What are the responsibilities and job description for the Principal UX Researcher position at Microsoft AI?
Overview
If you’re passionate about how technology can improve people’s lives, like exploring new ideas and product possibilities, and lead with a growth mindset, we want to hear from you!
The Microsoft AI Design & Research team is a creative community of designers, researchers, prototypers, and writers on a mission to create and deliver holistic, AI-powered customer experiences across apps and the web. Between Copilot, Edge, Bing, and apps, we’re creating end-to-end experiences for assistance, shopping, search, ads, news, sports, and gaming. Our diverse team works collaboratively and moves fast to build useful, usable, and delightful experiences for billions of customers worldwide. Learn more about our team here.
We are seeking a Principal UX Researcher to help us set the path for our next generation of AI-powered products. For this role we’re looking for someone who can move between exploratory, generative research to rapid evaluations of prototyped ideas. Someone who works across organizational roles to uncover the unspoken questions and beliefs and answers them with precision, detail, and durability. Someone who always puts people first and centers their needs, problems, goals, and aspirations for the team. Someone who is energized by direct, tangible product impact. A strong mixed methods researcher comfortable in interviews and with deep data analysis. If this sounds like you, please apply!
This is a hybrid position, in office 4x a week in Redmond, WA, Mountain View, CA or New York City.
Responsibilities
Required Qualifications
UX Research IC6 - The typical base pay range for this role across the U.S. is USD $163,000 - $296,400 per year. There is a different range applicable to specific work locations, within the San Francisco Bay area and New York City metropolitan area, and the base pay range for this role in those locations is USD $220,800 - $331,200 per year.
Certain roles may be eligible for benefits and other compensation. Find additional benefits and pay information here:
https://careers.microsoft.com/us/en/us-corporate-pay
This position will be open for a minimum of 5 days, with applications accepted on an ongoing basis until the position is filled.
Microsoft is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, citizenship, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, immigration status, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran or military status, race, ethnicity, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by applicable local laws, regulations and ordinances. If you need assistance with religious accommodations and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during the application process, read more about requesting accommodations.
If you’re passionate about how technology can improve people’s lives, like exploring new ideas and product possibilities, and lead with a growth mindset, we want to hear from you!
The Microsoft AI Design & Research team is a creative community of designers, researchers, prototypers, and writers on a mission to create and deliver holistic, AI-powered customer experiences across apps and the web. Between Copilot, Edge, Bing, and apps, we’re creating end-to-end experiences for assistance, shopping, search, ads, news, sports, and gaming. Our diverse team works collaboratively and moves fast to build useful, usable, and delightful experiences for billions of customers worldwide. Learn more about our team here.
We are seeking a Principal UX Researcher to help us set the path for our next generation of AI-powered products. For this role we’re looking for someone who can move between exploratory, generative research to rapid evaluations of prototyped ideas. Someone who works across organizational roles to uncover the unspoken questions and beliefs and answers them with precision, detail, and durability. Someone who always puts people first and centers their needs, problems, goals, and aspirations for the team. Someone who is energized by direct, tangible product impact. A strong mixed methods researcher comfortable in interviews and with deep data analysis. If this sounds like you, please apply!
This is a hybrid position, in office 4x a week in Redmond, WA, Mountain View, CA or New York City.
Responsibilities
- Understand the behaviors, motivations, needs, and aspirations of our customers to create a differentiated advantage in our ability to build relevant and impactful experiences for people across the world
- Drive product strategy through rigorous programs of multi-stage research executed to the highest standards
- Balance rigor with scrappiness and the ability to push with a fast-moving team
- Drive cross-team collaborations among all disciplines from early product stages to final implementations
- Guide teams in creative new directions and help set ambitious goals that stand out from the crowd
- Identify new opportunities and generate innovative ideas to improve our processes, culture, and influence our approach to research (e.g. mindsets, methodologies)
- Lead research on highly visible products or set of business initiatives with notable risk and complexity
- Regularly influence at the highest levels of organizations
- Elevate the research craft of the team
- Embody our culture and values
Required Qualifications
- Doctorate in Human-Computer Interaction, Human Factors Engineering, Computer Science, Technical Communications, Information Science, Information Architecture, User Experience Design, Behavioral Science, Social Sciences, or related field AND 5 years User Experience Research experience
- OR Master's Degree in Human-Computer Interaction, Human Factors Engineering, Computer Science, Technical Communications, Information Science, Information Architecture, User Experience Design, Behavioral Science, Social Sciences, or related field AND 6 years User Experience Research experience
- OR Bachelor's Degree in Human-Computer Interaction, Human Factors Engineering, Computer Science, Technical Communications, Information Science, Information Architecture, User Experience Design, Behavioral Science, Social Sciences, or related field AND 8 years User Experience Research experience
- OR equivalent experience
- 8 years experience working in UX research or a related field
- Deep understanding of user behaviors, motivations, needs, and aspirations to inform impactful, global experiences
- Proven ability to drive product strategy through rigorous, multi‑stage research programs
- Strong balance of research rigor with scrappiness in fast‑moving environments
- Experience leading cross‑functional collaboration from early concept through final execution
- Ability to guide teams toward bold, differentiated ideas and ambitious goals
- Track record of identifying new opportunities and innovating research processes, mindsets, or methodologies
- Experience leading research for high‑visibility products or complex, high‑risk initiatives
- Demonstrated influence at senior and executive levels
- Commitment to elevating research craft and team excellence
- Expertise across qualitative and quantitative methods (mixed‑methods researcher)
- Exceptional communication, presentation, and storytelling skills
- Strong advocacy for UX fundamentals, including accessibility and inclusive design
- Experience with commonly used research tools
UX Research IC6 - The typical base pay range for this role across the U.S. is USD $163,000 - $296,400 per year. There is a different range applicable to specific work locations, within the San Francisco Bay area and New York City metropolitan area, and the base pay range for this role in those locations is USD $220,800 - $331,200 per year.
Certain roles may be eligible for benefits and other compensation. Find additional benefits and pay information here:
https://careers.microsoft.com/us/en/us-corporate-pay
This position will be open for a minimum of 5 days, with applications accepted on an ongoing basis until the position is filled.
Microsoft is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, citizenship, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, immigration status, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran or military status, race, ethnicity, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by applicable local laws, regulations and ordinances. If you need assistance with religious accommodations and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during the application process, read more about requesting accommodations.
Salary : $163,000 - $331,200