Staff User Researcher

📍 Job Overview

Job Title: Staff User Researcher

Company: Nourish

Location: New York, New York, United States

Job Type: Full-Time

Category: User Experience Research / Product Research

Date Posted: 2026-03-30T18:17:37

Experience Level: 10+ Years

Remote Status: On-site

🚀 Role Summary

• Lead strategic user research initiatives across patient, provider, and internal tooling ecosystems to inform company-level product and business priorities.

• Conduct generative and evaluative research, exploring user needs, motivations, and pain points throughout the entire patient and provider journey.

• Translate complex research insights into clear, actionable recommendations that directly shape product direction, design, and clinical operations.

• Develop and champion sophisticated frameworks and mental models to articulate user interactions and identify areas for enhanced value delivery within the Nourish platform.

• Mentor and guide cross-functional partners, including designers, product managers, and data analysts, in adopting and applying user research best practices to foster a user-centric organizational culture.

📝 Enhancement Note: This role is positioned as a senior individual contributor with significant strategic influence, requiring a proactive approach to defining research agendas and driving impact within a fast-paced, high-growth health tech environment. The emphasis on "ambiguous, high-impact questions" and "influencing senior stakeholders" suggests a need for strong strategic thinking and executive communication skills beyond typical research execution.

📈 Primary Responsibilities

• Define and execute comprehensive research strategies for patient, provider, and internal tooling experiences, establishing a learning agenda that aligns with and informs overarching company objectives.

• Employ a range of qualitative and quantitative research methodologies, including in-depth interviews, field studies, concept testing, journey mapping, usability testing, and surveys, to uncover deep user insights.

• Facilitate the translation of research findings into actionable product strategies, design recommendations, and operational improvements by collaborating closely with Product, Design, and Clinical Operations teams.

• Create and disseminate critical frameworks, mental models, and user archetypes that deepen the organization's understanding of user behaviors, motivations, and interactions within the Nourish ecosystem.

• Act as a research evangelist and mentor, upskilling designers, product managers, data scientists, and clinical staff on research methodologies, ethical considerations, and the application of user insights to their work.

• Integrate qualitative findings with quantitative data from sources like Amplitude and internal analytics to identify behavioral patterns, engagement drivers, and outcome correlations.

• Develop and deliver compelling narratives, presentations, and artifacts that vividly represent user needs and advocate for user-centric decision-making at all levels of leadership.

• Champion inclusive research practices that ensure representation of diverse user populations and promote accessibility and equity across all aspects of the patient and provider experience.

📝 Enhancement Note: The core responsibilities highlight a blend of strategic leadership and hands-on research execution. The emphasis on "shaping product direction" and "developing frameworks and mental models" indicates a need for a researcher who can operate at a strategic level, influencing roadmaps and organizational understanding, rather than just validating existing ideas. The requirement to "partner with data science and clinical ops" suggests a strong need for analytical acumen and the ability to triangulate diverse data sources.

🎓 Skills & Qualifications

Education: Graduate degree in Human-Computer Interaction, Cognitive Psychology, Anthropology, Sociology, or a related field, or equivalent practical experience demonstrating a strong theoretical foundation in human behavior and research methodologies.

Experience: 8–12+ years of hands-on user research experience within fast-paced product organizations, with a strong preference for candidates with experience in consumer tech, health tech, telehealth, or complex two-sided marketplaces.

Required Skills:

• Mastery of core qualitative research methods, including in-depth interviews, ethnographic field studies, concept testing, journey mapping, and usability testing.

• Strong fluency and practical experience with complementary quantitative research methods, including survey design, statistical analysis, and data interpretation.

• Proven ability to drive strategic impact by influencing product strategy, business direction, and decision-making processes, moving beyond simple validation.

• Experience researching service-oriented or clinical workflows, ideally within healthcare, wellness, or B2C/B2B2C environments.

• Exceptional communication, persuasive storytelling, and presentation skills, with the ability to translate complex research findings into clear, tangible, and actionable insights for diverse audiences.

