I find out what people actually do, and why.
I've led research at JPMorgan, Unity, Peloton, and Google through AnswerLab.
Surveys and statistics on one side, interviews and observation on the other.
01 / Work
Project snapshots
Short summaries of recent projects, not full case studies. I take company privacy seriously, so ask me for the redacted versions.
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Fig. 01 · Prioritization
What to build first
Feature prioritization with MaxDiff and conjoint
- Challenge
- With limited engineering bandwidth for the year, the team needed to know which features delivered the most user value.
- Approach
- I designed a quantitative MaxDiff study to measure feature importance, followed by a conjoint where participants could choose “no preference” to test how strongly the features really differed.
- Impact
- A clear, data-driven prioritization model that guided roadmap decisions and aligned stakeholders on where to invest.
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Fig. 02 · Benchmarking
Success without a sales number
Impact measurement with usability benchmarking
- Challenge
- Redesigning a complex product without standard success metrics like conversion or revenue, and with limited access to user data.
- Approach
- A mixed methods usability benchmark, combining qualitative insight (friction, mental models) with quantitative metrics (time on task, errors, SUS score).
- Impact
- A clear, measurable framework for product success, and a culture of data-driven decisions on the team.
- 250users surveyed
- 5fewer clicks on average
- 12%increase in satisfaction
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Fig. 03 · Segmentation
Personas you can act on
Data-backed personas through user segmentation
- Challenge
- Build personas backed by data, with segments different enough in behavior and needs to point to real product improvements.
- Approach
- A large-scale survey pairing profiling questions with behavioral questions, analyzed to find segments that matter for the product.
- Impact
- Distinct designs for each segment, leading to higher than average increases in satisfaction.
- 380users surveyed
- 5user segments
- 13redundant personas removed
02 / Approach
What I bring
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Ref 01Mixed methods
Quant for how many, qual for why. Usually both.
- Quant → Qual
Explanatory sequential
- Qual → Quant
Exploratory sequential
- Quant + Qual
Convergent
- Qual inside Quant
Embedded
- Repeated cycles
Multiphase
- Quant → Qual
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Ref 02Rapid research
AI lets teams build in days. Research can’t be left behind.
Days, not quarters
I’m an advocate for rapid research. I built JPMorgan’s rapid research program and piloted an agentic AI workflow connecting research to content design.
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Ref 03Leadership
Turn a vague ask into a decision the team can make.
Guidance
I align stakeholders on what’s being decided and what evidence would change it, then bring product, design and engineering into the sessions so insight lands without a handoff.
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Ref 04Principles
Build on what’s already known about people.
Academic rigor, when it helps
When solid behavioral or academic research exists on a problem, I start there, and I keep up with the debunkings so teams don’t design around a myth.
03 / About
In a past life, I studied primates. Technically, I still do.
I came to UX research from ten behavioral research labs, where I studied how hormones and cooperation shape each other. That's where my rigor comes from: training in experimental design, careful measurement, and a healthy dose of suspicion. My behavioral science background (UC Davis, University of Chicago) still informs how I understand the way people interact with interfaces.
I'm an advocate for UX research that's far more grounded in how people actually behave, and that looks for durable principles the way academic research does.
I trained in rapid research consulting for Google through AnswerLab, then built a program of my own at JPMorgan and piloted an agentic AI workflow connecting research to content design. I'm at my best when the problem is tangled, the timeline is short, and nobody agrees yet on the question. I untangle it and turn it into a clear call a team can act on. The strategy changes every time. The standard of evidence doesn't.
04 / Away from the desk
Away from the desk
An eclectic, ever-changing set of interests that keeps my mind sharp and full of wonder.
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Photo: a dish or an old cookbook
01Food history
Tracing the trade routes behind a dish, poring over the ancient texts that recorded it, and then trying it myself.
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Photo: you at the harp
02Pulling strings
A magical, forgiving instrument you can learn as an adult without upsetting your neighbors.
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Photo: a bird you spotted
03Field notes
Birding, growing my life list, and getting vicariously excited about a bird I'd never heard of, just because everyone else is.
05 / Contact
Bring me the question you can’t answer yet.
I’m looking for my next research leadership role.
shreysearcher@gmail.com