Senior UX Researcher

📍 Job Overview

Job Title: Senior UX Researcher Company: Wrike Location: Nicosia, Cyprus Job Type: Full-time Category: User Experience (UX) Operations / Product Research Date Posted: 2025-08-08T08:23:15 Experience Level: 5-10 Years Remote Status: Hybrid

🚀 Role Summary

• This role focuses on conducting comprehensive UX research to inform product strategy and development within a leading work management platform company.
• Responsibilities include leading generative, formative, and summative research initiatives to deeply understand customer needs and translate them into actionable product insights.
• The position requires a strong ability to collaborate with cross-functional teams, including Product Managers, Designers, and Engineers, to drive customer-centric product decisions.
• Candidates will be expected to proactively plan and execute research throughout the entire product lifecycle, from initial ideation to post-release evaluation, ensuring a data-driven approach to product enhancement.

📝 Enhancement Note: While the job title is "Senior UX Researcher," the depth of responsibilities, including influencing product strategy, leading workshops, and mentoring junior colleagues, suggests a role with significant operational impact and potential for team leadership within the UX function, aligning it closely with advanced operations roles in product development.

📈 Primary Responsibilities

• Proactively plan and execute customer research throughout the design and development lifecycle, from early strategic direction through post-release evaluation.
• Employ a wide range of research methods, including generative design research, contextual inquiry, participatory design workshops, interviews, formative and summative usability studies, and quantitative methods such as surveys and data analytics.
• Develop cross-functional relationships to collect existing research and insights, informing research questions and enabling end-to-end research that spans the entire customer journey.
• Lead empathy and design-thinking workshops with cross-functional teams to ensure research findings and insights are translated into actionable product goals and strategic direction.
• Disseminate customer insights across the organization through creative channels like posters, immersion rooms, blog posts, and workshops to foster greater customer empathy.
• Mentor and guide non-research colleagues to enhance their own research practices, promoting a user-centric mindset across product teams.

📝 Enhancement Note: The responsibility to "overseeing PMs and designers in their research practice" and "helping our non research colleagues to get better in their own research practice" indicates a significant operational component, focusing on enabling and standardizing research processes across the organization, rather than solely executing individual research projects.

🎓 Skills & Qualifications

Education: Bachelor's degree in Human-Computer Interaction, Psychology, Sociology, Anthropology, Computer Science, or a related field. A Master's or Ph.D. is often preferred for senior-level roles, particularly those involving advanced research methodologies and strategic contributions.

Experience: 5-10 years of significant professional UX research experience, with a strong track record of qualitative and preferably quantitative results that have demonstrably impacted product strategy and development. Experience in a fast-paced, agile environment is crucial for executing research effectively within product development cycles.

Required Skills:

• UX Research Expertise: Mastery of a broad spectrum of qualitative and quantitative research methodologies, including contextual inquiry, usability testing (formative and summative), interviews, surveys, and data analysis.
• Product Strategy Influence: Proven ability to translate research findings into actionable insights that directly inform and shape product strategy, roadmap planning, and problem definition.
• Cross-functional Collaboration: Demonstrated success in partnering effectively with diverse stakeholders, including Product Managers, UX Designers, Engineering teams, and Marketing.
• Agile Execution: Experience and adaptability in executing research within rapid, iterative development cycles characteristic of agile methodologies.
• Communication & Synthesis: Exceptional communication skills, with the ability to clearly and concisely articulate complex research findings and their implications to various audiences, from individual contributors to executive leadership.
• Customer Empathy: A deep understanding of user needs, behaviors, and motivations, with the ability to champion the user's voice throughout the product development process.

Preferred Skills:

• Stakeholder Management: Experience in managing expectations, communicating progress, and building consensus with senior stakeholders.
• B2B SaaS Experience: Familiarity with the nuances of B2B SaaS product research, understanding enterprise user needs and workflows.
• Workshop Facilitation: Proven experience in facilitating design thinking, empathy mapping, and other collaborative workshops with cross-functional teams.
• Visualization Skills: Proficiency in creating compelling visualizations of research findings, such as journey maps, user personas, and service blueprints, to enhance understanding and impact.
• Mentorship: Experience in guiding and mentoring junior researchers or product team members in research practices.