• Demonstrated experience in mentoring, coaching, or guiding junior researchers, designers, or cross-functional partners to elevate research craft and impact.

Preferred Skills:

• Experience operating within a regulated domain such as healthcare, navigating privacy regulations (e.g., HIPAA) and compliance constraints with creative research solutions.

• Familiarity with the US healthcare system, including insurance processes, reimbursement models, and provider networks.

• Demonstrated ability to balance research rigor with the speed and adaptability required in a startup environment.

• Experience conducting and managing remote, asynchronous user research and collaboration.

📝 Enhancement Note: The experience requirement of 8-12+ years for a "Staff" level researcher, coupled with the emphasis on strategic impact and influencing leadership, suggests this is a highly senior role. The preference for health tech and two-sided marketplaces indicates the company is looking for experience with complex ecosystems and potentially sensitive user data. The mention of "AI Chat" in the company description hints at potential future research areas in conversational AI interfaces.

📊 Process & Systems Portfolio Requirements

Portfolio Essentials:

• Showcase a minimum of 3-5 significant research projects that demonstrate end-to-end research execution, from strategy definition to actionable impact.

• For each project, clearly articulate the research objectives, methodologies employed, key findings, and the tangible impact on product direction, user experience, or business outcomes.

• Include examples of how you have translated research insights into concrete product or design recommendations, and how these recommendations were adopted.

• Demonstrate experience in developing and utilizing research artifacts such as journey maps, personas, user flows, and mental models.

Process Documentation:

• Provide evidence of your ability to document research processes, findings, and recommendations in a clear, organized, and accessible manner for various stakeholders.

• Illustrate how you have established or improved research processes within a team or organization to enhance efficiency, impact, and scalability.

• Showcase examples of how you have championed research best practices and helped build research capabilities within cross-functional teams.

📝 Enhancement Note: For a Staff User Researcher, the portfolio should emphasize strategic thinking and impact, not just execution. Candidates should be prepared to discuss how their research has influenced company-level decisions, shaped long-term product strategy, and contributed to significant business or clinical outcomes. The ability to articulate research processes and mentor others in these processes will be crucial.

💵 Compensation & Benefits

Salary Range: Based on industry benchmarks for Staff User Researchers in New York City with 8-12+ years of experience, a typical salary range would be estimated between $170,000 - $230,000 annually. This estimate accounts for the seniority of the role, the high cost of living in NYC, and the specialized nature of health tech user research.

Benefits:

• Comprehensive health, dental, and vision insurance plans.

• Generous paid time off (PTO) policy, including sick leave and holidays.

• Stock options or equity in a rapidly growing startup.

• Professional development budget for conferences, training, and learning resources.

• Parental leave benefits.

• 401(k) retirement savings plan.

• Flexible work arrangements with hybrid on-site/remote options.

• Access to company-provided wellness resources and employee assistance programs.

Working Hours: The standard working hours are 40 hours per week, aligning with typical full-time employment. While the role is primarily on-site, there may be flexibility for some remote work, and the company culture appears to value work-life balance, encouraging efficient work practices.

📝 Enhancement Note: The salary range is an estimate based on industry data for senior UX Research roles in high-cost-of-living areas like New York City, considering the specified experience level and the health tech sector. Specific compensation will depend on the candidate's qualifications, experience, and negotiation. The company's Notion links suggest detailed information on Compensation & Benefits is available, which should be reviewed by candidates.

🎯 Team & Company Context

🏢 Company Culture

Industry: Health Technology (specifically, Food-as-Medicine platform focused on chronic condition management). Nourish operates at the intersection of healthcare, technology, and wellness, aiming to address significant public health challenges through digital solutions and personalized nutrition care.

Company Size: Nourish has raised over $44M and has a growing team, indicating a mid-stage startup environment. The "EPD at Nourish" Notion page suggests a structured yet collaborative approach within Engineering, Product, and Design. The small design team mentioned implies a close-knit working environment where individual contributions are highly visible.

