Senior UX Researcher / UX Designer

Job Title: Senior UX Researcher / UX Designer

Location: Houston, TX

Duration: 12-Month Contract with Possible Extension / Conversion

Job Summary

We are seeking an experienced Senior UX Researcher / UX Designer to lead user-centered research and design initiatives that drive exceptional digital experiences. This role combines deep expertise in user research, interaction design, information architecture, and usability testing to uncover insights and transform them into intuitive, impactful product experiences.

The ideal candidate is a strategic thinker, skilled facilitator, and hands-on designer who excels at understanding user needs, influencing product direction, and creating experiences that balance customer value with business objectives. You will collaborate closely with Product Management, Solution Architects, Vendors, and business stakeholders to define, design, validate, and optimize end-to-end user experiences.

Key Responsibilities

UX Research

• Plan, conduct, and synthesize qualitative and quantitative research studies.
• Develop research strategies that inform product vision, roadmap prioritization, and design decisions.
• Execute user interviews, contextual inquiries, field studies, usability testing, surveys, diary studies, and competitive analyses.
• Identify customer pain points, behaviors, motivations, and unmet needs.
• Translate research findings into actionable insights, journey maps, personas, and recommendations.
• Communicate research results effectively to stakeholders and leadership.
• Establish and promote research best practices across teams.

UX Design & Enterprise Experience Optimization

• Partner with business stakeholders, product owners, and technical teams to translate user needs into effective configurations of vendor-provided enterprise platforms and applications.
• Evaluate existing workflows and identify opportunities to improve usability, efficiency, and user satisfaction through system configuration and process optimization.
• Design and document user journeys, task flows, business processes, and interaction models within the constraints of commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) and SaaS solutions.
• Recommend configuration changes, feature adoption strategies, and enhancements that align user needs with business objectives.
• Collaborate with vendors and implementation teams to influence product configurations and maximize platform capabilities.
• Create wireframes, workflow diagrams, mockups, and prototypes when needed to communicate requirements and desired user experiences.
• Ensure configured solutions support accessibility, usability, consistency, and established UX best practices.
• Conduct usability evaluations and user acceptance testing to validate that configured solutions meet user expectations and business requirements.
• Drive continuous improvement by analyzing user feedback, support trends, and experience metrics to identify enhancement opportunities.
• Champion a user-centered approach throughout implementation, enhancement, and change management initiatives.
• Contribute to training, communications, and adoption strategies that help users effectively engage with enterprise platforms and tools.

Strategy & Collaboration

• Partner with Product Managers and business stakeholders to define product requirements and success metrics.
• Influence product strategy through customer insights and evidence-based recommendations.
• Facilitate design thinking workshops, stakeholder interviews, and collaborative ideation sessions.
• Balance user needs, technical constraints, and business goals when making design decisions.
• Mentor junior researchers and designers as needed.
• Drive continuous improvement in UX processes, methodologies, and standards.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), Psychology, Design, Human Factors, Information Science, or a related field.
• 7+ years of experience in UX Research, UX Design, Product Design, or related disciplines.
• Demonstrated experience conducting and leading user research initiatives.
• Strong portfolio showcasing both research and design deliverables and measurable business outcomes.
• Experience translating research insights into user-centered design solutions.
• Proficiency with industry-standard tools such as Figma, FigJam, Miro, UserTesting, Dovetail, Optimal Workshop, Qualtrics, or similar platforms.
• Strong understanding of usability principles, accessibility guidelines, and interaction design best practices.
• Excellent communication, facilitation, storytelling, and presentation skills.
• Experience working in Agile or product-oriented development environments.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master's degree in HCI, Psychology, Human Factors, Design, or a related discipline.
• Experience designing enterprise software, SaaS platforms, industrial systems, or complex workflows.
• Knowledge of mixed-method research and statistical analysis techniques.
• Experience managing large-scale research programs.
• Familiarity with design systems and component-based design approaches.
• Experience mentoring UX professionals and leading cross-functional initiatives.

Key Competencies

• User-Centered Design
• Mixed-Methods Research
• Interaction Design
• Service Design
• Information Architecture
• Usability Testing
• Design Thinking
• Customer Journey Mapping
• Design Systems
• Accessibility (WCAG)
• Stakeholder Management
• Strategic Problem Solving
• Data-Driven Decision Making
• Facilitation and Workshop Leadership
• Executive Communication