Lead User Experience Researcher

UKG; Atlanta (GA); On-site; USD 146,000 - 209,000; Full time

Job summary

UKG is building an AI-first suite that helps organizations become great places to work through HR, pay, workforce management, and culture tech. We’re hiring a Lead UX Researcher to guide the Frontline Worker Network, a UKG-owned mobile platform connecting shift and hourly workers with services in the flow of work.

Frontline Worker Network is a 0‑to‑1 venture we’re building from the ground up. The Lead UX Researcher will drive high‑impact research from framing to post-launch evaluation,

Qualifications

• 7+ years leading User Research projects with demonstrated impact.
• Experience researching in multi-sided marketplaces with competing stakeholder needs.
• Expertise in qualitative and quantitative methods: usability testing, interviews, surveys, contextual inquiry, field studies, behavioral analytics, segmentation, and A/B testing.
• Experience researching across web apps, conversational interfaces, or AI-powered experiences.
• Experience leveraging AI in work processes and decision-making.

Responsibilities

• Define the research strategy and roadmap for a multi-sided market program across discovery, usage, and retention.
• Research and recruit from deskless, hourly frontline workers.
• Synthesize findings into actionable insights that drive product adoption and metrics.
• Evaluate new service categories through generative research to inform strategy.
• Establish customer-centered quality measures for emerging experiences and influence product direction.
• Drive alignment with senior leaders and cross-functional partners to translate research into roadmap priorities.
• Mentor team members in behavioral science methods, experimentation, and data interpretation.

Skills

Stakeholder management

Cross-functional collaboration

Research leadership

Education

Bachelor’s degree in HCDE/Cognitive Psychology

Job description

Why UKG

At UKG, the work you do matters. The code you ship, the decisions you make, and the care you show a customer all add up to real impact. Today, tens of millions of workers start and end their days with our workforce operating platform. Helping people get paid, grow in their careers, and shape the future of their industries. That’s what we do.

Why UKG

At UKG, the work you do matters. The code you ship, the decisions you make, and the care you show a customer all add up to real impact. Today, tens of millions of workers start and end their days with our workforce operating platform. Helping people get paid, grow in their careers, and shape the future of their industries. That’s what we do.
We never stop learning. We never stop challenging the norm. We push for better, and we celebrate the wins along the way. Here, you’ll get flexibility that’s real, benefits you can count on, and a team that succeeds together. Because at UKG, your work matters—and so do you.
This role is ideal for a mixed-methods researcher who independently conducts and activates research in complex environments with competing priorities and stakeholders. You excel at identifying key questions, balancing speed with rigor, and recommending paths forward amid ambiguity. You lead end-to-end research, drive impact through clear narratives, and proactively identify knowledge gaps. You connect stakeholder teams and move beyond research delivery to drive decisions.

Lead User Experience Researcher USUERP4

Description

At UKG, we are building an AI-first suite that inspires organizations to become great places to work through HR, pay, workforce management, and culture technology. We are hiring a Lead UX Researcher to guide the development of Frontline Worker Network, a UKG-owned network delivering mobile experiences that connect shift and hourly employees with curated services—including financial wellness, health, and everyday essentials—in the flow of work. Frontline Worker Network is a 0-1 business, and we’re building it from the ground up.

The Lead UX Researcher will lead high-impact research from problem framing through post-launch evaluation, translating customer evidence into clear product direction. You will identify critical features and experiences that drive business and customer success, play a leadership role in the UX Research team, and report to the head of UX research.

This role is ideal for a mixed-methods researcher who independently conducts and activates research in complex environments with competing priorities and stakeholders. You excel at identifying key questions, balancing speed with rigor, and recommending paths forward amid ambiguity. You lead end-to-end research, drive impact through clear narratives, and proactively identify knowledge gaps. You connect stakeholder teams and move beyond research delivery to drive decisions.

