High-Tech Anthropologist®

Welcome to Menlo Innovations! We're a custom software design & development firm with a unique mission: to return joy and end human suffering in the world as it relates to teams and technology by rigorously applying and teaching The Menlo Way®. Our primary goal has always been to return joy to technology, for end users, our clients, and our team.

Rooted in Agile and Scrum style methodologies, our approach to product development is unique in several ways. We work in pairs, are fanatic about test-driven development (TDD) and employ a user-centered design process called High-Tech Anthropology®. These three elements of our process work in concert to ensure quality and mitigate IT project risk. We work with companies in a wide range of industries and domains, from Fortune 500 manufacturers to small local startups. An important part of our work at Menlo includes transforming client teams through deliberate co-creation. We also enjoy sharing our knowledge with others through a variety of tours and hands-on workshops focused on teaching The Menlo Way®.

The High-Tech Anthropology® role combines user experience, software design, business analysis, field research, and organizational consulting. We are looking for user experience professionals who can execute this type of work across a variety of domains. Menlo High-Tech Anthropologists® work in pairs to co-create project deliverables which include insights gathered through observations and interviews of end users and design solutions. We practice a stewardship model, as opposed to an ownership model, for project deliverables.

This role requires exercising a high tolerance for ambiguity, comfort with facilitating difficult conversations with client stakeholders, and the ability to juggle the context and priorities of multiple projects simultaneously, as well as frequent travel. In exchange, you get to solve real problems, bring joy to real users, and experience accelerated professional learning and growth.

Job Responsibilities:

• Conduct observations and interviews with end users in their native environment
• Design contrasting UI/Process solutions to the problems identified during discovery
• Conduct design assessments with end users
• Facilitate prioritization sessions with client stakeholders
• Support developers during the implementation phase
• Use the High-Tech Anthropology® discovery and design processes for organizational and cultural change initiatives
• Lead public tours
• Teach design and culture workshops for stakeholders looking to learn Menlo's processes

Qualifications:

• At least 1 year of professional work experience
• Some work experience in user experience research, design, or consulting
• Willingness and ability to travel, as needed (about 1-2 weeks per month)
• Commitment to work full time, in-person in Ann Arbor, MI (This is not a hybrid or remote work assignment)
• Our interview process requires candidates to fulfill a 1-day and 3-week trial period on-site in Ann Arbor, MI

Benefits:

• Health insurance (73% - 87% subsidized with HSA options and generous employer contribution)
• Life & disability insurance
• Paid time off (20 days annually)
• 10 paid holidays per year
• 401(k) - with employer contribution (Traditional and Roth)
• Parking is reimbursed
• Menlo values work/life balance, and uses a unique paired staffing approach as a mechanism for employee development, cross-training, and delivering high-quality work products.

Menlo Innovations is an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to providing a work environment that is free of discrimination and harassment. All employment decisions at Menlo Innovations are made without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, or any other legally protected characteristic. We encourage applicants of all backgrounds to apply.