Lead User Experience Researcher

Define the research strategy and roadmap for a multi-sided market program, spanning discovery, usage, and retention. You will research workers, employers, and service partners. Design and execute generative and evaluative research using methods appropriate to the question—interviews, usability studies, surveys, diary studies, and contextual inquiry. Research and recruit from a hard-to-reach population of deskless, hourly, mobile-only frontline workers. Develop recruiting and research approaches tailored to this population's unique constraints and contexts. Synthesize qualitative research, survey data, telemetry, and business context to develop a coherent view of customer behavior. Translate findings into actionable insights and decision frameworks that directly drive product adoption and conversion metrics. Evaluate new service categories (credit, insurance, whole-worker support) through generative research. Assess market viability, user needs, and integration opportunities to inform category expansion strategy. Establish customer-centered quality measures for emerging experiences and evaluate whether shipped products meet expectations. Influence product strategy and design using deep user, market, and competitor understanding. Drive alignment through clear insight narratives, working sessions, and presentations to senior leaders. Lead cross-functional partners in ideation and reviews to translate research findings into product strategy and roadmap priorities. Raise the methodological bar within the User Research team by mentoring team members in behavioral science methods, experimentation, data interpretation, and behavioral frameworks. Use AI-assisted research tools thoughtfully to accelerate analysis while maintaining appropriate rigor and human oversight. Provide thought leadership by developing and socializing strategic points of view on key topics. Advise senior stakeholders and inform strategic direction. Bachelor's degree in HCDE, Cognitive Psychology, Human Factors, or related field 7+ years of proven success leading User Research projects with demonstrated impact Experience conducting research with participants in multi-sided marketplace ecosystems and understanding the competing needs of multiple stakeholder groups Expertise in qualitative and quantitative research methods including usability testing, interviews, surveys, contextual inquiry, field studies, behavioral analytics, segmentation, and A/B testing Excellent stakeholder management and cross-functional collaboration skills Experience researching across multiple interaction paradigms such as web applications, conversational interfaces, or AI-powered experiences Experience leveraging or critically thinking about how to integrate AI into work processes, decision-making, or problem-solving Proven ability to lead research initiatives, influence product decisions, and mentor researchers B2B, marketplace, e-commerce, or enterprise software research experience Experience researching with deskless or hourly worker populations Fintech, financial wellness, or sensitive-domain research experience, particularly with trust and adoption in employer-embedded financial products Subject matter expertise in frontline workforce, workforce management, human resource management, or talent management Experience building 0-1 products or bringing new offerings to market, particularly within enterprise software companies Experience building AI systems, addressing trust, transparency, and mental model formation