#uxresearch #ui/ux I have causally browsed the Airbnb job board for the past two years. I noticed that UX research roles are never posted, but I see a number Linked In accounts with UXR as their roles at Airbnb. How does UXR work at Airbnb?
The same way it does in most places. Its information gathering to gain insight and inform feature improvements. Airbnb is a forward thinking company. We have opinions on what is the best experience. We don’t test our way into design decisions.
I would add that the user researchers I’ve worked with at Airbnb were some of the strongest researchers I’ve ever worked with. When I used to work at Airbnb, they didn’t do usability testing or make recommendations like “5 out of 7 participants preferred option B so we should go with option B” types of surface-level research. They uncovered foundational insights that influenced product strategy and the roadmap.
Hold up, how do you justify design decisions to non-designers who speak in data? Also, do you mentor on the side? Would love to learn how to not conduct surface-level research.
Really interesting. Thanks for sharing. I’m a mid level researcher. I do a lot of usability testing, feature and product satisfaction grading - surface level research as you say. Would you mind sharing some of the methods that the UXRs used that attribute to how great they were? Looking to expand my knowledge and practice here.
I’m interested as wel
I’m not a researcher, but they used all sorts of methods, and I hear researchers get grilled a lot about research methodology in the interviews. Sometimes they use surveys, focus groups, cardsorting, 1:1 interviews, etc. and sometimes they come up with new or alternative methods to answer the overarching research question. I also think it also starts with what question they want to answer and how these findings will impact product strategy. Questions are meaty and existential like “what do hosts consider as success on Airbnb” rather than “which UI option is easier to complete the task”. And the next part is being able to package up these insights into an overarching narrative that drives partners to take action, often initiating new streams of work based on these findings. Again, I’m not a researcher, and it’s been years since I worked at Airbnb, so it’s more helpful for you guys to talk to a current researcher at Airbnb.
Hey OP how’s the UXR field? I’ve been thinking of pivoting into it! Is it easier wlb and stress compared to Eng?
Commenting for visibility