Vice President, UX Research

Section 1: Position Summary Ascensus powers the savings system across America for nearly 16M people saving for retirement, education, and expenses for those living with a disability. As a key role in UX Research, you will drive the research program across lines of business, including strategy and process, as well as hands-on usability testing. This is a key role on a highly talented UX team and is central to evaluating current and informing future digital experiences. Responsible for driving the strategy, evolving the process, and conducting user testing for our client’s current and future digital experiences. Section 2: Job Functions, Essential Duties and Responsibilities Work closely with UX, product, technology, marketing, and analytics teams to evaluate digital journeys, identifying key pain points and new opportunities. Plan, conduct, and analyze moderated and unmoderated usability tests Identify and prioritize shorter term tactical initiatives that balance demonstrable client facing benefits with the longer term roadmap. Demonstrate an understanding of and document the current client functionality and key events to identify common needs across users and gaps within current experiences. Serve as the user experience advocate through communication of research findings and design recommendations to build commitment and ensure clarity of the strategic approach. Develop a formal client feedback process to test assumptions and approaches to the user experience to ensure strategies align with client expectations, industry trends and set appropriate client expectations. Manage key user research initiatives and provide consultative support to initiatives outside the program that have impact on the client experience. Develop deep knowledge of the record-keeping industry and key competitors to ensure competitive positioning and the ability to capture opportunities for differentiation. Responsible for protecting, securing, and proper handling of all confidential data held by Ascensus to ensure against unauthorized access, improper transmission, and/or unapproved disclosure of information that could result in harm to Ascensus or our clients. Our Core Values of People Matter, Quality First and Integrity Always® should be visible in your actions on a day-to-day basis showing your support of our organizational culture. Section 3: Experience, Skills, Knowledge Requirements Experience driving large-scale research initiatives, from qualitative to quantitative, from evaluative and generative. Bachelor’s degree in Interaction Design, HCI, User Research, Cognitive Psychology or comparable discipline. Minimum 7 years conducting user research and usability testing on digital experiences in a B2B and B2C environment. Demonstrated people leadership and management skills with the ability to manage in a matrix environment. Strong communication skills (both verbal and written), as well as the ability to interact and influence all levels of an organization. Excellent decision making and problem-solving skills. Ability to think strategically about complex client needs and translating them into simple interactions. Strong project management skills and the ability to work independently and handle multiple tasks simultaneously. Knowledge of the retirement, 529, financial services or a related industry a plus. For all virtual remote positions, in order to ensure associates can effectively perform their job duties with no distractions, we require an uninterrupted virtual workspace and there is also an expectation of family care being in place during business hours. Additionally, there is an internet work speed requirement of 25 Mbps or better for individual use. If more than one person is utilizing the same internet connection in the same household or building, then a stronger connection is required. If you are unsure of your internet speed, please check with your service provider. Note: For call center roles specifically, it is a requirement to either hardwire your equipment directly to the internet router or ensure your workstation is in close proximity to the router. Please ensure that you are able to meet these expectations before applying. We are proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer The national average salary range for this role is  $150-200k in base pay, exclusive of any bonuses and benefits. This base salary range represents the low and high end of the salary range for this position. Actual salary offered will vary and may be above or below the range based on various factors including but not limited to location, experience, performance, and internal pay alignment. We do not anticipate that candidates hired will begin at the top of the range however, from time to time, it may occur on a case-by-case basis.  Other rewards and benefits may include: 401(k) match, Medical, Dental, Vision, Paid-Time-Off, etc.  For more information, please visit careers.ascensus.com/#Benefits Be aware of employment fraud. All email communications from Ascensus or its hiring managers originate from @ascensus.com or @futureplan.com email addresses. We will never ask you for payment or require you to purchase any equipment. If you are suspicious or unsure about validity of a job posting, we strongly encourage you to apply directly through our website. Ascensus helps millions of people save for a better future. What makes any career at Ascensus so rewarding? Collaborative, idea-sharing environment Professional Development with in-house training and tuition reimbursement Generous reward programs Paid time off Medical, dental & vision benefits Health Savings Account with employer contribution up to $1,100 401(k) & 529 college savings match programs Volunteer and charitable-giving programs Business casual dress

Salary : $150,000 - $200,000