UX Research Manager - Product

H&R Block•Kansas City, MO

About The Position

H&R Block’s mission is to drive financial freedom by leveraging trust and technology while evolving into a year-round, AI-enabled partner. A key focus is deeply understanding customers—their needs, behaviors, and key moments - to strengthen customer-centricity across the organization through continuous learning, discovery, and immersive research practices. The UX Research Manager role will lead and scale a centralized research function supporting Consumer Tax, Financial Products, and Small Business. This strategic player-coach will guide how research is conducted and applied, build a strong operating model, and enable product teams to confidently engage with customers. Positioned within the Product Client Experience team, the role connects Product, Design, Strategy, and Analytics to ensure insights directly inform customer-focused decision-making.

Requirements

8+ years of UX research (or related) experience, including leading and developing teams within complex product organizations
Proven ability to build and scale research practices, teams, and operating models across multiple business areas
Strong track record of influencing product strategy and roadmaps through research and cross-functional partnerships
Deep expertise in both qualitative and quantitative methods, with sound judgment on when to apply each
Experience using AI-assisted tools to support research planning, synthesis, and insights, with a focus on responsible use
Ability to communicate insights clearly through strong storytelling, enabling teams and leaders to make informed decisions

Nice To Haves

Master’s or PhD in Research, Psychology, Design, or a related field
Experience working on complex, multi-journey, or regulated products (e.g., financial services, healthcare, enterprise platforms)
Familiarity with modern research tools (e.g., UserTesting, Qualtrics, etc.) and partnering with analytics/data science teams

Responsibilities

Establish and evolve a unified UX research operating model across all lines of business, balancing centralized excellence with scalable, team-led discovery
Lead, coach, and grow a team of UX Researchers, strengthening research craft, strategic thinking, and cross-functional partnership, while building capacity as the portfolio expands
Champion and operationalize continuous discovery by enabling product trios to conduct foundational research while ensuring rigor, quality, and ethical standards
Guide the team in executing complex, high-impact research (e.g., longitudinal studies, behavioral research, cross-journey synthesis) that extends beyond embedded team capabilities
Drive adoption of AI-enabled research practices, including synthesis acceleration, insight patterning, and experimentation support, ensuring responsible, human-centered application
Partner closely with Product, Consumer Research & Insights, Data Science & Analytics, Customer Care and CX leaders to elevate discovery quality and inform roadmap and investment decisions
Act as a catalyst for year-round customer immersion, expanding participation in research and embedding customer understanding into everyday decision-making
Mature research operations, including tooling, repositories, standards, and ways of working, to ensure insights are discoverable, durable, and actionable across the enterprise