How to Excel as a UXR Co-op at Wayfair
By Morgan Johnstonbaugh, Di Lan, and Stephanie Parey
As our UXR (User Experience Research) co-op experience comes to an end, we wanted to share some of the lessons we learned along the way with future co-ops.
Doing a co-op at Wayfair is an amazing opportunity. You will dive into industry work and grow as a researcher and colleague. You will meet a lot of smart, kind, and curious people who are excited to share their knowledge with you and watch you grow during your co-op journey. You will come out of your co-op with new experiences, stronger skills, and lasting friendships.
Here are our top 6 tips for excelling in your new UXR co-op role:
1. Develop a Plan
Talk to your manager at the beginning of your co-op to discuss what you’d like to accomplish during your time at Wayfair with respect to your projects, skills, and professional development. Some valuable goals may include: leading your own research readout, practicing using a new research method, creating materials that you can share in a public portfolio, or revising your resume for future industry positions. Set clear pathways to reach your goals and check in with your manager regularly. They’re excited to help you succeed at Wayfair and beyond!
When developing a plan for projects at Wayfair, be as proactive as possible by asking about what roadblocks may come up along the way and how you can best address them at the start of your project. A lesson learned the hard way: it is very hard to collect data during the winter holidays!
When I was about to finish my first survey project, I set up a chat with my manager to discuss what I wanted to do for my next project. I explained that I wanted to explore a different research method and build up broader business knowledge by being exposed to different products or customer segments. After the meeting, she helped me connect with other researchers and quickly identify how they could involve me in the projects they were working on.
2. Ask for feedback / Set up coffee chats
Everyone at Wayfair is really busy, but they’re also happy to help you! Feel free to reach out to your teammates when you’re curious to hear more about what they’re working on or would like some feedback on a project of your own. Everyone has a unique perspective they can share with you, and each person you meet can point you to others who can provide valuable input into your work.
Near the end of my co-op I had a quick coffee chat with one of my UXR teammates to get her feedback on a presentation I was creating for our team. She encouraged me to reach out to the team through a survey to identify the team’s needs before finalizing my presentation. This suggestion resulted in great feedback and enabled me to create a final product that met my team’s needs and would serve as a valuable resource long after our co-op ended.
3. Shadow your teammates!
Shadowing a variety of teammates will help you build versatility as a researcher. It will expose you to new research methods, problem-solving approaches, and stakeholder management techniques. While you may not want to bother your teammates, they will appreciate you taking an interest in their work. If someone is working on something that interests you, ask to sit in on a planning meeting or interview — you won’t regret it!
I had the incredible opportunity to accompany my mentor on their field research project at a Wayfair facility in Georgia because I told them about my goal of being exposed to other research methods. I will be forever grateful for this opportunity and it was one of my favorite experiences while working at Wayfair!
4. Remember — you’re part of the team!
In addition to connecting with your UXR teammates regularly, it is also valuable to reach out to your cross-functional stakeholders. Even though your co-op will only last for 6 months, asking to participate in team meetings will be a valuable learning experience, improve your research, and help you feel included in the Wayfair community. In addition to learning about their current and future goals, which can guide your research questions and recommendations, you may learn about some interesting sides of Wayfair’s business that you would not have seen otherwise. This investment will help your co-op have lasting impacts on your team’s work and your professional development.
During my first few weeks at Wayfair, I connected with many Wayfairians outside of UXR to understand the history of Partner Home (our supplier-facing experience). These conversations were the foundation I needed to jump right into my project work with an understanding of where Partner Home was heading. Without these chats, I would have had a steeper learning curve and I would not have met the amazing people that make up Wayfair.
5. Ask Questions
You’ll hear this advice at every onboarding presentation you attend, but we’ll say it here too, ask a lot of questions! All types of questions are welcome here and if the person you ask doesn’t know the answer, they’ll probably know someone who does. Your manager, UXR teammates, stakeholders, fellow co-ops, and Slack channels are all good resources for asking and answering questions. Most people will tell you onboarding at Wayfair actually takes a few years so they’ll understand if you need some help along the way.
For instance, the new #gxd-uxr-ops channel is a great resource for answering all of your research operations related questions. You can share questions or issues you’re trying to work through, receive speedy answers from the ops team, and search through previous messages to find valuable insights. In general, our research operations team members are dedicated and understanding. Whether or not you take advantage of the #gxd-uxr-ops channel or reach out directly, they will help you get through the research process smoothly.
6. Take a break when you need one
As you may have noticed from tips 1–5, completing a co-op at Wayfair is intense. You will learn a lot about Wayfair as a company, working in an industry setting, your colleagues, and yourself along the way. That being said, it is okay, in fact highly encouraged, to take a break when you need one. Although you’ll have plenty of projects on your plate from day 1 to day 180, let your manager know when you need to step back for a few hours or take a day off to recharge. Their main goal is to help you thrive as a researcher at Wayfair so taking some time for your well-being takes priority over clocking a few more hours or meeting a deadline.
Thanksgiving is always a special time for my family. Although I enjoyed a much smaller gathering than usual in 2021, I decided to take some time off to make sure that my Thanksgiving holiday was a relaxing one. Although co-ops do not have any paid holidays, spending time at home with my partner and zooming with our families, without meetings or deadlines, was an important moment of rest that helped me end my co-op on a positive note.
About Wayfair’s Global Experience Design Entry-Level Programs:
Wayfair offers a variety of programs across the company that enable students and recent graduates to gain valuable industry experience.
The Global Experience Design Community offers three entry-level programs: the GXD Apprentice Program (coming in 2022), the GXD Co-op Program (which is in its 5th cycle; and the program we just completed), and the GXD Internship program (coming in 2022).
Co-ops, or cooperative education, are a structured method of combining classroom-based education with practical work experience and provide academic credit for structured job experience. Co-ops give students the opportunity to apply classroom knowledge in a work environment for a sustained period of time. In the GXD Community, co-ops may be placed across all teams, serving all end-users. They’re hired for each of the three Wayfair XD (Experience Design) disciplines: content strategy, product design and research. The program runs for 6 months starting in January and June.
To apply, open roles are posted on Wayfair Careers in March and September.
Learn more about Wayfair’s student-centered programs here: in the US and Europe.
