Senior User Researcher

Company Description: Come join us and make a difference in the world!

Location: UK - Remote or Hybrid, Subject to Location

Salary: £46‑65,000 subject to location and experience

No Agencies Please: We only accept direct applications.

Job Description: We’re looking for a Senior User Researcher with significant experience in delivering user research projects. The focus of your role will be to plan, facilitate and lead user research activities on a variety of projects. You’ll often be working with multidisciplinary teams on complex projects where autonomy and project management will be important. We’re on the hunt for someone who will champion our values: to care passionately, be fluent in people, believe in your craft, push convention, be open to change, and to value each other. We work with a broad range of clients, some of whom are completely new to user‑centred design (UCD). This means you’ll also play a key role in championing our UCD approach.

The role may also involve:

• Leading and directing projects: You’ll lead multidisciplinary teams and clients in the pursuit of inclusive, accessible and effective research outcomes.
• Team support and management: You’ll help to support the user research team by inspiring and line‑managing team members, including overseeing appraisals and professional development.
• Defining and refining practice: You’ll help to define the way our disciplines work together, and progress the way NEC Digital Studio delivers inclusive, accessible, and effective design.
• Supporting new business: You’ll help NEC Digital Studio identify and win projects by spotting opportunities with clients and helping with proposals and pitches.
• Supporting our Design School: with the development and delivery of courses.

How we work: We work with central and local government, the NHS, voluntary, not‑for‑profit, and private sector organisations. We work hand‑in‑hand with our clients and are sometimes embedded in their teams for projects. You’ll move on to different sectors after 3‑12 months as we want you to gain a variety of experiences, from applying GDS (government digital service) standards to improving customer buy‑in. Beyond individual projects, NEC Digital Studio’s User Researchers support each other at weekly meet‑ups where we share our work, discuss its wider implications, and learn about methods. You’ll also broaden your skills by working closely with members of our Digital teams, including interaction and content designers, and developers. All of our User Researchers are supported by more senior members of the User Research team. They look after your wellbeing, help you set goals and objectives and provide feedback to help you grow.

Qualifications:

• Leading and advocating for user research activities on multidisciplinary projects; working with the wider team (including Service Design and Digital roles) to deliver insightful outcomes.
• Inclusive research – Conducting user research in an ethical way that ensures safety and accessibility for all participants.
• UCD to GDS service standards – planning and conducting research across the agile phases of a project.
• Qualitative analysis and synthesis – turning findings into user journeys, stories and needs.
• Facilitation – skilled in a range of sessions (interviews, usability testing, co‑analysis, co‑synthesis) and guiding stakeholders to contribute.
• Service Design – interest or experience in service design thinking and outcomes.
• Written communication – presenting findings engagingly to colleagues and stakeholders.
• Recommendation & implementation – collaborating with design teams, experts and clients to produce clear insights for decision‑making.
• Proactive and autonomous – leading conversations and adding value.
• Stakeholder management – negotiating and guiding clients toward positive outcomes within budget.
• Managing complexity and ambiguity – thriving in complex UCD projects.

Additional Information:

Benefits:

• Private medical cover funded by NEC for employees (family add‑on optional).
• 25 days paid holiday (FTE) with sale‑and‑buy options.
• Basic salary life assurance cover funded by NEC (optionally increase at cost).
• A group pension plan with employer contributions up to 8.5%.
• Flexible benefits to suit individual needs.
• Free access to LinkedIn Learning – 15,000+ courses.
• Give‑back days.
• Annual team and company away‑days.

Other Information: Candidates must demonstrate a pre‑existing right to work and travel within the UK; documentary evidence required. All offers are subject to satisfactory vetting, references and occupational health checks. A Disclosure Barring Service (DBS) check may also be required.

Equal Opportunity Statement: NEC Software Solutions is an equal opportunities employer, welcoming applications from all communities. If you require any reasonable adjustments or have specific accessibility needs during the recruitment or interview process, please feel free to share these with us. We are committed to ensuring an inclusive and accommodating experience for all candidates.

Application Process: We receive applicants from multiple different sources – the application process may vary. Once you have chosen to apply the key things we would like to see in your applications are:

• A CV
• A cover letter – explain why you are a good fit for the role and why you want to work for NEC Digital Studio. Limit to 1000 words.
• A presentation of no more than 5 pages on a project or process you led, demonstrating your qualification for the role. This could be an extract from your portfolio. If selected for an interview you will have up to 10 minutes to present.

Who We Are: We’re NEC Software Solutions (part of global tech giant NEC Corporation). Our software helps dispatch ambulances, support families, keep trains on the move, locate missing people and even test the hearing of newborn babies. Working with us, you’ll help our 3,000+ employees push the boundaries of what’s possible and support amazing public services. We assist governments, hospitals, police forces, housing providers, local authorities and more to pay financial support faster, speed up treatments for patients and respond to emergencies in the right way. The more we do, the more our customers can do for others. And together, we make a world of difference. At NEC Digital Studio, we believe in design practices that make the world more human. NEC Digital Studio was created to put people at the centre of services, positively changing how they experience the world. Everything we design, build and maintain is made for life. Our mission is to empower organisations to be more effective, inclusive and sustainable, through tools, systems and experiences that are intelligent, integrated and intuitive for all. As a people‑first digital studio, we specialise in working with seldom‑heard voices and diverse user groups. We practice participatory co‑design and ethical research. Our teams are experts in accessibility and digital inclusion.