Rose, from Market Research to User Research at Algolia
Rose participated in the first batch of Cousto. Her objective: transition from Research Manager in a Market Research agency to UX Researcher in a tech company. Here is her story.
What was your background before joining Cousto?
Before Cousto, I chose to do a Master’s degree in social sciences because I was curious to understand human behavior in every day things. I had courses in semiology, psychology and marketing which all helped me land my first job in an international Market Research agency. I stayed 5 years there, doing qualitative research and strategic planning for big brands, helping them understand products’ potential and areas for innovation though the voice of users.
Why did you want to transition from Market Research to UX Research?
Being a researcher is a position that I love, but the agency format can sometimes be limited when you are as eager to learn and do the extra mile as I am.
I wanted to follow projects on the long run, to be able to iterate, to communicate research results as much as necessary, etc. So I was looking for a way to keep on researching but in a different context.
UX Research appeared to me as the ideal combo: most often it is an in-house position, allowing you to (ideally!) be included in projects from the start, a lot of methodologies are close so I was not starting from scratch… And most importantly I perceived a possibility to ideate with teams and open great collaborations on how to create the most relevant product together.
What are the main differences between the disciplines?
I would say that the foundation is the same: understanding users and their context, methodologies to do so, finding great insights that will provoke spark, communicating what you learn to the right persons… but the purpose is different. In UX Research, you are directly helping the extended Product team (PMs, Designers, Engineers…), working collaboratively, adapting research to Product needs along projects. It is way more fluid. Plus, there is this extra complexity that I love: UX researchers build User Knowledge in companies and are the key guardians of this knowledge.
Beyond everyday projects, there is a need for the UX Researcher to organize every piece of feedback collected in order to create a qualitative data bank for future projects, and connect it to other feedbacks (from customer care or sales, for instance).
Every project starts with data you already have, and I think it is beautiful :).
How Cousto helped you with this transition?
I turned to Cousto for this transition to fill the gap between the two positions. But also to solidify some things I though I mastered (it is always great to realize that you can do much better!), and to quickly adapt to the tech environment (in terms of research practices, tools, vocabulary, or even co-workers roles).
Cousto really deep-dived me into my new role by giving me the right tools and tricks, but also by letting me practice a lot every week with concrete examples from the tech world!
What would you recommend to people willing to transition to UX Research?
In addition to UX Research special skills : rigor, empathy, team work, I would say the right mindset: be curious, do not be afraid to ask a lot of questions (I mean A LOT),accept not knowing things, be persistent.
What are your main challenges in your Job as UX Researcher at Algolia?
I just started working at Algolia as a User Researcher a week ago, so this is all very new! During the first weeks, my main challenge will be to adapt and make sense of this load of new information because a lot of very rich UX Research has already been done. But for the future, Algolia is shifting from a one-product company to a multi-products company, so my goal is to contribute to a smooth and smart shift. This is an exciting time to be a researcher at Algolia!
If you want to know more about Cousto — UX Research training program and mentors, go to cousto.io.