Founded: Nourish was founded with a mission to improve health by making it easy to eat well, addressing the critical link between nutrition and chronic conditions. Its growth trajectory, significant VC funding, and partnerships with health insurance companies highlight its ambition and market traction in a vital sector.

Team Structure:

• The User Researcher will join a small, dedicated design team and report directly to the Head of Design.

• This role involves close collaboration with Product Management, Engineering, Data Science, Clinical Operations, and Marketing teams, indicating a highly cross-functional operational structure.

Methodology:

• Data-Driven Decision Making: Nourish leverages both qualitative and quantitative data to inform product development and clinical strategies. The role of the User Researcher is central to triangulating these data sources.

• User-Centric Product Development: The company's mission and product offerings are fundamentally driven by understanding and addressing the needs of patients and healthcare providers.

• Agile & Iterative Approach: As a fast-growing startup, Nourish likely employs agile methodologies, requiring continuous learning, rapid iteration, and adaptability.

Company Website: https://usenourish.com/

📝 Enhancement Note: The company culture is described as valuing empathy, trust, and collaboration, with a focus on making work feel like play. This suggests an environment that supports professional growth while maintaining a positive and supportive atmosphere. The health tech focus implies a mission-driven culture where employees are passionate about improving health outcomes.

📈 Career & Growth Analysis

Operations Career Level: This is a Staff User Researcher role, indicating a senior individual contributor position. It signifies a level of expertise where the researcher is expected to lead complex research initiatives, define strategic research agendas, and mentor others. The scope of influence extends beyond individual projects to shaping the overall product direction and organizational understanding of users.

Reporting Structure: The role reports directly to the Head of Design, placing it within the product development and user experience function. This reporting line suggests strong alignment with design and product leadership and a direct channel for influencing strategic product decisions.

Operations Impact: The Staff User Researcher will have a direct and significant impact on Nourish's mission by ensuring that product development and clinical strategies are grounded in a deep understanding of patient and provider needs. Their insights will guide the evolution of the food-as-medicine platform, improve user engagement, enhance clinical outcomes, and ultimately contribute to the company's success in making healthy eating easier and more accessible. The role is pivotal in shaping the user experience of a two-sided marketplace in the critical health tech sector.

Growth Opportunities:

• Strategic Leadership: Opportunity to define and lead research strategy for a growing health tech company, influencing major product initiatives and company-level priorities.

• Mentorship & Craft Development: Potential to mentor junior researchers and designers, helping to build out the research function and elevate research practices across the organization.

• Domain Expertise: Deepen expertise in health tech, chronic condition management, and the complexities of a two-sided marketplace, becoming a subject matter expert in user needs within this domain.

• Cross-Functional Influence: Develop strong relationships and influence across Product, Design, Engineering, Data Science, and Clinical Operations, contributing to a user-centric culture.

• Career Progression: Potential to move into leadership roles within research or product, or to specialize further within specific areas of user experience and health innovation.

📝 Enhancement Note: The "Staff" title implies a significant level of autonomy and strategic responsibility. Growth opportunities will likely involve expanding research scope, taking on more complex and ambiguous problems, and contributing to the overall strategic direction of the company's user understanding. The company's rapid growth and VC backing suggest a dynamic environment with ample opportunities for career advancement.

🌐 Work Environment

Office Type: The role is primarily in-person at Nourish's New York City office, located in the heart of Silicon Alley. This suggests a dynamic, tech-centric environment conducive to collaboration and innovation. While on-site is preferred, there is flexibility for some remote work, indicating a hybrid approach is possible.

Office Location(s): The primary office is in New York City. This location offers access to a vibrant tech ecosystem and a diverse talent pool. Specific details about the office amenities and accessibility would be available upon inquiry or during the interview process.

