Research Lead

Mission Overview & Responsibilities: 

We are looking for a Research Lead with a passion for ensuring that reader-centric insights are at the heart of the product development process. You will lead a variety of end-to-end research projects that drive strategy for the New A.I. Products and Platforms (NAPP) Mission. You will work with a cross-functional digital product team, including Product, Design, Editorial, Engineering and Marketing. You will report to the Managing Director of News Products and Audience Insights at The New York Times.

The mission of the New York Times Audience Insights team is to help The Times grow by understanding our audience. The Audience Insights team is centralized team of researchers working with teams across The New York Times. We utilize product, human-centered design, innovation, market and UX research, and we draw from principles in the social sciences (Psychology, Anthropology, Sociology and Behavioral Economics).

This is a hybrid role based in our New York City office.

Responsibilities:

• Lead a human-centered design approach for products teams, inspiring colleagues to build innovative product features grounded in user needs to drive NAPP and company goals.

• Use research-based insights and GenAI tools for rapid prototype iteration.

• Own evaluation for quality and editorial integrity: Create frameworks to assess the success of A.I. prototypes and products.

• Build innovative solutions using AI tools to support certain parts of the research process.

• Champion A.I. innovation and ethics: Stay up to date with industry trends, new research methodologies, LLM advancements, and emerging technologies. Champion the ethical and responsible use of AI, ensuring our tools uphold our standards of accuracy and objectivity.

• Complement research with behavioral data, proprietary and industry research, and A/B testing results to provide a holistic view of our users.

• Work with Audience Insights researchers across News Product, Marketing, Cooking, Wirecutter, The Athletic and Games to identify opportunities to collaborate and avoid duplicative product work.

• Manage external research vendors to support moderation, fieldwork, and analysis, ensuring high-quality and efficient project execution.

• Contribute to the collaborative culture of Audience Insights and the NAPP Mission; help The New York Times understand, and build empathy for, our audiences.

• Demonstrate support and understanding of our value of journalistic independence and a strong commitment to our mission to seek the truth and help people understand the world.

Basic Qualifications: 

• 8+ years of research and insights experience.

• Experience researching chat interfaces or GenAI search tools and using a range of GenAI tools and features in your work.

• Experience moderating qualitative research and facilitating brainstorms and workshops with cross-functional partners.

• Mastery of a range of research methods . These methods include participatory design, in-person and remote interviews, ethnographies, co-creation, and user-initiated feedback tools. Additionally, surveys, card-sorting, and usability studies are also part of the range.

• Experience executing qualitative and quantitative research and selecting the right approach based on the problem to be solved.

• Experience synthesizing complex findings into compelling narratives and visualize insights for diverse audiences.

Preferred Qualifications: 

• Experience conducting research for early-stage 0-1 product development, helping teams identify opportunities, validate concepts, and shape new product experiences.

• Experience working in rapid prototyping environments, using research to inform iterative product development and experimentation.

• Experience building alignment among cross-functional stakeholders, including Product, Design, Engineering, Editorial, and Marketing partners.

• Experience presenting to stakeholders, senior management, and fellow researchers.

• A deep curiosity about the role of AI in shaping the future of information, media, and journalism.

REQ-020138

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Additional Compensation and Benefits

For roles in the U.S., dependent on your role, you may be eligible for variable pay, such as an annual bonus and restricted stock. Benefits may include medical, dental and vision benefits, Flexible Spending Accounts (F.S.A.s), a company-matching 401(k) plan, employee stock purchase plan, paid vacation, paid sick days, paid parental leave, tuition reimbursement and professional development programs.

For roles outside of the U.S., information on benefits will be provided during the interview process.