📝 Enhancement Note: Given the emphasis on informing product strategy and influencing decision-making, candidates with experience in building and presenting business cases for product improvements based on research findings will be highly valued. The "senior" title implies an expectation of strategic thinking and independent project leadership.

📊 Process & Systems Portfolio Requirements

Portfolio Essentials:

• Case Studies: Detailed case studies showcasing end-to-end research projects, highlighting the research problem, methodology, execution, key insights, and the resulting product impact or strategic recommendations.
• Methodological Range: Evidence of proficiency across a diverse range of research methods, demonstrating an understanding of when to apply lean vs. rigorous approaches.
• Impact Demonstration: Clear articulation of how research outcomes influenced product decisions, led to measurable improvements (e.g., increased user satisfaction, conversion rates, reduced task completion times), or shaped product strategy.
• Cross-functional Collaboration Examples: Artifacts or descriptions illustrating collaboration with designers, PMs, and engineers, showing how research was integrated into the product development process.
• Deliverable Variety: Examples of research deliverables beyond standard reports, such as journey maps, personas, user flow diagrams, concept validation outputs, and usability testing reports.

Process Documentation:

• Research Planning: Examples of research plans that outline objectives, target users, methodologies, timelines, and ethical considerations.
• Data Synthesis: Demonstrations of how raw research data (interview transcripts, survey responses, usability test findings) is synthesized into clear, actionable insights and recommendations.
• Insight Dissemination: Examples of how research findings were communicated to different audiences, utilizing various formats to maximize understanding and impact across the organization.

📝 Enhancement Note: For a senior role, the portfolio should not just present research projects but also demonstrate a strategic understanding of how research operations integrate into the broader product development lifecycle, showcasing an ability to optimize research processes for efficiency and impact.

💵 Compensation & Benefits

Salary Range: For a Senior UX Researcher in Nicosia, Cyprus, with 5-10 years of experience, the estimated annual salary range is typically between €45,000 and €65,000 gross. This estimate is based on industry benchmarks for similar roles in Western Europe, considering the cost of living and typical compensation structures for tech roles in Cyprus.

Benefits:

• Comprehensive Health Insurance: Coverage for the employee and their family.
• Connectivity Support: SIM card with unlimited internet access provided during employment.
• Generous Paid Time Off: 25 paid vacation days annually.
• Sick Leave: 5 uncertified sick days and 10 fully-paid certified sick days per year.
• Educational Support: School allowance of up to €600 per month for children of school age.
• Parental Leave: Up to 18 weeks of fully-paid maternity leave.
• Professional Development: Opportunities to enhance research skills and contribute to the broader design community.

Working Hours: Standard full-time working hours are assumed to be around 40 hours per week, with potential for flexibility common in tech organizations, especially in a hybrid work environment.

📝 Enhancement Note: The salary range is an estimation. Actual compensation may vary based on the candidate's specific experience, qualifications, and negotiation. The benefits package is competitive and reflects a strong commitment to employee well-being and work-life balance, which is attractive to operations professionals seeking stable and supportive employment.

🎯 Team & Company Context

🏢 Company Culture

Industry: Wrike operates in the Software as a Service (SaaS) industry, specifically in the Work Management and Project Management software sector. This field is characterized by rapid innovation, a focus on user experience, and a strong emphasis on productivity and collaboration tools. Company Size: Wrike is a significant player in its market, part of the larger Citrix family, indicating a robust organizational structure with established processes and resources, while still fostering a dynamic and innovative environment. The product design team itself is sizable (15+ designers, 3 researchers), suggesting a mature and well-supported design function. Founded: While specific founding dates for Wrike aren't provided in the raw data, its existence as a mature product implies a history of evolution and adaptation in the competitive SaaS landscape, likely with a focus on continuous product improvement and customer feedback loops.

Team Structure:

• The UX Research team is part of a larger Product Design team, comprising 15+ full-stack product designers, 3 UX researchers (including a Manager), a Design System Architect, 2 UX Architects, 3 Design Managers, and a Head of Product Design.
• The team is distributed across multiple locations, with key hubs in Prague and Cyprus.
• UX Researchers are embedded within cross-functional product teams, acting as a centralized function that serves specific product areas. Each researcher is responsible for their designated product unit's research needs and also supports PMs and designers in their research practices.

