📍 Job Overview
Job Title: Senior UX Researcher
Company: Celonis
Location: Madrid, Spain
Job Type: Full-time
Category: User Experience (UX) Research
Date Posted: 2025-06-10T14:29:40
Experience Level: Senior (6+ years)
Remote Status: Hybrid
🎨 Role Summary
- Lead strategic user research initiatives to uncover new product opportunities and deeply understand user needs within the complex domain of process mining and business intelligence.
- Employ a diverse range of quantitative and qualitative research methodologies, including usability studies, field studies, interviews, surveys, and ethnography, to gather comprehensive user insights.
- Collaborate closely with cross-functional teams including Product Design, Product Management, and Engineering to integrate research findings into the product development lifecycle and advocate for user-centered design decisions.
- Translate complex technical and business requirements into actionable research questions and deliver compelling research findings to diverse internal stakeholders.
🖼️ Primary Responsibilities
- Design, plan, and execute strategic user research studies to identify unmet user needs, explore new product concepts, and evaluate existing product usability and effectiveness.
- Collect, analyze, and synthesize qualitative and quantitative user data from various sources, including lab studies, field visits, ethnography, surveys, benchmark studies, and analytics logs.
- Work collaboratively with Product Designers, Product Managers, and Engineers to define research objectives, prioritize research activities, and ensure research insights are actionable and integrated into the product roadmap.
- Communicate research findings, insights, and recommendations clearly and persuasively through written reports, presentations, and workshops to stakeholders across different levels of the organization.
- Advocate for the user throughout the product development process, championing a user-centered approach and influencing product strategy based on deep user understanding.
🎓 Skills & Qualifications
Education: Bachelor's degree or higher in a relevant field such as Anthropology, Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), Human Factors, Psychology, Sociology, or a related design research discipline. A Master's degree or Ph.D. is often preferred for senior roles, demonstrating advanced research methodology expertise.
Experience: A minimum of 6 years of dedicated user experience research experience within a software or related technology industry setting. This experience should include a strong track record of leading strategic research initiatives and successfully integrating research findings into product design and development.
Required Skills:
- Extensive experience designing and conducting a wide range of qualitative and quantitative research methods, including usability studies, contextual inquiry, in-depth interviews, surveys, diary studies, and ethnographic research.
- Demonstrated ability to lead strategic research initiatives that inform product strategy and identify new opportunities.
- Proficiency in data analysis and synthesis, translating complex research findings into clear, actionable insights and recommendations.
- Strong understanding of both qualitative and quantitative research methodologies and their appropriate application in different research contexts.
- Excellent interpersonal, communication, and presentation skills, with the ability to effectively communicate research findings to diverse audiences, including technical and business stakeholders.
- Ability to understand and incorporate complex technical and business requirements into research planning and execution.
Preferred Skills:
- Experience working in a fast-paced, rapidly changing environment, such as a SaaS or technology company.
- Familiarity with process mining, business intelligence, or complex enterprise software domains.
- Experience with A/B testing and interpreting experimental data.
- Proficiency with research tools and platforms for data collection, analysis, and reporting.
- Experience mentoring junior researchers or contributing to the development of research practices within an organization.
🎨 Portfolio & Creative Requirements
Portfolio Essentials:
- Showcase a diverse range of strategic research projects, highlighting how your research influenced product direction or led to significant user insights.
- Include detailed case studies for 3-5 key projects, demonstrating your research process from problem definition and methodology selection to data analysis, synthesis, and communication of findings.
- Clearly articulate the business and user impact of your research, quantifying outcomes where possible (e.g., impact on usability metrics, feature adoption, user satisfaction).
- Present your research findings in a clear, compelling, and visually engaging manner, suitable for communicating insights to diverse stakeholders.
Process Documentation:
- Document your research process comprehensively, including research goals, methodologies chosen, participant recruitment strategies, data collection methods, and analysis techniques.
- Illustrate how you translated raw data (interview transcripts, survey responses, usability test recordings) into actionable insights and recommendations.
- Showcase your ability to adapt research methods to different stages of the product lifecycle, from generative research for opportunity identification to evaluative research for usability testing.
