UX Researcher

ICF International; United States; Remote; USD 95,000 - 135,000; Full time

Job summary

ICF International’s Digital Modernization Division is seeking a human-centered UX Researcher to inform product, service, and operational improvements through qualitative and quantitative studies, advancing data, analytics, and AI initiatives for federal programs.

You will partner with cross-functional teams, synthesize insights into actionable recommendations, and develop personas, journey maps, and experience artifacts while advocating for user needs from discovery through validation, with

Qualifications

• U.S. Citizenship is required due to federal contract requirements.
• Candidate must reside in the U.S., be authorized to work in the U.S., and all work must be performed in the U.S.
• Candidate must have lived in the U.S. for three (3) full years out of the last five (5) years.
• Bachelor's degree in Human-Centered Design, UX Research, Psychology, Human Factors, Anthropology, Sociology, Design Research, Information Science, or related field; or a high school diploma with four (4) additional years of relevant experience in lieu of a bachelor's degree.
• Minimum 3 years of relevant experience aligned to the responsibilities of this role.
• Master's degree in related field may substitute for two (2) years of relevant experience.

Responsibilities

• Support the UX vision and strategy in alignment with project goals and business objectives.
• Collaborate with stakeholders to frame the problem, develop hypothesis, and create research plans.
• Conduct qualitative and quantitative research, including discovery interviews, usability testing, contextual inquiry, surveys, and journey-based research.
• Develop and maintain research artifacts such as personas, journey maps, and experience assessments.
• Analyze customer feedback to identify needs, pain points, and opportunities for improvement.
• Synthesize research findings into clear, actionable, insights and recommendations.
• Communicate research findings and user outcomes clearly, objectively, and persuasively.
• Evaluate intake, onboarding, and enablement experiences to reduce customer friction and improve outcomes.
• Inform service design, product, CRM/workflow improvements, training needs, and continuous-improvement priorities, through research-driven recommendations.
• Partner with UX design, service design, product, engineering, and other cross-functional stakeholders to support decision‑making and solution development.
• Advocate for user needs and ensure users are involved throughout the design and validation process.
• Apply human-centered design, accessibility, and federal service design principles to improve customer experiences.
• Document research activities, findings, decisions, risks, and supporting evidence to ensure traceability and continuous improvement.

Skills

Mixed-methods research

Personas & journey maps

Cross-functional collaboration

Clear communication

Research ethics

Usability & accessibility

Analytical thinking

Organizational skills

Education

Bachelor's degree in related field

High school diploma + 4 years relevant experience

Master's degree substituting for 2 years experience

Tools

Miro

Figma

UserZoom

Qualtrics

SurveyMonkey

Dovetail

Microsoft Forms

Job description

Please note: This role is contingent upon a contract award. While it is not an immediate opening, we are actively conducting interviews and extending offers in anticipation of the award.

The Work

At ICF our Digital Modernization Division is an information technology and management consulting organization that delivers integrated, strategic solutions to federal clients. We bring expertise in cloud, cybersecurity, enterprise architecture, data modernization, and digital transformation to support mission-critical government programs.

Join a team accelerating the modernization of a large federal agency's enterprise data and analytics ecosystem. This cloud-based platform provides data storage, analytics, governance, and AI/ML capabilities that enable thousands of users to transform data into actionable insights. As demand continues to grow, the team is focused on migrating legacy workloads, streamlining onboarding and support, expanding platform capabilities, and helping organizations across the enterprise adopt modern data and AI solutions at scale.

We seek a talented human-centered UX Researcher to help ensure services and customer experiences are grounded in a deep understanding of user needs, behaviors, and challenges. Applying human-centered design and evidence-based research practices, this role conducts and synthesizes qualitative and quantitative research to uncover insights, reduce customer friction, validate design decisions, and inform product, service, and operational improvements. Working closely with cross-functional teams, the UX Researcher translates findings into actionable recommendations and helps shape solutions that are useful, usable, accessible, and aligned with both customer and organizational goals.

Job Location:

Remote, however, strong preference for candidates who live in the Washington DC Metro Area. There will be occasional onsite meetings on the client site in Washington, DC.

*If you accept this position, you should note that ICF does monitor employee work locations, blocks access from foreign locations/foreign IP addresses, and prohibits personal VPN connections.

What You Will Do:

• Support the UX vision and strategy in alignment with project goals and business objectives.
• Collaborate with stakeholders to frame the problem, develop hypothesis, and create research plans.
• Conduct qualitative and quantitative research, including discovery interviews, usability testing, contextual inquiry, surveys, and journey-based research.
• Develop and maintain research artifacts such as personas, journey maps, and experience assessments.
• Analyze customer feedback to identify needs, pain points, and opportunities for improvement.
• Synthesize research findings into clear, actionable, insights and recommendations.
• Communicate research findings and user outcomes clearly, objectively, and persuasively.
• Evaluate intake, onboarding, and enablement experiences to reduce customer friction and improve outcomes.
• Inform service design, product , CRM/workflow improvements, training needs, and continuous-improvement priorities, through research-driven recommendations.
• Partner with UX design, service design, product, engineering, and other cross-functional stakeholders to support decision‑making and solution development.
• Advocate for user needs and ensure users are involved throughout the design and validation process.
• Apply human-centered design, accessibility, and federal service design principles to improve customer experiences.
• Document research activities, findings, decisions, risks, and supporting evidence to ensure traceability and continuous improvement.

Basic Qualifications:

• U.S. Citizenship is required due to federal contract requirements.
• Candidate must reside in the U.S., be authorized to work in the U.S., and all work must be performed in the U.S.
• Candidate must have lived in the U.S. for three (3) full years out of the last five (5) years.
• Bachelor's degree in Human-Centered Design, UX Research, Psychology, Human Factors, Anthropology, Sociology, Design Research, Information Science, or related field; or a high school diploma with four (4) additional years of relevant experience in lieu of a bachelor's degree.
• Minimum 3 years of relevant experience aligned to the responsibilities of this role.
• Master's degree in related field may substitute for two (2) years of relevant experience.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience supporting Federal government, healthcare, or other highly regulated environments.
• Active or past clearance to work with Veterans Affairs.
• Experience working in Agile, cross-functional delivery teams.
• Understanding of accessibility, inclusive design, Section 508 compliance, and human-centered design principles.
• Experience supporting federal service design, analytics platforms, or enterprise technology modernization initiatives.

Professional Skills:

• Strong mixed-method research (qualitative, quantitative, surveys), synthesis, and presentation skills.
• Experience developing personas, journey maps, service blueprints, empathy maps, and customer experience artifacts that inform product and service design decisions.
• Experience utilizing research and collaboration tools such as Miro, Figma, UserZoom, Qualtrics, SurveyMonkey, Dovetail, Microsoft Forms, or similar platforms.
• Understanding of research ethics and best practices to protect participants and control bias, including informed consent, personally identifiable information, NDAs, and related concepts.
• Understanding of usability and accessibility including heuristic and expert methods.
• Highly effective analytical, problem-solving, and decision‑making capabilities.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to work effectively across technical and non-technical audiences.
• Strong organization, attention to detail, and the ability to prioritize and manage multiple responsibilities.
• Collaborative cross‑functional approach with a commitment to quality, accountability, and continuous improvement.