Workspace Context:

• Collaborative Hub: The NYC office is designed to foster collaboration, with likely open spaces, meeting rooms, and areas for team interaction, supporting the company's emphasis on teamwork and cross-functional work.

• Tech-Enabled Environment: As a tech company, the workspace will be equipped with the necessary tools and technology to support research activities, communication, and project management.

• Team Interaction: Being on-site facilitates spontaneous discussions, brainstorming sessions, and stronger team cohesion, which is particularly valuable for a researcher working closely with design and product teams.

Work Schedule: The standard work schedule is 40 hours per week. While the role is on-site, the mention of "flexibility for some remote work" suggests a degree of adaptability in the schedule, balancing in-office collaboration with personal needs. This flexibility is beneficial for researchers who may need focused time for analysis or fieldwork preparation.

📝 Enhancement Note: The emphasis on an in-person role in NYC suggests that the company values the benefits of co-location for collaboration and team building. Candidates should be prepared for a primary on-site presence, with the understanding that some remote flexibility may exist. The "Silicon Alley" location points to a lively and connected tech community.

📄 Application & Portfolio Review Process

Interview Process:

• Initial Screening: A brief call with a recruiter to assess general fit, experience, and interest in the role and company.

• Hiring Manager Interview: A conversation with the Head of Design to delve deeper into your experience, research philosophy, strategic thinking, and leadership potential.

• Portfolio Presentation & Case Study: A dedicated session where you will present 1-2 key research projects from your portfolio, demonstrating your strategic approach, methodology, insights, and impact. This is a critical stage for assessing your ability to influence.

• Cross-Functional Interviews: Meetings with key stakeholders from Product Management, Engineering, Data Science, and Clinical Operations to evaluate your collaboration skills, ability to integrate research into different workflows, and overall cultural fit.

• Final Interview: Potentially with a senior leader (e.g., Head of Product, CEO) to discuss your strategic vision and alignment with Nourish's mission.

Portfolio Review Tips:

• Focus on Impact: Prioritize projects where your research led to tangible changes in product, strategy, or business outcomes. Quantify impact wherever possible (e.g., "led to a 15% increase in user retention," "informed a feature that reduced customer support tickets by 10%").

• Strategic Storytelling: Frame your projects as strategic initiatives, not just research tasks. Explain the "why" behind the research, the key business questions you addressed, and how your insights steered the company's direction.

• Methodological Depth & Breadth: Be prepared to discuss your choice of methods, why they were appropriate for the problem, and how you integrated qualitative and quantitative data.

• Showcase Collaboration: Highlight instances where you partnered effectively with cross-functional teams, demonstrating your ability to translate insights into actionable recommendations that resonated with different disciplines.

• User Empathy: Convey a deep understanding of the user, their motivations, and their pain points, demonstrating your ability to bring the user's voice into the room.

• Address Ambiguity: For a Staff role, be ready to discuss how you approach ambiguous problems and define research agendas for "white space" areas.

Challenge Preparation:

• Anticipate Strategic Questions: Be ready for questions about how you would approach research strategy for Nourish, how you'd prioritize learning areas, and how you'd measure research impact.

• Case Study Practice: Prepare a concise narrative for your portfolio presentation that clearly outlines the problem, your approach, key findings, recommendations, and impact. Practice delivering this within a set timeframe.

• Company & Product Research: Thoroughly understand Nourish's mission, product, target audience (patients with chronic conditions, dietitians), and market landscape. Be prepared to discuss how user research can drive value in this specific context.

📝 Enhancement Note: The interview process will heavily scrutinize strategic thinking and influence. Candidates should prepare to articulate their research process not just as a set of activities, but as a strategic function that drives business value and shapes product direction. The portfolio presentation is a critical opportunity to showcase this strategic capability.

🛠 Tools & Technology Stack

Primary Tools:

• Qualitative Research Platforms: UserTesting.com, Maze, Lookback, UserZoom (for usability testing, concept testing, remote moderated/unmoderated studies).

