Senior Staff UX Researcher

Summary

Join Gusto's Pay Group, Benefits, and HR Experiences teams as a Sr. Staff UX Researcher to lead research strategy for major product areas. Partner with senior leaders to define direction and shape roadmaps grounded in customer needs. Influence product strategy and ensure high-quality experiences for customers. Help shape Gusto's Research practice, scale research practices, and empower cross-functional teams. Partner with Design, Engineering, Data, and PM to bring strong leadership and uphold a high bar for research quality. This high-impact role is ideal for leading research at scale and elevating the craft across a platform team. You will report to the Head of UX Research and Design Operations and partner with various teams to lead research throughout the product lifecycle, aligning with strategic priorities. Your insights will connect business goals with customer needs, shaping products and services for millions of small businesses and their employees.

Requirements

• 10+ years of user research experience, with a record of leading high-impact, strategic work
• Deep expertise in UX research methods, with the judgment to select and adapt the right approach to the problem
• Skilled in mixed methods, and experienced across end-to-end journeys, from digital experiences to service touchpoints
• Demonstrated experience influencing product direction across multiple teams through your insights and opinions. We’re looking for a research leader that stays deeply connected with the product
• Strong communicator and systems thinker, able to synthesize complexity and drive alignment across disciplines
• Thrives in fast-paced, ambiguous environments; proactive, detail-oriented, and able to operate with autonomy
• Demonstrated success in mentoring others, democratizing research, and embedding customer connection into team culture and rituals
• Curious and opinionated about emerging tools, including AI, with a drive to evolve how research is done
• Mission-driven, with genuine empathy for small business owners and a desire to improve their lives through thoughtful product development

Responsibilities

• Shape strategic research direction. Build and evolve a research roadmap aligned to business priorities, spanning multiple product areas and levels of ambiguity. Partner closely with Product, Data, Design, and Engineering leadership
• Lead high-impact research. Independently conduct complex generative and evaluative studies that uncover unmet needs, inform product vision, and de-risk decisions at scale
• Influence cross-org priorities. Identify patterns and connections across teams. Ensure insights cascade and inform decisions across teams and timelines. Partner with senior leadership to identify and evangelize the highest-impact opportunities for our customers
• Advance AI-native practices. Explore and embed AI tools into research workflows to enhance speed, quality, and impact. Help define what it means to work AI-natively across research internally and for our customers
• Mentor and multiply. Coach peers and cross-functional teammates. Develop tools, templates, and guidance that scale research craft and impact
• Drive research rigor and storytelling. Craft compelling, actionable narratives tailored to executive and stakeholder audiences. Bring clarity and urgency to insights
• Elevate customer understanding. Collaborate with cross-functional partners to connect insights and build a holistic view of the customer journey
• Advance research influence and scale. Partner with Design Ops to evolve scalable methods, workflows, and systems. Pilot and champion new tools and practices

Benefits

• Our cash compensation range for this role is $172,000/yr to $215,000/yr in Denver & most remote locations, and $202,000/yr to $253,000/yr in San Francisco, Seattle & New York
• Gusto has physical office spaces in Denver, San Francisco, and New York City. Employees who are based in those locations will be expected to work from the office on designated days approximately 2-3 days per week (or more depending on role)