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Director, Research

Figma

Figma

Software Engineering
San Francisco, CA, USA · New York, NY, USA · United States
Posted on Saturday, July 29, 2023

Figma is growing our team of passionate people on a mission to make design accessible to all. Born on the Web, Figma helps entire product teams brainstorm, create, test, and ship better designs, together. From great products to long-lasting companies, we believe that nothing great is made alone—come make with us!

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 driving 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 thoughtfully 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:

Pay Transparency Disclosure

If based in Figma’s San Francisco or New York hub offices, this role has the annual base salary range stated below.

Job level and actual compensation will be decided based on factors including, but not limited to, individual qualifications objectively assessed during the interview process (including skills and prior relevant experience, potential impact, and scope of role), market demands, and specific work location. The listed range is a guideline, and the range for this role may be modified. For roles that are available to be filled remotely, the pay range is localized according to employee work location by a factor of between 80% and 100% of range. Please discuss your specific work location with your recruiter for more information.

Figma offers equity to employees, as well a competitive package of additional benefits, including health, dental & vision, retirement with company contribution, parental leave & reproductive or family planning support, mental health & wellness benefits, generous PTO, company recharge days, a learning & development stipend, a work from home stipend, and cell phone reimbursement. Figma also offers sales incentive pay for most sales roles. Figma’s compensation and benefits are subject to change and may be modified in the future.

Annual Base Salary Range (SF/NY Hub):
$233,000$314,000 USD

We will work to ensure individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Please let your recruiter know if you require accommodation.


About Figma

Dylan Field and Evan Wallace co-founded Figma in 2012 with the vision of building tools for designers in the browser. Their goal was to create the first design tool that combined the accessibility of the Web with the functionality of a native app. Today Figma is a platform with tools and spaces to support the entire product development process—idea to design to build—and has simplified collaboration for companies like Microsoft, Uber, and The New York Times to name a few.

At Figma, we celebrate and support our differences. We know employing a team rich in diverse backgrounds, experiences, and opinions allows our employees, products, and community to flourish. Figma is an equal opportunity workplace—we are dedicated to equal employment opportunities regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national orientation, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity, or Veteran status. We also consider qualified applicants regardless of criminal histories, consistent with legal requirements.

By applying for this job, the candidate acknowledges and agrees that any personal data contained in their application or supporting materials will be processed in accordance with the applicable candidate section of Figma's Privacy Policy.