing skills while constantly expanding his/her breadth and depth of abilities.

• Integrates knowledge of approaches for both quantitative and qualitative research.

• Effectively triangulate findings, methods, and theories with others.

• Maximizes the value and efficiency of research by applying internal and external secondary research and expert inspection methods.

• Adopts and adapts well-established methods according to product/project situations, and innovates new methods in collaboration with more senior researchers.

• Knows or can quickly learn key software tools common in the field (e.g. for surveys, diary studies, analysis)

• Applies knowledge of data compliance and ethics in all of their activities.

Business Impact

• Develops research activities and insights to answer key business questions effectively and efficiently.

• Focuses insights on informed decision-making for company/BU/track priority, product value proposition, product design, market communications and/or market strategy.

Collaboration

• Drives cross-discipline/department collaboration via research insights/activities.

• Collaborates efficiently with other researchers and other disciplines, with clear commitment to shared ownership.

• Shows excellence in their communication skills; tailors communication style for different audiences, concise and to the point, open to take input and feedback.

Research Community Contributions

• Contributes to the research community through one or more ways - special topic workgroup participation, coaching and/or mentoring other core or junior researchers, hiring phone screening of candidates.

Requirements of special knowledge/skills

• Master degree or PhD, an undergraduate degree in a field focused on research with human subjects (e.g., HCI, Cognitive Science, Psychology, Sociology, etc) or similar background would be expected.

  
  

• Solid research design fundamentals

  
  

• Data collection and analysis