Senior Researcher

As a Researcher, you’ll join the Insights discipline – the group of researchers, analysts, data scientists, and strategists responsible for solving problems and executing analyses that enable Rioters to make difficult decisions with confidence. You’ll be part of an interdisciplinary team and work closely with Rioters from other disciplines (designers, artists, producers, etc.) to conduct studies and analyses that’ll inform the features, systems, and experiences of our products. Your background in data analysis and strategic decision-making will ensure that you’re an effective advocate for players and can provide strategic mentorship about their wants, needs, and behaviors.

As a Senior Researcher on one of our unannounced R&D game projects, you will be embedded on a team developing a brand new game experience. You’ll conduct a wide range of studies and analyses - including playtests, qualitative interviews, and global market surveys - to inform the direction, experience, systems, features, and content of the game product. You’ll be part of an interdisciplinary team and work closely with Rioters from other disciplines (design, art, production, engineering, etc.) to turn the findings of your research into actionable insights which guide the course of game product development. Your applied or experimental research background coupled with your deep understanding of data will ensure that you’re an effective advocate for players and can provide strategic guidance about how to best meet players where they are. You will report to the Director of Game Product Management.

Responsibilities:

• Partner with teams across the product to generate frameworks and insights that inform the development of a new game experience
• Design and execute on surveys, player labs, and market research to generate authentic and actionable insights
• Be an effective advocate for players and provide strategic guidance about their behaviors, expectations, and needs
• Leverage your storytelling skills to effectively share your results with other Rioters
• Collaborate with other researchers, analysts, and product managers to construct holistic, multi-modal analyses
• Set and maintain the research craft bar on the team
• Mentor other Insights teammates, helping to level them up in your areas of expertise

Required Qualifications:

• BA or BS in the social sciences, marketing, or a related discipline
• 5+ years of user research, behavioral or cognitive research, or market research – at least 2 of those in the games industry
• Professional experience working on user research in PvE games
• Broad experience in a variety of research methods including playtests, user interviews, and survey research with deep expertise in at least one of these areas
• Trusted to operate independently regardless of structure and comfortable with owning large projects, problem spaces, and workstreams
• Experience synthesizing research into actionable insights and socializing to team and product leadership

Desired Qualifications:

• Deep affinity and experience for PvE games and experiences
• Previous professional user research experience in multiplayer games
• Experience in product design or business strategy for consumer-facing products
• Advanced capability in statistical analysis (SPSS, R, Excel, etc.)

For this role, you’ll find success through craft expertise and a collaborative spirit that prioritizes the delight of players. We will look at your past studies and experience, but for this role, we also look for dedicated people with a personal relationship with games. If you embody player empathy and care about players’ experiences, this is the role for you!

Our Perks:

Riot has a focus on work/life balance, shown by our open paid time off policy, in addition to other perks such as flexible work schedules. We offer medical, dental, and life insurance, parental leave for you, your spouse/domestic partner and children, and a 401k with company match. Check out our benefits pages for more information.

Riot Games fosters a player and workplace experience that values teamwork embodied by the Summoner’s Code and Community Code. Our culture embraces differences as a strength, and our values are the guiding principles for how we approach work. We are committed to putting diversity and inclusion (D&I) at the center of everything we do, and promoting a fair and collaborative culture where Rioters treat one another with dignity and respect. We encourage you to read more about our value of thriving together and our ongoing work to build the most inclusive company in Gaming.

It’s our policy to provide equal employment opportunity for all applicants and members of Riot Games, Inc. Riot Games makes reasonable accommodations for handicapped and disabled Rioters and does not unlawfully discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, handicap, veteran status, marital status, criminal history, or any other category protected by applicable federal and state law. We consider for employment all qualified applicants, including those with criminal histories, in a manner consistent with applicable federal, state and local law, including the California Fair Chance Act, the City of Los Angeles Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance, the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance for Employers, the

San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, and the Washington Fair Chance Act.

Per the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance, the following core duties may create a basis for disqualifying candidates with relevant criminal histories:

• Safeguarding confidential and sensitive Company data 

• Communication with others, including Rioters and third parties such as vendors, and/or players, including minors

• Accessing Company assets, secure digital systems, and networks

• Ensuring a safe interactive environment for players and other Rioters

These duties are directly related to essential operations, safety, trust, and compliance obligations within our organization. Please note that job duties may evolve based on business needs and additional responsibilities may be assigned as necessary to maintain operational efficiency and security.