From Researcher to Leader: Lessons Learned as a UX Research Manager

Philip Burgess
Aug 15
2 min read

Updated: Aug 16

By Philip Burgess – UX Research Leader

Making the leap from hands-on UX researcher to UX research manager is more than a change in title—it’s a complete shift in mindset, responsibilities, and impact. While your research skills remain valuable, your focus pivots from doing the work yourself to enabling others to succeed.

When I stepped into management, I quickly learned that success required not just expertise in UX research, but also the ability to lead people, shape strategy, and navigate organizational dynamics. Here are the most important lessons I’ve learned along the way.

1. Your Output is No Longer Research Reports—It’s People

As an individual contributor (IC), I measured my value in the quality of my studies and insights. As a manager, my success depends on how well my team performs.

This means shifting from:

"What research am I producing?" to
"How am I enabling my team to deliver their best work?"

Sometimes that means clearing roadblocks, other times it’s coaching on stakeholder engagement or helping them prioritize projects.

2. Soft Skills Become Your Hard Skills

In management, relationship-building and influence often matter more than methodological mastery. You’ll need to:

Earn trust with cross-functional partners.
Advocate for research with leadership.
Mediate conflicts within your team.

Empathy, active listening, and strategic communication become daily tools in your toolkit.

3. Strategy is Just as Important as Execution

When you’re managing, you have a seat at the decision-making table. Your role is to:

Ensure research aligns with business priorities.
Help shape the product roadmap based on user needs.
Protect time and resources for high-impact studies.

Being a strategic voice means thinking beyond the current sprint—considering what the team should be researching next quarter or even next year.

4. Let Go of the "Perfect Study" Mindset

As an IC, I sometimes chased the perfect research design. As a manager, I’ve learned to embrace trade-offs. Timelines, resources, and business needs often mean going with the most impactful approach, not the most exhaustive one.

Part of leadership is helping your team recognize when “good enough” is exactly what’s needed.

5. Develop Your Team, Not Just Your Process

Processes matter, but people matter more. Invest in:

Mentorship and coaching for skill growth.
Career development conversations so team members see a path forward.
Recognition for work well done—publicly, when possible.

When your team feels supported and valued, their work improves naturally.

6. Advocacy Never Stops

Even in leadership, you’ll still need to champion UX research to keep it visible and valued. That means:

Presenting the team’s wins to executives.
Linking research outcomes to business metrics.
Sharing stories that humanize the data.

The more you connect research to tangible results, the easier it is to secure budget, resources, and buy-in.

Final Thoughts

Becoming a UX research manager is a rewarding challenge. It requires letting go of the idea that you’re “just” a researcher and embracing the role of leader, strategist, and advocate.

The most satisfying moments aren’t when I deliver a great insight—it’s when I see someone on my team grow, gain confidence, and influence the product in ways they never thought possible.

That’s when you know you’ve made the shift—from researcher to leader.