Senior User Researcher

Company Description

NEC Digital Studio We’re NEC Digital Studio. while you read this ad, our software is helping to dispatch ambulances, support families, keep trains on the move, locate missing people and even test the hearing of newborn babies. We’re a 3,000+ employee organisation working with governments, hospitals, police forces, housing providers, local authorities, charities and more. Our mission is to empower organisations to be more effective, inclusive and sustainable, through tools, systems and experiences that are intelligent, integrated and intuitive for all.

We design and develop with a people-first approach, focusing on accessibility and digital inclusion. We’d love your help and will support you along the way. Discover more at NEC Digital Studio | Made for Life ().

Location: UK - Remote or Hybrid, Subject to Location

Salary: £46-65,000 subject to location and experience

NO AGENCIES PLEASE

What we’re looking for: We’re looking for a Senior User Researcher with significant experience in delivering user research projects. The focus of your role will be to plan, facilitate and lead user research activities on a variety of projects. You’ll often be working with multidisciplinary teams on complex projects where autonomy and project management will be important. We’re on the hunt for someone who will champion our values: to care passionately, be fluent in people, believe in your craft, push convention, be open to change, and to value each other.

We work with a broad range of clients, some of whom are completely new to user-centred design (UCD). This means you’ll also play a key role in championing our UCD approach.

The role may also involve:

• Leading and directing projects – You’ll lead multidisciplinary teams and clients in the pursuit of inclusive, accessible and effective research outcomes.
• Team support and management – You’ll help to support the user research team by inspiring and line managing team members, including overseeing appraisals and professional development.
• Defining and refining practice – You’ll help to define the way our disciplines work together, and progress the way NEC Digital Studio delivers inclusive, accessible, and effective design.
• Supporting new business – You’ll help NEC Digital Studio identify and win projects by spotting opportunities with clients and helping with proposals and pitches.
• Supporting our Design School with the development and delivery of courses

We work with central and local government, the NHS, voluntary, not-for-profit, and private sector organisations. We work hand-in-hand with our clients and sometimes we’re embedded in their teams for projects. You’ll move on to different sectors after 3 - 12 months to get a variety of experiences, from applying GDS standards to improving customer buy-in. Beyond individual projects, NEC Digital Studio’s User Researchers support each other at weekly meet-ups where we share our work, discuss wider implications, and learn methods.

You’ll broaden your skills by working closely with Digital teams, including interaction and content designers, and developers. All of our User Researchers are supported by more senior members of the User Research team who help you set goals, provide feedback, and support your growth.

Your skills and experience: We’d like to hear from you if you have skills or experience in some of these areas:

• Multidisciplinary teams – Leading and advocating for user research activities on a project, working with the wider team to deliver insights.
• Inclusive research – Conducting ethical user research, identifying accessibility needs, and making adjustments as required.
• User Research to GDS service standards – Planning and conducting research across different agile phases.
• Qualitative analysis and synthesis – Producing representative user journeys, user stories and needs from findings.
• Facilitation – Conducting sessions such as interviews and usability testing and guiding stakeholders through processes.
• Service Design – Interest or experience in service design thinking and outcomes
• Written communication – Writing and sharing findings clearly to colleagues and…