• Qualitative Analysis & Synthesis: Dovetail, NVivo, ATLAS.ti, Airtable (for organizing, coding, and synthesizing qualitative data).

• Quantitative Analysis & Reporting: Amplitude, Google Analytics, Mixpanel, SQL (for user behavior analysis, A/B testing results, cohort analysis).

• Survey Tools: SurveyMonkey, Typeform, Qualtrics (for designing and deploying surveys).

• Collaboration & Documentation: Notion, Confluence, Google Workspace (for documentation, knowledge sharing, meeting notes, and collaborative project planning).

Analytics & Reporting:

• Product Analytics: Amplitude, Mixpanel (essential for understanding user engagement, feature adoption, and conversion funnels).

• Business Intelligence Tools: Tableau, Looker (potentially used by Data Science for broader business reporting, knowledge of integration is beneficial).

• Data Triangulation: Familiarity with how to pull and interpret basic data from CRM (e.g., Salesforce, though not explicitly mentioned) or internal databases would be advantageous.

CRM & Automation:

• While not directly research tools, familiarity with how CRM systems (e.g., Salesforce) and marketing automation platforms are used by Sales, Marketing, and Customer Success can provide context for user journeys and data flows. Understanding how research insights can inform these systems is beneficial.

📝 Enhancement Note: The mention of specific tools like Dovetail, Amplitude, and UserTesting.com in the "Key Qualifications" section is a strong indicator of the expected technology stack. Candidates should be prepared to discuss their proficiency and experience with these or comparable tools. The ability to "triangulate qualitative and quantitative insights" implies a need to work with data from various sources, including product analytics platforms.

👥 Team Culture & Values

Operations Values:

• Empathy: A core value driving interactions with users, colleagues, and the mission itself. This translates to deeply understanding patient needs and provider challenges.

• Trust: Fostering an environment where team members can rely on each other for support, honest feedback, and shared ownership.

• Collaboration: Actively working together across functions to achieve common goals, with research insights being a shared asset.

• Mission-Driven: A strong commitment to improving people's health through nutrition, with all work contributing to this overarching purpose.

• User-Centricity: Placing the needs and experiences of patients and providers at the forefront of all product and business decisions.

• Data-Informed: Utilizing both qualitative and quantitative data to guide strategy and measure impact, ensuring decisions are evidence-based.

Collaboration Style:

• Cross-Functional Integration: The research function is embedded within the product development lifecycle, working closely with Product, Design, Engineering, and Data Science.

• Mentorship & Knowledge Sharing: An expectation that senior team members will mentor others, fostering a culture of continuous learning and skill development.

• Open Communication: Encouraging open dialogue, constructive feedback, and transparent sharing of information to drive alignment and innovation.

• Agile & Iterative: A willingness to adapt, experiment, and iterate based on new learnings and feedback, both from users and internal teams.

📝 Enhancement Note: The company explicitly mentions valuing "empathy, trust, and collaboration." For a Staff User Researcher, this means demonstrating these values in how you conduct research, interact with stakeholders, and contribute to team dynamics. The mission-driven aspect is also critical to cultural fit.

⚡ Challenges & Growth Opportunities

Challenges:

• Navigating Ambiguity: As a Staff Researcher, you'll be tasked with tackling complex, ill-defined problems in a rapidly evolving health tech landscape. This requires strong strategic thinking to define research questions and scope.

• Balancing Speed and Rigor: In a startup environment, there's pressure to deliver insights quickly. The challenge lies in maintaining research quality and ethical standards while meeting aggressive timelines.

• Cross-Functional Alignment: Ensuring that research insights are understood, accepted, and acted upon by diverse teams with different priorities and perspectives requires strong communication and influence skills.

• Data Triangulation Complexity: Integrating qualitative findings with complex quantitative data from health tech platforms (potentially involving sensitive health information) can be challenging.

• Representing Diverse Users: Ensuring research adequately represents the diverse patient populations Nourish serves, particularly those with chronic conditions, and addressing accessibility and equity in the patient experience.