💵 Compensation & Benefits
Salary Range: Based on research for Senior UX Researcher roles in Madrid, Spain, considering local cost of living and the technology sector, an estimated annual salary range is typically between €55,000 and €75,000. This range can vary based on exact experience, specific skill set, and negotiation. Data sources include professional salary benchmarks for the Spanish tech market and general cost of living indices for Madrid.
Benefits:
- Generous Paid Time Off (PTO) to support work-life balance and personal well-being.
- Hybrid Working Options, offering flexibility to work both from home and the office.
- Company Equity (RSUs), providing an opportunity to share in the company's success.
- Comprehensive Health and Wellness Benefits, including access to various programs and resources.
- Extensive Parental Leave policies to support growing families.
- Dedicated Volunteer Days, encouraging employees to give back to the community.
- Well-being Programs and Resources, such as gym subsidies and counseling services.
Working Hours: Standard full-time working hours, typically 40 hours per week, with flexibility to accommodate research activities and collaboration across different time zones as needed in a global company. The hybrid model allows for adaptability in daily scheduling.
🎯Team & Company Context
🏢 Company & Design Culture
Industry: Software Development (specifically Process Mining and Business Analytics). Celonis is a leader in the Execution Management System (EMS) space, focusing on unlocking productivity through data and intelligence at the core of business processes. This context implies a need for researchers who can navigate complex business workflows and technical platforms.
Company Size: 1,001-5,000 employees globally. This size suggests a well-established company with structured teams and processes, but still agile enough for significant individual impact. For design professionals, it means working within a larger, likely multi-disciplinary design and research team.
Founded: 2011. Founded over a decade ago, Celonis has a history of innovation in its field. Its growth trajectory indicates a dynamic environment with evolving product needs and user bases.
Team Structure:
- The Product Design & Research team is part of the larger Product & Engineering organization.
- Researchers likely work closely within specific product teams, collaborating with Product Managers, Product Designers, and Engineers.
- There is an emphasis on delivering "consumer-grade experiences" within an enterprise B2B context, requiring researchers to understand both professional user needs and intuitive design principles.
Methodology:
- Likely utilizes a mix of agile and potentially lean UX methodologies to integrate research findings rapidly into development cycles.
- Strong emphasis on understanding user behavior through various data sources, including server logs and online experiments, suggesting a data-informed approach.
- The role description highlights leading strategic research, indicating a focus on generative research to identify opportunities, alongside evaluative research for existing products.
Company Website: http://www.celonis.com
📈 Career & Growth Analysis
Design Career Level: This is a Senior-level UX Researcher role. It implies a requirement for significant experience, the ability to work independently, lead strategic initiatives, and mentor less experienced team members. Senior researchers are expected to influence product strategy and contribute to the development of research practices.
Reporting Structure: Likely reports to a UX Research Lead, Manager, or Head of Design/Research within the Product & Engineering organization. Collaboration across product teams is central to the role.
Design Impact: The role is positioned to have significant impact on product development by providing deep user understanding. Strategic research efforts will directly influence product roadmaps and the identification of new opportunities. The ability to advocate research findings persuasively is key to driving this impact.
Growth Opportunities:
- Potential for advancement to a Lead UX Researcher role, managing projects and potentially mentoring junior team members.
- Opportunities to specialize in specific areas of UX research, such as strategic research, quantitative research, or research operations.
- Growth into leadership positions within the broader Product Design & Research organization.
- Development of expertise in the niche but growing field of process mining and execution management, becoming a subject matter expert.
- Participation in internal learning programs and mentorship opportunities provided by Celonis.
🌐 Work Environment
Studio Type: Office-based with hybrid working options. The Madrid office serves as a base for collaboration and team interaction.
Office Location(s): Calle de Prim, 19, Madrid, Community of Madrid 28004, ES, among other global locations.
Design Workspace Context:
- The hybrid model suggests a blend of in-office collaboration spaces and remote work setups.
- Likely equipped with tools and technologies to support both individual deep work (analysis, reporting) and collaborative activities (workshops, presentations).
