Lead User Researcher

Role Overview

• Leads one / more research deliveries, ensuring all project team & stakeholders have a shared understanding of successful outcomes.
• Scope focus of research, so everyone involved has a shared understanding of successful outcomes
• Takes responsibility for ensuring a whole team approach to user research. Ensuring all stakeholders & team members are invited to participate in observing user research sessions.
• Leads the scoping of one or more research deliveries, defining research objectives, planning activities and leading the overall delivery of research.
• Works with Discipline head and peers to set best practise standards for the User Research team. This includes adhering to GDPR, MRS standards & GDS Service standards.
• Proficient mixed methodology researcher, is able to lead team analysis sessions, synthesis with the production of actionable insight reports.
• Build relationships with clients & senior stakeholders, understanding their needs and providing advisory support.
• Has experience in writing / reviewing bids & supporting business development opportunities
• People management of user researchers
• Support the hiring and onboarding of colleagues across Strategy & Design
• Promote user centred thinking / practices at Made Tech and client offices
• Represent user-centred design community internally & externally

Requirements

• Experienced in research methodologies including:
• Usability testing
• Contextual enquiry
• Rapid research
• Survey development
• Measurable and evaluative research
• Has experience of leading user research across GDS development stages e.g. discovery, alpha, beta. Experience in GDS assessments is desirable.
• Highly experienced at leading user research through agile ways of working
• Confident with coaching more junior members of the team on delivery
• Proficient in leading a team in analysing and synthesising complex data and can help the organisation adopt a wide range of techniques to continually assure, improve and generate valuable findings
• Analyse and interpret research findings so that teams can confidently confirm or challenge their understanding of problems and ideas.
• Leads the team in creating actionable insights through a multitude of outputs including reports, user needs, personas, archetypes and is confident at presenting findings to project teams & senior stakeholders.
• Facilitate teams and stakeholders to make decisions based on user insights
• Highly proficient and advocates for research standards including GDPR / MRS Code of Conduct
• Promotes inclusive research practices and helps teams design and deliver accessible services to meet the needs of the diverse range of users of government services
• Influence the client at a strategic and commercial level e.g. improving processes, ways of working, generating more work
• People management of user researchers
• Support the hiring and onboarding of colleagues across Strategy & Design
• Promote user centred thinking / practices at Made Tech and client offices
• Represent user-centred design community internally & externally

Benefits

• 30 days Holiday
• we offer 30 days of paid annual leave plus bank holidays
• Flexible Working Hours
• we are flexible with what hours you work
• Flexible Parental Leave
• we offer flexible parental leave options
• Remote Working
• we offer part time remote working for all our staff
• Paid counselling
• we offer paid counselling as well as financial and legal advice