Daniel Escher

This analysis surfaces an interesting debate. The analysis of 1400 recent job descriptions shows that a frequent qualification that companies include is having a PhD (not necessarily required but a bonus). As such, the authors posit that in this tough job market, perhaps getting a relevant subject PhD could make a candidate stand out from other applicants. However, the previous common job advice (prior to this tough market) for those breaking into UX was NOT to get a PhD for the reason of trying to break into UX. Rather, relevant industry experience would serve you better. Furthermore, there has been a stigma that I’ve seen from some hiring managers against PhDs, who they feel do not have relevant research experience and specifically, a know how for operating within a business and managing cross-functional stakeholders. Personally, I have found my PhD to be immensely valuable in my current work. The rigorous training I received for how to think about and interpret research, and how to craft research plans that generate the knowledge we need to understand to make a product decision has been a foundational bedrock for me, and gives me confidence to perform the core purpose of my role. But would I recommend someone who was having difficulty in this job market to get a PhD to make themselves more competitive for the position? This is a question I’ve been asked for people interested in UXR. I’m honestly not sure. It’s true that I think that a PhD teaches an individual how to engage with research properly that is often lacking in on the job training or online courses. Yet perhaps what is most important is not necessarily a degree or not, but rather how one analyzes their own individual experiences and effectively demonstrates how the unique skills they possess can bring value-add to the UXR field/specific team. This requires a deep understanding of the work of a UXR as well as a thorough self-assessment of transferable skills but also what one’s distinct perspective is that can move the field forward.

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🚀 What my time at Airbnb taught me about level competencies I'm thrilled to share my latest article where I dive into how level competencies are the backbone of your design team's success. 🌟 https://lnkd.in/gWU4tGEa 📈 Clear expectations and growth paths: How setting clear expectations fosters purpose and direction. 📊 Performance reviews: The importance of fair and concrete performance evaluations. 🎯 Personalized development plans: Developing tailored growth plans for team members. Take a look and let me know what you think! #Airbnb #DesignLeadership #GrowthMindset #TeamDevelopment #Leadership

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It's so true that many UX teams are stretched thin, often working solo on more projects than they can handle. 💻 I really like the idea of focusing on being experience evangelists rather than just designers—it’s all about creating a bigger impact with limited resources. 💡Building a UX community within an organization is a brilliant way to spread best practices and advocate for user-centric decisions! 🙌 #UXLeadership #CustomerExperience #DesignCommunity #UX https://lnkd.in/eUNH_zfd

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How different is Research Ops in for-profit vs non-profit? What are the unique challenges of enabling UX research in government, especially where representation is critical? Stig Parfrey has answers to those questions! We discuss all things Research Ops, including: 🫶🏾 How working in the nonprofit space allows for a direct impact and the opportunity to do good. 🏢 The overlap between ReOps in government and other sectors. 📧 How recruitment in government makes a significant impact on people's lives. 🤖 The potential of AI to enhance qualitative research. Listen now on Spotify or on your favourite podcast app. 👇🏾 🎧 https://lnkd.in/gAMs94RK 🎧

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Only a month until UXDX New York! In my talk 'Improving UX Research Quality with Cross-Department Collaboration,' I'll dive into how forging strong internal partnerships can dramatically uplift your #UXresearch outcomes. If you'd like to join me, I have a 15% discount: 15KASEYUSA24 See you there! #UX #Innovation #researchoperations #reops #uxresearchops

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I recently had a candid conversation with Kate Syuma on the Growthmates Podcast, recorded live at the Hatch Conference in Berlin. I was thrilled to share thoughts on some of the biggest misconceptions about user research — especially for teams with limited resources. Let’s break down the 3 major myths we discussed: - Research is too costly and time-consuming. Many believe that good research requires a lot of time and money, but that’s simply not true. 👉 Advice: You don’t need a large budget or a dedicated research team to make an impact, just get started with what you have! - Research doesn’t provide measurable ROI. One of the most frequent concerns I hear is that research can’t be tied to business results. 👉 Advice: It CAN be done … it just takes a little extra effort. Understand what metrics YOUR company cares about (eg. cost reduction, retention rates), then get creative on doing the math to map your research outcomes in those terms. - Democratizing research is too risky. Some worry that letting non-researchers contribute might lead to inconsistent or inaccurate findings. 👉 Advice: Encourage teams to take ownership of customer experience insights and ensure leadership supports a culture of curiosity and continuous learning. A big thank you to Kate Syuma and the Growthmates Podcast for inviting me to discuss these topics — it was a fantastic experience! 🙌 Catch the full conversation here (Youtube, Apple, Spotify inside): https://lnkd.in/es8Di63i

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When I first imagined a podcast with my friend Joachim, I really wanted us to retain the geekiness of our impromptu talks about product creation. In short, I hoped we'd have conversations just like the one we had this week, where we discussed “design thinking”—the much ballyhooed concept that's lost its luster in recent years. We dig into design thinking, and debate whether it still merits a place in the product creator's toolkit, or is an idea whose time has passed. I know our humble podcast isn't for everyone, but, if you love making products, we hope you'll give it a listen and let us know what you think. Find “Learn Make Learn” at any major podcast directory or listen at https://lnkd.in/gHUngGnH #LearnMakeLearn #ProductMarketing #ProductManagement #ProductInnovation #DesignThinking

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How long are you allowed to store user testing/interview recordings, and how does that impact your work? I’m collecting experiences and opinions on data retention policies for user research as I prepare for my #DWAI2024 demo.  So far I’ve heard about vastly different experiences from folks in different companies around the US, and across the world: 🚫 Teams that are not allowed to record ANY research 🎥 Teams with NO restrictions on recording at all ✋ Teams that have suddenly gone from very few restrictions to strict 90-day retention policies I’ve also heard a range of attitudes about restrictions on recordings, from indifference to significant concern. If you work in UX, product, design, or marketing, I’d love to hear what your experiences have been with this. Feel free to respond below or DM me!

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Love this thoughtful and balanced argument for resetting expectations for what design (lowercase d intentional) and design leaders can and can't fix from Sarah Gallivan Mitchell. Andy Polaine, in his response (https://lnkd.in/eC959VEc) to the some of the same rhetoric Sarah responds to, has likened the growth of the design industry in the past 15-20 years to the Cambrian Explosion. It bears considering that the real Cambrian Explosion was followed in relatively short order by multiple mass extinction events. Some species that were less well adapted to the changing conditions for life on Earth didn't make it, but this allowed new forms of life to develop and flourish. My hope is that some evolutionary selection may take place over time in regards to which voices are anointed to speak for All of Design, so that voices like Sarah's may, too, be heard and flourish. #design #designleadership #futureofdesign https://lnkd.in/eQ-PGgBM

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