Methodology:

• Data-Driven Product Development: A strong emphasis on using data, both qualitative and quantitative, to inform product strategy and decisions.
• User-Centric Design: The core philosophy revolves around understanding and meeting customer needs through research and iterative design.
• Agile Practices: Research is conducted within agile development cycles, requiring adaptability and efficient execution.
• Process Improvement: Continuous effort to refine and build operations to make research more effective for both the dedicated research team and colleagues in Product Management and Design.

Company Website: https://www.wrike.com/

📝 Enhancement Note: The description of UX researchers being "allocated to one product unit" and "responsible for conducting own research and overviewing PMs and designers in their research practice" highlights an operational mandate to embed research expertise and elevate research maturity across product teams, positioning this role as a subject matter expert and process enabler.

📈 Career & Growth Analysis

Operations Career Level: This role is positioned at a "Senior" level, indicating a significant degree of autonomy, expertise, and responsibility. It requires not only the execution of research but also the strategic planning, stakeholder management, and mentorship of others in research practices. This level typically implies a high degree of influence on product direction.

Reporting Structure: The Senior UX Researcher will be part of the international UX Research team, reporting to a UX Research Manager. They will work closely with Product Managers and Designers within their allocated product unit, forming a core part of a cross-functional product team.

Operations Impact: The Senior UX Researcher is expected to have a direct and substantial impact on Wrike's product strategy and success by ensuring that product development is deeply informed by user needs and insights. This role plays a critical part in optimizing the user experience, driving customer satisfaction, and ultimately contributing to revenue growth and market competitiveness by ensuring Wrike delivers valuable and usable solutions.

Growth Opportunities:

• Specialization: Opportunity to deepen expertise in B2B SaaS research, specific methodologies, or become a recognized expert in a particular product area.
• Leadership Development: Potential to grow into a Lead UX Researcher role, managing research projects, mentoring junior researchers, or taking on more strategic leadership of research operations.
• Cross-Functional Influence: Building strong relationships and influence across Product, Design, Engineering, and potentially Marketing teams, opening doors to broader product strategy roles.
• Industry Engagement: Contributing to the broader UX community through sharing insights, potentially speaking at conferences, or contributing to Wrike's thought leadership in UX research.

📝 Enhancement Note: The expectation to "help our non research colleagues to get better in their own research practice" signifies a growth path towards becoming a research evangelist or leader, where developing and scaling research capabilities across the organization becomes a key performance indicator.

🌐 Work Environment

Office Type: Wrike operates a hybrid work model, requiring 2-3 days per week in the office at their Nicosia hub. This model is designed to foster collaboration, teamwork, and rapid problem-solving. The environment is likely modern, with spaces conducive to both focused individual work and collaborative team sessions.

Office Location(s): The primary office hub for this role is Nicosia, Cyprus. Wrike also has hubs in San Diego, Prague, Dublin, and Tallinn, suggesting a global, interconnected team.

Workspace Context:

• Collaborative Hubs: The office environment encourages face-to-face interaction, facilitating spontaneous discussions and team synergy crucial for complex problem-solving.
• Technology-Enabled: As a software company, expect access to modern tools and technology to support research, collaboration, and productivity.
• Cross-functional Interaction: The hybrid model and team structure ensure frequent interaction with Product Managers, Designers, Engineers, and potentially other stakeholders across different functions.

Work Schedule: The standard work schedule is likely aligned with typical business hours in Cyprus (e.g., 9 AM to 5 PM or similar), with a hybrid arrangement allowing for a balance of in-office and remote work. The nature of research often requires flexibility to accommodate user schedules and project deadlines.

📝 Enhancement Note: The emphasis on hybrid work and in-office days for collaboration suggests that candidates should be comfortable with a structured approach to in-office presence, balancing individual research focus with team-based interaction and knowledge sharing.

📄 Application & Portfolio Review Process

Interview Process:

• Initial Screening: A recruiter or hiring manager will likely review your application and resume for relevant experience and skills.
• Hiring Manager Interview: A conversation with the UX Research Manager to discuss your background, research philosophy, and fit with the team and role.
• Portfolio Review & Presentation: A dedicated session where you will present case studies from your portfolio, demonstrating your research process, insights, and impact. Expect to discuss your approach to various research challenges and methodologies.
• Cross-functional Interviews: Interviews with Product Managers and Designers from the product teams you would support. These will assess your collaboration style, ability to influence, and how you integrate research into product development workflows.
• Final Interview: Potentially with the Head of Product Design or another senior leader to assess strategic alignment and overall fit.

