Job Title: Senior UX Researcher (Short-Term Contract, 1099) Hourly Rate: $90/hour Duration: 3 months, excluding Federal Holidays Hours: Up to 40 hours per week Location: 100% Remote - anywhere in the Continental U.S. Some travel may be required.

About Us

We are Friends From The City, a design and technology company focused on public impact and equity. We believe that inclusive design and accessible technology are essential to a just society. Every person we hire brings a distinct perspective, and we celebrate that. Our mission is to make digital interactions with the government simple, intuitive, and accessible. That means removing barriers like confusing user flows, inaccessible content, or language limitations that prevent people from getting what they need. We use human-centered design, thoughtful research, and well-crafted, reliable code to build digital products that work for everyone.

About the Role

We're looking for a senior UX researcher to support a short-term discovery project with a state government client, pending contract award. The work focuses on a complex permitting system and how people navigate it day to day. You'll spend time understanding the current experience, documenting how the process works in practice, identifying pain points and workarounds, and translating those findings into clear recommendations for agency leadership. The engagement is expected to last about 12 weeks, with a projected start in late July 2026.

Requirements

What you'll achieve:

• Plan and run discovery research across several user groups, from agency staff to external users.
• Conduct field research, contextual inquiry, and observational sessions, not surveys alone.
• Support service blueprints and process maps that trace work across actors, systems, and handoffs.
• Synthesize findings into research reports, personas, and requirements that hold up to scrutiny.
• Validate findings with participants before delivery.

Skills You’ll Need to Bring:

• Discovery research on complex, multi-stakeholder systems, shown through work samples or case studies. Usability testing alone is not the fit.
• Field and observational methods, not remote interviews alone.
• Experience producing service blueprints, journey maps, or process flows.
• A record of turning raw research into decisions for executives and technical teams.
• Government, regulatory, or permitting research is a plus, as is familiarity with rules-based processes.

Logistics:

• Short-term 1099 contract, up to 40 hours per week dedicated to this engagement through the period of performance, about July to October 2026.
• Remote, with potential travel to for in-person sessions. Travel is reimbursed.
• Availability during Eastern Time core hours for client coordination.
• Contingent on contract award, with selection moving fast.

To apply. Send your resume and one or two work samples or case studies that show discovery research and the deliverables it produced. Redact anything confidential.

Benefits

This is a 1099 contract role and does not include benefits such as health insurance, paid time off, or retirement contributions. Our Hiring Process

• Phone Interview
• Technical Interview
• Final Interview

Visit our Candidate Handbook to learn more about what to expect.