Mid-level UX Researcher Job at Openfield Creative in Cincinnati

The role

Openfield specializes in UX Research and Design to help EdTech companies create best-ever user experiences that enable people to achieve new levels of learning and teaching success. As a UX Researcher at Openfield, you will be responsible for translating findings from observation and feedback into compelling recommendations and next steps that highlight user motivations, inform the iterative UX design process, and help stakeholders make decisions confidently. You will have strategic awareness of the product planning process so that you can advocate for the most effective and efficient ways to address research goals while minimizing bias. A great Researcher will feel comfortable questioning internal and external objectives, findings, and research interpretations to help create stronger research. They will also be constantly looking for ways to learn about and apply new research methodologies to elevate our process and work product.

You will report to the Director of UX Research, but also work closely with the Director of UX Design, product leads, and other researchers to create world class experiences for our clients.

Requirements

• At least 2-5 years experience in a UX research role supporting product development focused on planning and conducting generative and evaluative user research
• Proven ability to blend strategic and rigorous analysis with practical decision-making
• Proven ability to articulate research findings into recommendations that inform design exploration, prioritization, and refinement.
• Experience working closely with senior stakeholders and facilitating workshops that drive alignment on key initiatives
• Proven understanding of attitudinal and behavioral research best practices
• Familiarity with tools such as UserZoom, UserTesting.com, Qualtrics, Airtable, Google Sheets, etc.
• Ability to successfully track and manage time across a variety of projects
• A background in Psychology, Sociology, Anthropology, Human Computer Interaction, or related field

Job location: Cincinnati, Ohio

• In-office/hybrid employee: Openfield is committed to accommodating a flexible schedule where employees can work both from the office and from home. Your in-office presence will be at the discretion of the Directors and informed by the priority of tasks, stage in design/research processes, and state of projects. It will be influenced by factors like client engagement, testing and reporting schedules, workshops with cross-disciplinary teams, clients and users, and in-office events such as company meetings and performance reviews. The Directors will work with you to ensure that your in-office schedule aligns with project needs while also supporting your professional growth and development.
• Must be willing to commute to the Cincinnati, Ohio office.

Responsibilities

• Plan and carry out research to help create and improve products and features. This includes both exploring new ideas and testing existing ones throughout the entire product development process.
• Collaborate in selecting the strongest and most practical methodology(ies) to meet business needs and minimize risks in decision making for the product.
• Collaborate closely with UX designers, product managers, and other stakeholders to create alignment on key initiatives.
• Work closely with UX designers to ensure you have the materials and prototype interactions needed to perform tests that produce accurate and useful results.
• Conduct a wide range of research activities such as user interviews, usability studies, concept tests, co-creation sessions, diary studies, journey mapping/service design blueprinting, surveys, etc.
• Translate qualitative and quantitative findings into confident, product-specific research recommendations that inform design exploration, prioritization, and refinement.
• Communicate and present research findings, recommendations, and next steps to stakeholders.
• Help define the appropriate metrics to understand how successfully a design is working in the actual product, and monitor those metrics over time.
• Apply what you learn from research to help improve designs and represent the users' perspectives in design critiques.
• Balance the demands of a workload that spans multiple products.
• Foster a constructive and dependable relationship with coworkers and clients.
• Educate team members on research methodologies and support designers and other team members in advancing their skills and research expertise.
• Stay current with the latest UX methodologies and tools.
• Represent Openfield as experts in the UX, Research, and EdTech space by advocating for best practices when working with clients, internalizing research findings and relating them across work, and contributing to the creation of Openfield articles and case studies.
• Help drive internal process improvements, including how to adapt to different client contexts to maximize workflow efficiency and quality.

Traits that will make you the right fit for our culture:

• Meticulous & flawless in your craft
• Unafraid to voice your opinion
• Agile and adaptable
• Empathetic and approachable
• Reliable and dedicated
• Passionate about doing the best work possible
• Highly organized
• Able to work autonomously
• Being the person everyone wants to collaborate with