Responsibilities

• Define the research strategy and roadmap for a multi-sided market program, spanning discovery, usage, and retention. You will research workers, employers, and service partners. Design and execute generative and evaluative research using methods appropriate to the question—interviews, usability studies, surveys, diary studies, and contextual inquiry.
• Research and recruit from a hard-to-reach population of deskless, hourly, mobile-only frontline workers. Develop recruiting and research approaches tailored to this population’s unique constraints and contexts.
• Synthesize qualitative research, survey data, telemetry, and business context to develop a coherent view of customer behavior. Translate findings into actionable insights and decision frameworks that directly drive product adoption and conversion metrics.
• Evaluate new service categories (credit, insurance, whole-worker support) through generative research. Assess market viability, user needs, and integration opportunities to inform category expansion strategy.
• Establish customer-centered quality measures for emerging experiences and evaluate whether shipped products meet expectations. Influence product strategy and design using deep user, market, and competitor understanding.
• Drive alignment through clear insight narratives, working sessions, and presentations to senior leaders. Lead cross-functional partners in ideation and reviews to translate research findings into product strategy and roadmap priorities.
• Raise the methodological bar within the User Research team by mentoring team members in behavioral science methods, experimentation, data interpretation, and behavioral frameworks.
• Use AI-assisted research tools thoughtfully to accelerate analysis while maintaining appropriate rigor and human oversight.
• Provide thought leadership by developing and socializing strategic points of view on key topics. Advise senior stakeholders and inform strategic direction.

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in HCDE, Cognitive Psychology, Human Factors, or related field
• 7+ years of proven success leading User Research projects with demonstrated impact
• Experience conducting research with participants in multi-sided marketplace ecosystems and understanding the competing needs of multiple stakeholder groups
• Expertise in qualitative and quantitative research methods including usability testing, interviews, surveys, contextual inquiry, field studies, behavioral analytics, segmentation, and A/B testing
• Excellent stakeholder management and cross-functional collaboration skills
• Experience researching across multiple interaction paradigms such as web applications, conversational interfaces, or AI-powered experiences
• Experience leveraging or critically thinking about how to integrate AI into work processes, decision-making, or problem-solving
• Proven ability to lead research initiatives, influence product decisions, and mentor researchers

Preferred Qualifications

• B2B, marketplace, e-commerce, or enterprise software research experience
• Experience researching with deskless or hourly worker populations
• Fintech, financial wellness, or sensitive-domain research experience, particularly with trust and adoption in employer-embedded financial products
• Subject matter expertise in frontline workforce, workforce management, human resource management, or talent management
• Experience building 0-1 products or bringing new offerings to market, particularly within enterprise software companies
• Experience building AI systems, addressing trust, transparency, and mental model formation

Company Overview

UKG is the Workforce Operating Platform that puts workforce understanding to work. With the world's largest collection of workforce insights, and people-first AI, our ability to reveal unseen ways to build trust, amplify productivity, and empower talent, is unmatched. It's this expertise that equips our customers with the intelligence to solve any challenge in any industry — because great organizations know their workforce is their competitive edge. Learn more at ukg.com.

Equal Opportunity Employer

UKG is an equal opportunity employer. We evaluate qualified applicants without regard to race, color, disability, religion, sex, age, national origin, veteran status, genetic information, and other legally protected categories.

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It is unlawful in Massachusetts to require or administer a lie detector test as a condition of employment or continued employment. An employer who violates this law shall be subject to criminal penalties and civil liability.

Disability Accommodation in the Application and Interview Process

For individuals with disabilities that need additional assistance at any point in the application and interview process, please email [e-mail].

The pay range for this position is $145,600 to $209,300. The actual base pay offered may vary depending on skills, experience, job-related knowledge and work location. In addition to base pay, employees may be eligible to participate in a performance-based bonus plan and to receive restricted stock unit awards as part of total compensation. Learn more about UKG’s benefits and rewards at https://www.ukg.com/about-us/careers/benefits