- The office environment in Madrid would facilitate direct interaction with local team members, fostering a sense of community.
Work Schedule: Flexible work arrangements are offered through the hybrid model. While standard hours apply, the nature of research may require flexibility for user interviews, global team meetings, or data collection activities. The company promotes prioritizing well-being, suggesting a supportive approach to managing work schedule.
📄 Application & Portfolio Review Process
Design Interview Process:
- Initial Screening: Likely involves a recruiter call to assess basic qualifications, experience, and fit. Prepare to discuss your background and interest in Celonis and UX research.
- Hiring Manager Interview: Focuses on your experience, research methodology, and strategic thinking. Be ready to discuss past projects in detail, emphasizing your role and impact.
- Portfolio Presentation: A crucial step where you will walk through selected case studies from your portfolio. Focus on your research process, insights, and how your work influenced product decisions. Practice presenting your work clearly and concisely.
- Team Interviews: Meet with potential team members (Designers, Product Managers, Engineers) to assess collaboration style, technical understanding, and cultural fit. Be prepared to discuss how you work with cross-functional partners.
- Research Challenge/Case Study Discussion: May involve discussing a hypothetical research scenario, a past project in more detail, or potentially a small take-home exercise to evaluate your research design and analytical skills.
- Final Interview(s): Could involve meeting with a senior leader or executive to discuss your strategic impact, leadership potential, and alignment with company values.
Portfolio Review Tips:
- Tailor your portfolio presentation to highlight research projects most relevant to Celonis's domain (complex software, B2B, data-driven).
- For each case study, clearly articulate the research question, methodology, participant profile, key findings, and the impact of your research on product or business outcomes.
- Emphasize your role in leading strategic research and influencing product direction.
- Showcase your ability to synthesize complex information and communicate insights effectively to non-research audiences.
- Be prepared to discuss the challenges you faced in each project and how you overcame them.
Challenge Preparation:
- If a research challenge is provided, carefully read and understand the prompt. Clarify any ambiguities before starting.
- Structure your response logically, outlining your proposed research approach, methodology, participant considerations, and expected outcomes.
- Focus on demonstrating your research thinking process and problem-solving skills.
- Be prepared to articulate the rationale behind your chosen methods and discuss potential limitations.
ATS Keywords: User Experience Research, UX Research, Qualitative Research, Quantitative Research, Usability Testing, Field Studies, Interviews, Surveys, Ethnography, Data Analysis, Research Design, Strategic Research, Product Research, User Needs, Stakeholder Management, Communication, Collaboration, HCI, Human Factors, Psychology, Sociology, Enterprise Software, SaaS, Process Mining, Execution Management System, B2B, Remote Research, Hybrid Work.
🛠 Tools & Technology Stack
Primary Design Tools: While the primary focus is research methodology rather than design execution, proficiency with tools for documenting research findings and potentially collaborating with designers is important. This might include presentation software (e.g., Google Slides, PowerPoint), documentation tools (e.g., Confluence, Notion), and potentially familiarity with design prototyping tools (e.g., Figma, Sketch) for understanding design artifacts.
Collaboration & Handoff:
- Collaboration tools such as Slack, Microsoft Teams, or similar platforms for daily communication with the product team.
- Project management tools like Jira, Asana, or Trello for tracking research activities and integrating with development workflows.
- Documentation platforms like Confluence for housing research plans, findings, and reports, making them accessible to the wider team.
Research & Testing:
- Survey platforms (e.g., Qualtrics, SurveyMonkey, Google Forms) for quantitative data collection.
- Usability testing platforms (e.g., UserTesting.com, Lookback) for moderated and unmoderated studies.
- Analytics tools (e.g., Google Analytics, Pendo, or in-house platforms) for analyzing user behavior data and correlating it with qualitative findings.
- Transcription services and qualitative analysis software (e.g., Dovetail, NVivo) for managing and analyzing qualitative data.
👥 Team Culture & Values
Design Values:
- Live for Customer Value: A core company value that directly aligns with UX research, emphasizing the importance of understanding and delivering value to users. Researchers play a key role in uncovering customer needs and validating solutions.