Portfolio Review Tips:

• Storytelling: Structure your case studies as compelling narratives, clearly outlining the problem, your role, the methods used, key findings, challenges encountered, and the tangible impact of your work.
• Quantify Impact: Wherever possible, use metrics to demonstrate the success of your research (e.g., improvements in task success rates, user satisfaction scores, conversion rates, reduction in support tickets).
• Showcase Process: Clearly articulate your research process, from planning and recruitment to synthesis and dissemination. Highlight your ability to adapt methods to project needs.
• Highlight Collaboration: Include examples of how you worked with cross-functional teams, how you communicated insights, and how your research influenced product decisions.
• Tailor to Wrike: Research Wrike's product and target users. Consider how your experience and portfolio examples align with their B2B SaaS context.

Challenge Preparation:

• Hypothetical Scenarios: Be prepared to discuss how you would approach a hypothetical research problem relevant to Wrike's product.
• Methodology Justification: Be ready to explain why you would choose specific research methods for different types of questions or stages of product development.
• Insight Communication: Practice articulating complex research findings concisely and persuasively.

📝 Enhancement Note: The emphasis on "helping non-research colleagues" suggests that interviewers may probe your ability to mentor and educate. Prepare examples of how you've shared knowledge or improved research practices for others.

🛠 Tools & Technology Stack

Primary Tools:

• UX Research Platforms: Experience with tools for user recruitment, scheduling, and remote usability testing (e.g., UserTesting.com, Lookback, Maze).
• Survey Tools: Proficiency in creating and deploying surveys for quantitative data collection (e.g., SurveyMonkey, Typeform, Qualtrics).
• Collaboration & Project Management: Familiarity with work management tools, likely including Wrike itself, for planning and executing research projects. Other tools like Jira, Asana, or Trello may also be relevant for working with development teams.
• Data Analysis Software: Tools for qualitative data analysis (e.g., Dovetail, NVivo) and quantitative analysis (e.g., Excel, SPSS, R, Python for statistical analysis).

Analytics & Reporting:

• Web Analytics: Experience with tools like Google Analytics to understand user behavior on digital platforms.
• Product Analytics: Familiarity with product analytics tools (e.g., Amplitude, Mixpanel) to track user engagement and identify areas for research.
• Business Intelligence (BI) Tools: Experience with BI platforms (e.g., Tableau, Power BI) for data visualization and reporting, especially when synthesizing quantitative findings.

CRM & Automation:

• CRM Systems: While not a direct research tool, understanding CRM systems (e.g., Salesforce) can provide context on customer data and segmentation for research recruitment.
• Automation Tools: Awareness of how automation can streamline research tasks, from participant screening to data collection.

📝 Enhancement Note: Proficiency with Wrike itself would be a significant advantage, demonstrating an understanding of the company's core product. The ability to leverage a wide range of research tools and adapt to new technologies is crucial for a senior role.

👥 Team Culture & Values

Operations Values:

• Customer-Focused: A deep commitment to understanding and advocating for the customer's needs and experience, making data-driven decisions with the customer at the forefront. This aligns with operations principles of optimizing for customer value.
• Collaborative: Working effectively as part of cross-functional teams, sharing knowledge, and achieving shared goals, mirroring the operational need for integrated team efforts.
• Creative: Encouraging innovation and novel approaches to problem-solving and research methodologies, reflecting an operational drive for efficiency and effectiveness through new ideas.
• Committed: Demonstrating ownership, dedication, and a drive for excellence in all aspects of research and product contribution, embodying an operational mindset of accountability and continuous improvement.

Collaboration Style:

• Integrated Teamwork: Researchers are embedded in product teams, working closely with PMs and Designers, fostering a highly integrated and collaborative approach to product development.
• Knowledge Sharing: The company encourages sharing insights across the organization and actively supports colleagues in improving their research skills, promoting a culture of learning and collective growth.
• Agile & Iterative: Collaboration happens within fast-paced, agile cycles, requiring flexibility, clear communication, and the ability to adapt to changing priorities.

