Lead, User Research

$119,400 - $185,100/Yr

Western Governors University - Salt Lake City, UT

Full-time - Mid Level

Remote - Salt Lake City, UT

Educational Services

About the position

The Lead UX Researcher at Craft Education plays a pivotal role in shaping product strategy through user-centered research. This position involves end-to-end ownership of the research lifecycle, from designing studies to delivering insights, while collaborating with cross-functional teams. The Lead UX Researcher will lead user research initiatives, synthesize data into actionable insights, and establish research processes to support the company's mission of revolutionizing work-based learning pathways.

Responsibilities

• Leads and conducts user research initiatives across various projects and product lines.
• Plans and executes research using diverse methodologies to understand user needs and use cases.
• Identifies and addresses key research problems, synthesizing qualitative and quantitative data into actionable insights.
• Develops and manages a comprehensive research repository to organize and share findings.
• Collaborates with cross-functional teams to inform product decisions and strategy.
• Works closely with UX designers and product managers to iterate and test solutions.
• Communicates research findings to stakeholders through clear, digestible documentation.
• Translates insights into actionable recommendations to influence company strategy.
• Establishes and refines research processes and methodologies as the company grows.
• Generates research initiatives aligned with business goals and user needs.
• Develops research strategies and roadmaps supporting product and business OKRs.
• Potentially mentors junior researchers and manage the expanding research team.
• Stays current with market trends, competitors, and research software (e.g., Datadog, Dovetail).
• Identifies data gaps and collaborates with the business to address them.
• Socializes UX research findings by sharing bit-size insights, UX watch parties / 'lunch-and-learns,' or other methods to help our internal (non-customer-facing) teammates get inspired, learn about the problem space, and build user empathy.
• Performs other job-related duties as assigned.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in a related field.
• 5+ years of experience in UX research, preferably in a fast-paced startup environment.
• Strong portfolio demonstrating impact of research on product decisions.
• Expertise in various research methodologies, both qualitative and quantitative.
• Experience in setting up and managing research repositories.

Nice-to-haves

• Experience working with government employees (especially in Workforce Development, Department of Labor, or apprenticeship programs).
• Master's Degree in a related field.
• Experience using testing tools (Dovetail, User Testing, Maze, UserZoom, Optimal Sort or similar).
• Experience with survey design and tools (Typeform, Qualtrics or Survey Monkey).
• Experience with analytics tools (Datadog, Pendo, Adobe, Mixpanel, Google Analytics or similar).

Benefits

• Eligible for bonuses
• Medical, dental, vision, telehealth and mental healthcare
• Health savings account and flexible spending account
• Basic and voluntary life insurance
• Disability coverage
• Accident, critical illness and hospital indemnity supplemental coverages
• Legal and identity theft coverage
• Retirement savings plan
• Wellbeing program
• Discounted WGU tuition
• Flexible paid time off for rest and relaxation with no need for accrual
• Flexible paid sick time with no need for accrual
• 11 paid holidays
• Other paid leaves, including up to 12 weeks of parental leave