Sr Product Researcher

NRG•Lehi, UT

1d•$130,000 - $185,000

About The Position

The Sr Product Researcher is a senior member of Vivint Smart Home’s Customer Validation team, reporting directly to the Director of Customer Validation. The team conducts qualitative research, alpha/beta testing, and quantitative validation in partnership with Product, Design, Program, Engineering, Data Science, and leadership. Its work informs product roadmaps through discovery and concept testing, product development through usability and value research, product iteration through surveys and interviews, and innovation and whitespace identification. This role has significant autonomy and influence and serves as the team’s senior product research subject matter expert. The researcher operates independently, mentors junior researchers, and helps advance research from project-based execution to proactive, insight-driven partnership. The position leads multi-study research programs, identifies research opportunities, develops AI-augmented workflows, synthesizes findings across studies, and influences product strategy and decisions. It also champions inclusive and accessible research practices and helps evolve the team’s methods. The position requires a master’s degree and/or PhD or equivalent, and at least five years of experience leading end-to-end consumer research programs in industry. The base salary range is $130,000–$185,000. The role may also be eligible for annual bonus, short- and long-term incentives, program-specific awards, and benefits including medical, vision, dental, 401(k), and flexible spending accounts.

Requirements

Passion for user research and clearly demonstrated empathy for end users.
Deep expertise in qualitative methods, including moderated and unmoderated usability testing, structured and unstructured interviews, concept research, and discovery research.
Judgment to design an appropriate research approach when the path is not already defined.
Experience designing quantitative components into mixed-methods research, including benchmarking and pre/post measurement, and triangulating qualitative findings with quantitative and behavioral data.
Experience translating research insights into clear recommendations that influence product direction, prioritization, and customer experience investments.
Track record of independently framing research questions and reshaping poorly scoped research requests.
Experience mentoring or developing other researchers.
Comfort using AI tools in research workflows and judgment to critically evaluate AI-generated output for accuracy and bias.
Outstanding written and verbal communication skills, including presenting findings and strategic recommendations to senior stakeholders such as Directors and VPs.
Ability to facilitate stakeholder discussions that drive alignment on decisions, actions, and next steps.
Master’s degree and/or PhD or equivalent.
At least 5 years of experience leading end-to-end consumer research programs in industry and applying findings to product, business, and customer experience decisions.

Responsibilities

Lead multi-study research programs addressing connected and often ambiguous questions across user segments, product areas, and stages of the customer journey.
Proactively identify research opportunities and customer or UX gaps, using evidence to shape what should be built.
Mentor and develop junior researchers, coaching them on methodology, judgment, and best practices.
Develop and scale AI-augmented research workflows for synthesis and analysis; evaluate emerging AI tools and recommend adoption; determine when AI analysis is sufficient and when human interpretation is needed.
Conduct cross-study synthesis to build cumulative understanding of problem spaces and create reusable insights and frameworks.
Distill complex, multi-study data into insights that reveal systemic patterns and root causes.
Contribute research insights to strategy documents such as PRFAQs, PRDs, and roadmap reviews, and present findings to senior stakeholders.
Partner with Product, Design, Engineering, and Data Science to shape strategy and decisions early.
Champion inclusive, accessible research practices and help improve the team’s research methods.