📝 Enhancement Note: The emphasis on "shared achievement" and "diversity of thought for better outcomes" underscores the operational importance of inclusive collaboration and leveraging collective intelligence to drive success.

⚡ Challenges & Growth Opportunities

Challenges:

• Balancing Rigor and Speed: Effectively navigating the demands of a fast-paced, agile environment while ensuring research is methodologically sound and provides deep, actionable insights.
• Cross-functional Influence: Persuading stakeholders with varying levels of understanding of UX research to adopt findings and recommendations, especially when they challenge existing assumptions or roadmaps.
• Research Scalability: Developing processes and best practices to enable non-researchers to conduct effective foundational research, scaling the impact of UX research across the organization.
• Evolving B2B SaaS Landscape: Staying abreast of industry trends, competitive offerings, and evolving user needs within the complex B2B SaaS market.

Learning & Development Opportunities:

• Advanced Methodologies: Opportunities to explore and implement cutting-edge research techniques and quantitative analysis methods.
• Mentorship & Training: Developing skills in mentoring junior team members and potentially leading training sessions on UX research best practices.
• Strategic Impact: Gaining experience in shaping long-term product strategy through deep user understanding and impactful research initiatives.
• Industry Exposure: Potential to engage with the broader UX and tech community through Wrike's company culture initiatives.

📝 Enhancement Note: The challenge of "scaling research" and "helping non-research colleagues" presents a significant operational growth opportunity, focusing on building research infrastructure and capability within the organization.

💡 Interview Preparation

Strategy Questions:

• Research Planning: "Describe how you would plan and execute research for a new feature in Wrike. What methods would you prioritize and why?" (Focus on aligning research with product goals and constraints).
• Insight Translation: "How do you ensure your research findings translate into actionable product decisions? Provide an example of a time your insights directly influenced a product strategy." (Demonstrate impact and persuasion skills).
• Methodology Selection: "When would you choose a lean usability testing approach versus a more in-depth ethnographic study? How do you balance research rigor with speed in an agile environment?" (Showcase adaptability and strategic thinking about methods).

Company & Culture Questions:

• Wrike's Product: "What are your impressions of Wrike's product? What opportunities for user research do you see?" (Demonstrate research into the company and product).
• Collaboration: "Describe your experience working with Product Managers and Engineers. How do you build strong working relationships and ensure research is integrated effectively?" (Highlight collaboration and communication skills).
• Mentorship: "How would you approach mentoring a Product Manager or Designer who is new to conducting user research?" (Showcase ability to educate and uplift others).

Portfolio Presentation Strategy:

• Start with the "Why": Clearly articulate the business or product problem you were trying to solve.
• Show, Don't Just Tell: Use visuals (screenshots, diagrams, journey maps) to illustrate your process and findings.
• Quantify Outcomes: Present metrics and impact data clearly to demonstrate the value of your research.
• Be Prepared for Deep Dives: Anticipate questions about your methodology choices, participant recruitment, data analysis, and how you handled challenges.
• Discuss Your Role: Be clear about your specific contributions, especially in team projects.

📝 Enhancement Note: Focus on demonstrating a strategic understanding of how UX research operations contribute to business objectives. Emphasize your ability to not only conduct research but also to build research capability and influence product direction, aligning with the senior and operational aspects of the role.

📌 Application Steps

To apply for this Senior UX Researcher position:

• Submit your application through the provided link on greenhouse.io.
• Tailor your Resume: Highlight your experience in B2B SaaS, your proficiency with a wide range of research methodologies (qualitative and quantitative), and specific examples of how your research has impacted product strategy and development. Use keywords from the job description.
• Prepare Your Portfolio: Curate 2-3 detailed case studies that showcase your end-to-end research process, key insights, and measurable impact. Ensure you can clearly articulate your role, the methods used, and the outcomes achieved. Be ready to present these confidently.
• Research Wrike: Familiarize yourself with Wrike's product, its target audience, and its competitors. Understand the company's mission and values to articulate your alignment during interviews.
• Practice Interview Questions: Prepare responses to common UX research interview questions, focusing on strategic thinking, collaborative approaches, and your ability to influence product decisions. Be ready to discuss your experience in mentoring or guiding others in research practices.

⚠️ Important Notice: This enhanced job description includes AI-generated insights and operations industry-standard assumptions. All details should be verified directly with the hiring organization before making application decisions.

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