Head of Research

Figma is looking for a Head of Research to help us manage and evolve our amazing Research function. We are in search of a leader who has thoughtfully reflected on their past experiences leading research organizations and can bring creative, fresh perspectives on what a research team can do and be. A great fit here is someone who excels at mentoring and developing their team, consistently builds trust and rapport across multipple functions , and focuses on driv ing significant and impactful results for the business .
At Figma, having a direct dialogue with our community has been a priority from the very beginning, which makes it an especially exciting place to do research. This strong, human-centered foundation provides an excellent opportunity for researchers that want to advance the discipline and do the best work of their career.
This is a full time role that can be held from one of our US hubs or remotely in the United States.
What you'll do at Figma:

• Oversee the research function, ensuring its effectiveness in fulfilling its mission of "learning what people need, so Figma can build products they love"
• Manage a team of three research managers supporting their practice and their growth
• Partner with others to generate strategy, build roadmaps, and define success
• Allocate resources t houghtfully to ensure your team is doing the most impactful work
• Deliver actionable recommendations that support both tactical and strategic decision making
• Socialize your team's insights across the organization
• Advocate for the role of research across the company

We'd love to hear from you if you have:

• 3 + years of experience leading entire research organizations
• 6+ years of people management experience at a similarly fast-paced tech company with experience managing, coaching, and developing managers
• Created and scaled large initiatives and research programs
• Specific examples of meaningful impact resulting from your leadership (would be great to see artifacts, deliverables, or frameworks you've used to influence and guide teams)
• Thoughtful approaches to developing trust and rapport with a broad range of stakeholders
• Self-awareness that has refined your skills and approaches over time . You listen deeply and intently to signals both internally to your company and externally in the broader community to inform a perspective on the impact and value of research at modern tech companies.

At Figma, one of our values is Grow as you go. We believe in hiring smart, curious people who are excited to learn and develop their skills. If you're excited about this role but your past experience doesn't align perfectly with the points outlined in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyways. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles.
Read more about our team
The Research team exists in the context of the broader UX organization at Figma, which also includes Product Design, UX Writing, and Design Operations. Here are some links you can read more about Figma:

• Collaboration report (driven by our research team) ( slides here )
• Building a research practice
• Feature: Nannearl Brown, UX Researcher at Figma
• Investing in Figma: The Decade of Design
• How work is changing at Figma
• Figma's next product is a multiplayer whiteboard called FigJam
• Software Design Startup Figma Is Now Worth $10 Billion