Senior User Researcher

Summary

Join Octave as a Senior User Researcher and lead research efforts to understand user needs in behavioral healthcare. Collaborate with cross-functional teams to ensure user insights drive impactful digital products and services. You will plan and conduct user research studies, synthesize findings, and communicate recommendations effectively. This role requires strong analytical and communication skills, experience with various research methodologies, and the ability to collaborate effectively. You will advocate for user-centered design and mentor others. Octave offers a competitive salary, equity, bonuses, and comprehensive benefits.

Requirements

Must be eligible to work in the United States without sponsorship now or in the future

Responsibilities

• Plan and conduct complex user research studies using a variety of methods, including contextual inquiries, usability testing, customer journey mapping, interviews, surveys, and field observations
• Synthesize qualitative and quantitative findings into actionable insights that guide product and design strategies
• Identify opportunities to leverage user insights to improve the experience for patients and therapists, aligning outcomes with business objectives
• Develop compelling research deliverables such as user personas, journey maps, and detailed reports to communicate findings and recommendations effectively
• ���Manage up” by helping to foster a research-centric business mindset, enabling executive leadership to leverage deeper insights to guide decision-making
• Lead research project tracking and the discovery process, coordinating cross-functional efforts to disseminate research findings and integrate them into broader strategies
• Serve as a key communicator of research insights, ensuring alignment across teams and fostering a user-centered approach
• Stay informed about industry trends, best practices, and regulatory considerations in behavioral healthcare to keep research relevant and impactful
• Collaborate with Data and Marketing teams to co-develop an Insights Hub, refining user personas and improving decision-making through integrating research, consumer insights, and data analysis
• Partner with Design and Product teams to ensure research findings are embedded throughout the product development lifecycle
• Contribute to the Design Discovery & Experimentation Pipeline by providing user insights to enhance testing and iteration efforts
• Work with our clinical leadership to incorporate the perspectives of therapists into user research initiatives, ensuring solutions address the needs of all stakeholders, clients and therapists alike
• Advocate for user-centered design across Octave, building empathy and understanding for users among stakeholders
• Present findings to cross-functional teams, stakeholders, and sometimes the whole company, with the goal of keeping research top-of-mind for everyone
• Mentor others when opportune ( junior researchers, designers, partners, etc), fostering a culture of continuous learning and collaboration

Preferred Qualifications

• 5+ years of professional experience in user research, with a strong portfolio of impactful research initiatives
• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Human-Computer Interaction, Psychology, Sociology, or a related field, or equivalent experience
• Deep understanding of the healthcare landscape, including patient needs and therapist workflows
• Proficiency in a wide range of research methodologies, including interviews, focus groups, surveys, usability testing (and related tooling), and ethnographic studies
• Strong analytical and communication skills, with the ability to translate findings into strategic recommendations and compelling narratives
• Experience collaborating with cross-functional teams, including Product, Design, Data, Marketing, and Clinical teams
• Familiarity with tools such as Notion, Google Workspace (e.g. Docs, Sheets, Slides), Figma, Userresearch.com/UseBerry, Miro/FigJam, and data visualization platforms like Tableau or Mixpanel
• A demonstrable proactive leadership mindset, with the ability to identify opportunities to apply research insights to improve user experiences
• Comfort assisting with design-related activities, such as creating wireframes, prototypes, or participating in critiques when needed

Benefits

• Company sponsored life insurance
• Disability and AD&D plans
• 401k retirement
• Medical
• Dental
• Vision
• FSA
• HSA
• Dependent care
• Commuter/parking options
• Paid Time Off
• Paid parental leave benefits
• Equity in the form of stock options
• Target bonus incentives based on performance