- The Best Team Wins: Highlights the collaborative nature of the environment. For researchers, this means working effectively with product managers, designers, and engineers, leveraging diverse perspectives to achieve the best outcomes.
- We Own It: Encourages taking ownership and responsibility. Senior researchers are expected to take ownership of their research initiatives, from planning to dissemination and impact measurement.
- Earth Is Our Future: Reflects a commitment to sustainability, which could potentially influence research in areas related to efficient processes and resource optimization within the product.
Collaboration Style:
- Likely highly collaborative, given the emphasis on "The Best Team Wins" and the integration of research within product teams.
- Cross-functional collaboration is essential, requiring effective communication and the ability to influence stakeholders from different disciplines.
- A culture that values open communication and potentially regular design critiques or research share-outs to foster learning and alignment.
⚡ Challenges & Growth Opportunities
Design Challenges:
- Understanding Complex Domains: Navigating the intricacies of process mining and enterprise business processes requires a steep learning curve to conduct effective research.
- Balancing Strategic and Tactical Research: Managing both long-term strategic research initiatives and shorter-term evaluative research to support ongoing product development.
- Communicating Insights to Diverse Stakeholders: Effectively translating complex research findings into understandable and actionable insights for technical, business, and design audiences.
- Integrating Research in a Fast-Paced Environment: Ensuring research insights are delivered timely and effectively integrated into a rapidly evolving product development cycle.
Learning & Development Opportunities:
- Opportunities to deepen expertise in process mining, business intelligence, and related technical fields.
- Development of advanced research methodologies and techniques for complex B2B environments.
- Participation in industry conferences, workshops, and training programs to stay updated on the latest research trends and tools.
- Mentorship opportunities within the design and research team to enhance skills and career progression.
- Exposure to a global team and diverse user bases, broadening research perspectives.
💡 Interview Preparation
Design Process Questions:
- "Describe your approach to leading a strategic research initiative from identifying the opportunity to delivering actionable insights." - Prepare to discuss a specific project from your portfolio that demonstrates your strategic research skills and impact.
- "How do you choose the most appropriate research methodology for a given research question, especially in a complex technical domain like process mining?" - Be ready to discuss your understanding of various methodologies and their strengths and weaknesses in different contexts.
- "Walk me through a time you faced a significant challenge during a research project and how you overcame it." - Prepare a STAR method response focusing on problem-solving and adaptability in research.
Company Culture Questions:
- "How do you ensure your research findings are effectively communicated and integrated into the product development process when working with cross-functional teams?" - Prepare examples of successful collaboration and communication strategies.
- "Celonis values 'Live for Customer Value'. How do you embody this value in your daily work as a UX Researcher?" - Connect the company value to your research practices and commitment to understanding user needs.
- "How do you approach working in a hybrid environment and collaborating with team members who may be located in different offices or time zones?" - Discuss your experience with remote/hybrid collaboration tools and strategies.
Portfolio Presentation Strategy:
- Start with a brief overview of your background and research philosophy.
- Select 2-3 key case studies that best showcase your strategic research experience, methodological expertise, and impact on product or business outcomes.
- For each case study, clearly articulate the research question, your process (methodology, participants, data collection), key findings, and actionable recommendations.
- Focus on the "so what" - how did your research insights influence decisions or lead to tangible improvements? Quantify impact where possible.
- Be prepared to discuss the challenges you encountered and how you addressed them.
- Allocate time for Q&A and be ready to delve deeper into specific aspects of your research.
📌 Application Steps
To apply for this design position:
- Submit your application through this link.
- Carefully review your resume to ensure it highlights your experience in strategic UX research, diverse research methodologies, data analysis, and collaboration with product teams. Optimize for ATS keywords listed above.
- Prepare your portfolio, focusing on 3-5 detailed case studies of strategic research projects that demonstrate your process, insights, and impact. Ensure your portfolio is easily accessible online.
- Practice presenting your portfolio case studies, focusing on clear storytelling and articulating the value of your research.
- Research Celonis, its products (Process Intelligence Platform), industry (Process Mining), and company values to understand the context of the role and tailor your application materials and interview responses.