Freelance Principal UX Researcher

Start date: Mid-October Involves UX research coaching, establishing and embedding research practices, and research to empower multiple product teams Immediate interviews Initial contract duration: 4 months (possibility for perm) £ day rate (outside IR35) 2 days per week in-office (Canary Wharf) About Red Badger We’re a tech and product consultancy, building enterprise software products for blue-chip companies, multinationals and PLC’s. The best bit about Red Badger is, of course, the team. We’ve been around for 15+ years now, and we are over 130 strong. We are really proud of our people; we support and learn a lot from each other; we work really hard but have fun doing it. We are a diverse group made up of 22 different nationalities, speaking 17 different languages. Headquartered in London, we also have offices in Cape Town and Leeds. The Role As a Freelance Principal UX Researcher, you own research across a multi-team client programme. You run strategic discovery that shapes what gets built, set research standards, and make sure customer insight drives prioritisation. Our clients often have fragmented, siloed research that restarts with every study. You turn it into a working discipline. This is a working leadership role: part hands-on researcher, part standard-setter, part connector. As a Freelance Principal UX Researcher, you will focus on: Leading strategic discovery into what to build first, next and in the vision Setting research methods and standards across the programme Building research operations so insight is reusable Turning insight into roadmap decisions Growing and managing researchers Key Responsibilities Strategic discovery Lead discovery end-to-end, from plan to a validated view of what customers value Pick the right methods, e.g. Jobs-to-be-Done, Kano, MaxDiff, interviews, usability testing to build the right evidence base to support strategic decisions Combine qualitative insight with analytics and behavioural data to surface core insights and user needs Standards and research operations Build scalable and repeatable Research Ops including processes, methods, governance, forums, roles and responsibilities Set research standards for recruitment, methods, ethics, synthesis and reporting Coach designers and clients to run effective strategic and tactical research Insight to roadmap Present findings in commercial, prioritisation-ready terms Keep a traceable line from insight to decision Collaborative leader and trusted advisor Work with other Design Leadership roles to ensure that research and the end-to-end user experience reinforce and reflect each other Build trusted relationships with senior client stakeholders Ability to adjust best practice pragmatically to fit within client contexts to ensure that effective outcomes are met in the best way possible Build Red Badger capability and profile Develop research methods and practices across all Product and Design members Support hiring and share knowledge across Red Badger Write and speak about our research practice Your experience It’d be great if you can Lead strategic discovery across multiple product teams Master qualitative and quantitative methods, including interviews, JTBD, Kano, MaxDiff, MVT, A/B testing, Diary studies, observation, etc. Advise on how research can support Human-Centred Design, Design Thinking and Lean Experimentation practices Set research standards and embed Research Ops frameworks across large enterprise Embed research into strategy, prioritisation and roadmap decisions Influence senior stakeholders effectively and confidently Thrive in Lean/Agile, cross-functional team environments Advise engineers, insights and QA on Research practices as part of a cross-functional team Hire and line manage other Research, Product and Design team members It’d be amazing if you can also Bring consulting experience building a client's research function Show experience in regulated domains, such as financial services Apply service design and journey mapping Speak or write publicly about research practice Diversity & Inclusion: Red Badger is committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment, and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We hire, employ, train, promote and compensate regardless of gender, gender identity, race, disability, sexual orientation, age, creed and colour. We are fully focused on equality, and we believe the fascinating characteristics that make us all different enable us to continue doing amazing work for our clients.