Senior Design Researcher

Senior Design Researcher

Reference: 56557

12 month initial contract

Umbrella Rate: £39.55/hr (Inside IR35)

Step into a rewarding, future-focused career as a Senior Design Researcher and help shape how people experience automotive products and mobility services. This Senior Design Researcher role offers the chance to lead end-to-end qualitative research, collaborate closely with multidisciplinary design teams, and turn insight into clear, actionable design direction. If delivering high-quality research, telling compelling stories with evidence, and moving teams from customer understanding to breakthrough concepts is the kind of work that excites you, this opportunity is built for you.

What You Will Do:

• Lead end-to-end research across discovery, concept development, prototyping and evaluation as a Senior Design Researcher
• Plan and deliver qualitative research with customers, aligning with designers and key stakeholders
• Explore behaviours, needs, motivations and pain points to uncover innovation opportunities
• Evaluate early-stage concepts using storyboards, digital prototypes, physical prototypes and vehicle bucks
• Synthesise research into customer needs, opportunity areas and design recommendations that guide decisions
• Facilitate workshops that help teams translate insight into propositions and next steps

What You Will Bring:

• Significant professional experience in Design Research, UX Research, Human-Centred Design or a related discipline
• Strong qualitative research and customer interviewing experience, with excellent research planning and methodology selection
• Demonstrable synthesis and analytical thinking, turning complex findings into clear insights and recommendations
• Confident workshop facilitation, plus strong storytelling and presentation skills to influence design and leadership decisions
• Proven experience leading qualitative research and translating insight into actionable design direction
• A relevant bachelor’s degree or equivalent professional experience in areas such as design research, HCI, UX design, psychology, anthropology, sociology, human factors or a related field

This Senior Design Researcher position supports this company’s mission-driven approach to building the future of automotive experiences. By championing customer-centred thinking and high-quality research practices, the Senior Design Researcher role plays a direct part in turning early concepts into meaningful, user-tested outcomes.

Location:

Based in Here East, with a minimum of 4 days per week on site.

Interested?

Bring your experience in design research and customer insight to the Senior Design Researcher team and apply today to be considered.

Your CV will be forwarded to Jonathan Lee Recruitment, a leading engineering and manufacturing recruitment consultancy established in 1978. The services advertised by Jonathan Lee Recruitment are those of an Employment Agency.

In order for your CV to be processed effectively, please ensure your name, email address, phone number and location (post code OR town OR county, as a minimum) are included