Learning & Development Opportunities:

• Strategic Research Leadership: Opportunity to shape the research strategy for a growing company and influence its product roadmap and clinical approach.

• Health Tech Domain Expertise: Deepen knowledge in chronic condition management, nutrition science, and the intricacies of healthcare delivery and reimbursement in the US.

• Mentorship and Team Building: Play a key role in mentoring other researchers and designers, contributing to the growth of the user experience function.

• Cross-Disciplinary Collaboration: Gain extensive experience working alongside product managers, engineers, data scientists, and clinical experts, broadening your understanding of product development.

• Advanced Methodologies: Opportunities to explore and apply advanced qualitative and quantitative methods, as well as emerging research areas like AI-driven user interactions.

📝 Enhancement Note: The challenges presented are common for senior roles in startups, particularly in regulated industries like health tech. Candidates should be prepared to discuss how they have successfully navigated these challenges in the past, highlighting problem-solving skills and resilience. The growth opportunities are substantial, offering a chance to make a significant impact and develop expertise in a high-demand field.

💡 Interview Preparation

Strategy Questions:

• "How would you approach defining the research strategy for Nourish in the next 12-18 months, considering our mission and key business objectives?" (Prepare to discuss prioritization frameworks, learning agendas, and alignment with company goals.)

• "Describe a time you influenced a significant product or business decision through your research. What was the situation, your approach, and the outcome?" (Focus on strategic impact and stakeholder influence.)

• "How do you balance the need for research rigor with the fast-paced demands of a startup environment, especially when dealing with sensitive health data?" (Discuss methodologies, prioritization, and communication strategies.)

Company & Culture Questions:

• "Why are you interested in Nourish, and how does our mission resonate with your personal values and career aspirations?" (Connect your passion to the company's mission.)

• "How would you approach building trust and fostering collaboration with product managers, designers, and engineers who may have different levels of research experience?" (Highlight your mentoring and communication style.)

Portfolio Presentation Strategy:

• Structure: For each case study, follow a clear narrative: Problem/Opportunity -> Your Role & Approach -> Methodology -> Key Findings -> Recommendations -> Impact/Outcome.

• Visuals: Use concise, impactful visuals that illustrate your research process and findings (e.g., journey maps, personas, key quotes, data visualizations). Avoid dense text.

• Quantify Impact: Wherever possible, quantify the impact of your research on product decisions, user behavior, or business metrics.

• Focus on Strategy: For a Staff role, emphasize how your research shaped strategy, addressed ambiguous problems, or influenced leadership.

• Engage Your Audience: Be conversational, invite questions throughout (or at specific points), and tailor your presentation to the audience's background.

📝 Enhancement Note: Candidates should prepare to discuss their experience with health tech, chronic conditions, and two-sided marketplaces. The interview will assess not only research skills but also strategic thinking, influence, and cultural fit. Strong examples demonstrating leadership and impact are crucial.

📌 Application Steps

To apply for this Staff User Researcher position:

• Submit your application through the provided link on Greenhouse.

• Craft a compelling resume: Tailor your resume to highlight your 8-12+ years of experience, focusing on strategic impact, leadership in research, and relevant industry experience (health tech, consumer, marketplaces). Use keywords from the job description.

• Prepare your portfolio: Curate 2-3 of your most impactful research projects that showcase strategic influence, end-to-end research execution, and quantifiable outcomes. Ensure your portfolio clearly articulates the problem, your role, methodology, insights, and impact.

• Research Nourish thoroughly: Understand their mission, product, target audience (patients with chronic conditions, dietitians), funding, and recent news. Be prepared to articulate why you are a good fit for their specific context and culture.

• Practice your portfolio presentation: Rehearse your case studies, focusing on clear storytelling, strategic insights, and demonstrating how your research drove measurable impact. Be ready to discuss your approach to ambiguous problems and stakeholder influence.

⚠️ 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.