Phd Human Computer Interaction Research Jobs in Portland, OR

Overview

Join Esri as a Senior UX Researcher - ArcGIS Apps, where you'll focus primarily on ArcGIS Business Analyst and ArcGIS Instant Apps while supporting research across a broader suite of ArcGIS applications. In this role, you'll collaborate with designers, product managers, software engineers, and domain experts to conduct impactful foundational and directional research across a variety of SaaS applications. You'll partner with multiple product teams to carry out agile research in a fast-paced environment, supporting projects in active development as well as research that informs strategic product decision-making. Your work will directly influence how professionals around the world use critical ArcGIS applications to tackle complex geographical challenges. 

Responsibilities

• Lead exploratory and evaluative research across the development lifecycle to guide product direction and decision-making on ArcGIS Apps, including identifying user problems & research opportunities to exploring new audiences & testing product iterations
• Align research with agile development processes, ensuring user insights are proactively represented in standups, sprint planning, retrospectives, GitHub issues, and release cycles
• Build strong relationships and manage research projects across multiple product teams, acting as a trusted partner and embedding deeply in cross-functional workflows
• Partner with product and design leadership to prioritize research needs, develop plans, and deliver actionable insights tailored to designers, engineers, and product managers
• Synthesize findings from multiple data sources into clear problem statements, actionable recommendations, and proposed next steps that reflect product priorities
• Champion inclusive research practices, ensuring participants, data, and recommendations reflect the diversity of our users, their environments, and use cases
• Contribute to research operations that improve rigor, efficiency, and scalability including mentoring team members & helping maintain a diverse participant pool
• Serve as a trusted subject matter expert for designers and cross-functional partners working across the ArcGIS suite

Requirements

• 5+ years of experience leading user experience research on complex enterprise software
• Expertise in qualitative, quantitative, and mixed-method research methodologies (including usability testing) across remote and in-person formats
• Expert-level knowledge of design patterns and common usability challenges for enterprise software or data-focused applications
• Demonstrated experience conducting agile UX research and collaborating closely with cross-functional product teams
• Ability to adapt research methodologies to the needs, opportunities, and constraints of each project and deliver insights and recommendations on time
• Ability to deeply understand ArcGIS software and the field of GIS, including proactively learning product workflows and engaging with internal subject matter experts
• Proven ability to plan, organize, and manage time effectively, with a strong focus on scoping and managing collaborative research projects
• Experience recruiting participants from specialized technical and B2B audiences, including international users
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to make complex ideas actionable and easy to understand
• Bachelor's degree in human-computer interaction, information science, anthropology, psychology, sociology, or a related field
• Visa sponsorship is not available for this posting. Applicants must be authorized to work for any employer in the U.S.

Recommended Qualifications

• Knowledge of GIS technologies, data visualization tools, and analytical workflows
• Familiarity with accessibility standards and software localization practices
• Experience applying quantitative methods to software telemetry data
• Familiarity with development and product management tools such as GitHub, Confluence, and Productboard
• Master's degree in human-computer interaction, information science, anthropology, psychology, sociology, or a related field

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