What I Learned Working as a UX Researcher ✨
A reflection on my UX Research career.
20–1–2021, I still remember this date when Cydelle Zuzarte reached out to me after reading my article asking If I were interested in joining them as Junior UX Researcher at Swiggy. I had mixed feelings which involved a lot of questions, “ Am I capable of doing this job? or Did they reach out to the wrong guy?”
(I believe it was normal to feel like that, I think most of us face imposter syndrome at-least once in our careers.)
I quickly said “I’m more than happy to join you guys” and its been 1 long challenging year working as a UX Researcher.
This article is mostly about my reflections of this amazing 1 year.
Talk to as many peers as possible 🗣️
Don’t be shy. Say “Hi” and introduce yourself to everyone you can in the office.
One of the most valuable insights you can get in the beginning is how the department/Team operates from the perspective of your peers. If you establish that you’re friendly and approachable early on, you will start on the right foot in establishing trust
Avoid Confirmation Bias ⛔
People tend to give more weight to evidence that confirms their assumptions and to discount data and opinions that don’t support those assumptions. Psychologist Daniel Kahneman, who introduced the concept of confirmation bias, says that confirmation bias happens “when you have an interpretation, and you adopt it, and then, top-down, you force everything to fit that interpretation.”
For example, a UX practitioner might hear users complain about a poorly designed navigation system in a product. A UX practitioner might discount such feedback because the design looks logical to them.
Confirmation bias is most dangerous bias for UX Researchers. Its best to have 0 assumptions from the start of your project and perhaps be ready to be surprised during the project.
Always have a Growth Mindset 🧠
As a junior Researcher/Designer to perform at your fullest, one could need a curious mind with endless questions. In fact, what makes design thinking good for problem solving is also good for personal and professional growth. This is because design thinking embodies as the growth mindset. With curiosity, effort and practice, we can design better outcomes for ourselves and others.
In a fast moving tech world its hard to keep up with the pace. Its best to always read blogs over medium and communicate with your peers to learn new stuff.
However I have compiled a UX Research Repository, which contains enough resources to kick-start your UX Research Career.
Inspiring empathy for the user ♿
Taking a step back from the specific tasks that they carry out, UX researchers often serve as the “voice of the user” and aim to inspire empathy among those who are others who are developing the products or experiences.
Not only do UX researchers need to understand the context, thoughts, feelings, attitudes, and motivations of users, they also must align them with the motivations and expectations of internal stakeholders.
Influencing key stakeholders ⚙️
A UX researcher should have a solid understanding of analytics and the design process as a whole, but they also need soft skills such as adaptability, an understanding of human behaviors, and a willingness to collaborate.
To be able to effectively advocate for your projects, you need to make sure you are using the right language when communicating with stakeholders. For instance, one way to show stakeholders the value in UX is to calculate and share with them what the return on investment (ROI) is predicted to be.
You need your stakeholders to have co-ownership of your research project so that you do the most relevant research and have the backup to make changes based on your research.
Conducting one-on-one stakeholder interviews or a kick-off workshop is a great way to create space for a conversation filled with empathy and understanding. Asking questions such as, “Tell me what happened the last time you did user research?” or “What is your ideal timeline and approach for this project?” can help you gain a deeper understanding of stakeholders’ most important business goals and key performance indicators (KPIs). These insights will inform a research plan that mitigates stakeholders’ concerns, involve them in the most relevant activities and tailor your delivery of user insights to their business needs.
