User Research at IBM Data-AI
Have you ever wondered what large enterprises do with their data? Or how they use that data to solve real-world problems? The data that customers contribute to enterprises in the form of transactions and digital footprints can (or should) be used effectively to benefit businesses and us — the end-users. Who makes sense of this data, and how do they do it? These are some of the complex business problems that enterprises can solve with IBM’s Data & AI platform and related products.
IBM’s Data-AI organization is on a mission ‘to help our customers do more with their Data’. We are looking for talent like you to bring this goal to life. Check out our careers page to see what’s currently listed, or reach out to our team members to find out more about potential positions you’d fit into on our team.
Where does Design fit in this mission?
IBM Cloud & Cognitive Design is one of the key contributors in bringing the Data-AI mission to life. We partner with our Product Management and Engineering organizations in a cross-functional execution framework to solve various complex business problems faced by large enterprises in the data and artificial intelligence arena.
Our 200 + person design organization for Data-AI is led by two visionary design executives responsible for product design along with Leaders of related competencies such as user research, visual design, front-end development, and content development, etc.
The user research team in Data-AI has 30 + exceptionally talented researchers, research leads and managers responsible for various products within the Data-AI portfolio. Helping pave the way is our strong team of research operations (ReOps), who work behind the scenes for participant recruiting, insight management, and tooling/licensing at scale.
How we work
The Data-AI user research team operates on an embedded model which means each user researcher is embedded into one or more offerings that is supported by our larger design org. The user researcher is the main point of contact for all things related to ‘user research and usability’ on the product team that works cross-functionally in a ‘3-in-a-box’ framework of product management, design, and development working together to solve for customer needs and bringing products to market.
What we work on
Our researchers are responsible for planning their product’s research roadmap then executing studies in a way that results in impactful insights that influence the direction of our product’s future. We conduct studies that are either Exploratory, Strategic, Tactical, or Operational in nature depending on what best serves the product or team’s need.
Given the ratio of user research to design, we also firmly believe in and practice the ‘democratization of user research’ by enabling non-researchers to conduct their own tactical/usability studies, which allows user researchers to focus on more complex exploratory/strategic research topics.
Some of our broader products/platforms have User Research Leads that operate as team leads for a group of researchers supporting products that reside on a platform. The Research Lead supports user researchers’ success and helps the User Research Manager better execute on the research priorities.
The User Research Managers perform traditional manager tasks in addition to being the key person responsible for all things related to research for a sub-portfolio or group of offerings. In addition to people management, research managers work on a player-coach model where they help their teams build their craft and skills in addition to executing on group OKRs.
What’s in it for you
If this sounds interesting and you would like to consider our team in your future journey, please connect with me and some of our user researchers, leads and managers to learn more about current and future opportunities. In addition to being a part of the team of Data-AI user researchers, you will get an opportunity to grow your skills and craft by collaborating with and learning from 70 other user researchers from our broader Cloud & Cognitive organization.
We are on a challenging and rewarding journey to make data robust and easy to use across industries. We’d like to invite you to learn more about how you can have a thriving research career impacting millions of end users. Join us to explore possibilities to grow as user researcher. Good luck and we look forward to connecting with you!
Our Products
Our People
Robin Langerak (top-left)
User Research Lead
Toni Aguilar (top-right)
User Research Lead
Rachna Tiwary (bottom-left)
User Research Manager
Liz Pratt (bottom-right)
Head of UX Research AI Apps
User research positions ✨
- USA (San Jose, CA & Austin, TX) — User Research Manager
- USA (San Jose, CA & Austin, TX) — Design Researcher Co-op/Intern
Amit Sathe is the Head of User Research for Data-AI at IBM based in San Jose. The above article is personal and does not necessarily represent IBM’s positions, strategies or opinions.
