In this role, You Will:
- Mentor and train others in the development and practice of user experience research techniques, processes, and methods.
- Work closely with product teams to identify and prioritize research topics and questions.
- Move quickly and efficiently in an agile product development cycle, delivering continuous insights through lean research practices.
- Provide counsel to product teams on the appropriate research strategy needed to answer critical questions.
- Conduct research using a wide variety of qualitative and quantitative methods, as well as human-centered design principles, leveraging support from other research disciplines (e.g., data analytics) as appropriate.
- Work cross-functionally with software development, design, content strategy, data science, and marketing.
- Represent the voice of the user and communicate research insights and recommendations in compelling and creative ways with team members and senior leadership.
- Facilitate research debriefs, brainstorming exercises, and/or other workshops that utilize design thinking approaches to fuel ideation and evaluate product design.
What It Takes:
- MA/MS/PhD in a related field or equivalent combination of training and experience (HCI, Psychology, Sociology, Human Factors, Usability, or Information Science).
- 5+ years relevant research experience; 5 years related work experience; 2 years User Experience or User Interface experience.
- Track record of thought leadership and demonstrated ability to prioritize initiatives to influence strategic decisions.
- Demonstrated ability to manage and lead others through ambiguity.
- Strong business acumen; an understanding of business goals, strategies, and pressures while being aware of industry trends and competitive actions as context for research.
- Demonstrated mastery in using design thinking techniques for product design and research.
- Command a broad set of qualitative and user-centered design research methods (usability testing, client interviews, diary study, surveys).
- Proficient knowledge of quantitative research methods.
- Experience working across mobile, desktop web, and apps.
- Ability to ask, as well as answer, meaningful and impactful questions.
- Compelling communication and presentation/storytelling skills.
- Ability to facilitate group meetings and workshops.
- Experience using a wide range of user experience research software and tools (e.g., UserTesting.com, Medallia, Qualtrics).
- Strong project management skills and experience guiding multiple projects simultaneously.
- Specific or highly related experience in one of Vanguard’s lab topic areas (onboarding, investing, tax management, cash management, robo-advice, human advice, mobile app, secure site, security, help, search, or conversational UI) is a plus.