Senior User Researcher

Hippo; Leeds; On-site; GBP 65,000 - 90,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Contributory Pension Scheme

25 Days Holiday

Perkbox discounts

Life assurance

Volunteer days

Cycle-to-work

Private health cover

Job summary

Hippo Digital is seeking senior consultants in user research to lead and shape research across client projects. You will design and run studies, test services in development, and collaborate with designers, product owners and developers in Agile teams to emphasise people-centred service design.

You’ll be recognised as an expert, leading teams and mentoring others while driving growth and client impact. The role includes opportunities to travel and engage with diverse projects across the UK.

Qualifications

• Expertise in applying user research methodologies across environments.
• Experience in multidisciplinary Agile teams to design and deliver people-centred services.
• Working knowledge of accessibility or assisted digital research.
• Championship of user research / service design approaches.
• Experience in line management or mentoring other user researchers.
• Strong communication and stakeholder management with tact and sensitivity.
• Good understanding of other Agile roles across design, product and tech.
• Strong consultancy and leadership skills to explore problem spaces with clients.

Responsibilities

• Advise clients on solving complex problems using research and Agile methods.
• Lead multidisciplinary Agile teams to design services meeting user needs.
• Advocate inclusive approaches within user research.
• Build relationships with clients and stakeholders while challenging ideas.
• Line manage user researchers and advise colleagues on research outcomes.
• Support recruitment, events, blog-writing and winning new business.
• Promote Hippo’s people-centred design offer internally and externally.

Skills

User research

Agile teams

Stakeholder mgmt

Line management

Job description

About The Role

Hippo Digital is recruiting senior consultants in user research. User researchers design, plan and conduct research into what people need from a service and produce recommendations for user-centred service design. Working with designers, product owners, developers and other members of Agile teams, they also test services as they are being designed and use research evidence to help explain design decisions to clients.

About The Role

Hippo Digital is recruiting senior consultants in user research. User researchers design, plan and conduct research into what people need from a service and produce recommendations for user-centred service design. Working with designers, product owners, developers and other members of Agile teams, they also test services as they are being designed and use research evidence to help explain design decisions to clients.

As a senior consultant in user research, you’ll already be an expert in your field. You’ll also be a leader of people and teams, and an advocate for user-centred design approaches. Hippo will provide exciting opportunities to share your expertise with clients and team members, and to develop as a leader.

[Please note we are looking for candidates who are looking for growth at the Intermediate level; therefore, the advertised salary band represents the entry point for this level, allowing for clear progression within the role, which we are very keen to support.]

What you’ll do

• Advise clients on how to solve complex problems using research, people-centred design and Agile methodologies
• Lead multidisciplinary Agile teams to design services that meet identified user needs
• Advocate inclusive approaches within user research
• Build supportive relationships with clients and stakeholders, yet challenge ideas and manage difficult conversations
• Line manage user researchers and advise other colleagues how to get the best from user research
• Support in recruitment, events, blog-writing and winning new business
• Promote Hippo’s people-centred design offer both internally and externally

About The Candidate

• Expertise in applying user research methodologies across different environments
• Experience of working in multidisciplinary Agile teams to design and deliver people-centred services
• Working knowledge of how to research of accessibility needs or assisted digital needs
• Proven experience of championing user research / user-centred design / service design approaches
• Experience of line management or mentoring/training other user researchers
• Advanced communication and stakeholder management skills, with the ability to manage conflict and convey difficult messages with tact and sensitivity
• A good understanding of other Agile roles across design, product and tech
• Strong consultancy and leadership skills, and confidence in exploring problem spaces with clients to determine the most appropriate way forward

About The Company

Alongside working with some of the most talented people out there and on-top of a competitive salary, which we’re transparent about from the outset, you can also expect a range of benefits:

• Contributory Pension Scheme (Hippo 6% & Employee 2%)
• 25 Days Holiday plus UK Public Holidays
• Perkbox access for a wide range of discounts
• Critical illness cover
• Life assurance and death in service cover
• Volunteer days
• Cycle-to-work scheme for the avid cyclists
• Salary sacrifice electric vehicles scheme
• Season ticket loans
• Financial and general wellbeing sessions
• Flexible benefits scheme with options of:
• Private health cover
• Private dental cover
• Additional company pension contributions
• Additional holidays (up to an extra 2 days)
• Wellbeing contribution
• Charity contributions
• Tree planting

Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging at Hippo

At Hippo, we’re dedicated to creating a diverse, equitable and inclusive workplace that works for everyone. We understand that having a diverse team unlocks our capacity for innovation, creativity and problem solving. Only by building a community of diverse perspectives, cultures and socio-economic backgrounds can we create an environment where all can contribute and thrive.

We actively encourage applications from underrepresented groups including women, ethnic minorities, LGBTQ+, neurodivergent and people with disabilities. We are committed to providing an inclusive and accessible recruitment process that reflects our workplace culture. We are a registered Disability Confident Employer, Mindful Employer, Endometriosis Friendly Employer and a member of the Armed Forces Covenant. Hippo continually strives to remove barriers, provide accommodations and offer reasonable adjustments to ensure equity throughout our practices.

Hi, we’re Hippo

At Hippo, we design with empathy and build for impact. We do this by combining data-informed evidence, human-centred design and software engineering. We're a digital services partner who is genuinely invested in helping our clients thrive as modern organisations. Our delivery methodology is truly agile, from concept to reality, supporting innovation and continuous improvement to achieve your desired outcomes.

We firmly believe that technology should serve humanity, not the other way around. We take a human-centred approach to everything we do because we understand that complex problems require a service design approach. This means understanding how users behave and ensuring our solutions work for them in the real world.

Our combination of data, design, and engineering delivers bespoke digital services that make a positive and meaningful impact on organisations and society.

Have a look through our Website at Our Story & Purpose, Our Culture & Values, Case Studies and Our Solutions & Services to find out some more!

Hippo Locations

We are headquartered in Leeds and have offices across the UK in Glasgow, Manchester, Birmingham, London and Bristol. We're on the lookout for top talent nationwide but you need to be located within reasonable travelling distance from one of our offices. Given the dynamic nature of a consulting business, you may be required to work on-site at a Hippo office or at an in/out of town client location for a number of days per week (client dependent) and therefore candidates will need to be open/flexible to travel and working on one of those sites at least 2 days per week. We offer a generous relocation support package of up to £8,000 (please ask for terms and conditions) to help make your move a smooth one.