Company Description
McDonald’s is proud to be one of the most recognized brands in the world, with restaurants in over 100 countries that serve 70 million customers daily. We continue to operate from a position of strength. Our updated growth strategy is focused on staying ahead of what our customers want and realizing further growth potential. Our relentless ambition is why McDonald’s remains one of the world’s leading corporations after almost 70 years. Joining McDonald’s means thinking big and preparing for a career that can have influence around the world.
At McDonald’s, we see every day as a chance to create positive impact. We lead through our values centered on inclusivity, service, integrity, community and family. From support of Ronald McDonald House Charities to our Youth Opportunity project and sustainability initiatives, our values keep us dedicated to using our scale for good: good for our customers, people, industry and planet. We also offer a broad range of outstanding benefits including a sabbatical program, tuition assistance and flexible work arrangements.
Job Description
The Design Research team is part of the McDonald’s Customer Experience (MCX) function, which delivers human centered experiences to users across the globe.
We are building a world class design research team, and we are looking for a mixed-method researcher to join our talented Design Research team, bringing curiosity, creativity, and a growth mindset to our expanding function.
Working alongside designers, product managers, and tech partners, the Design Researcher conducts research that delivers a deep, ever-evolving understanding of our global users, and helps drive the design and development of cohesive, engaging, and meaningful experiences for customers and crew members around the world.
The operational complexity and global scale of McDonald’s offer opportunities for the Design Researcher to drive meaningful change experienced by billions of users worldwide.

We’re seeking a design researcher who can:

• Execute comprehensive research projects. This includes working with senior researchers to:
• Strategize: provide a perspective on opportunities for conducting research based on product and corporate strategy, as well as societal, cultural, and market trends and shifts
• Scope: collaborate with domain teams to set timelines and determine resources
• Plan: develop learning goals, choose and/or create research methods and activities (both qual and quant), recruit participants, write discussion guides, and collaborate with designers to create stimulus
• Facilitate: help run research sessions using appropriate methods based on learning objectives, and ensuring that research sessions are timely, productive, and well documented
• Synthesize: Make sense of the raw data captured in research by preparing it for synthesis, contribute to developing deep, useful insights and recommendations that drive product strategy and roadmaps, and identify quotes/imagery/video that bring research to life
• Socialize: Help develop and share presentations, workshops, and other mediums to communicate research findings and recommendations to partners and stakeholders
• Collaborate closely with other researchers, designers, and cross-functional partners. This includes:
• Looking for additional opportunities for research to learn more about users, their behaviors, needs, and desires
• Contributing to the vision of the four main product areas alongside colleagues in Design, Product Management, and Tech
• Acting as point of contact to designers, cross functional partners, and beyond for research and research-related activities
• Participating in design critiques within and outside your product area, providing perspectives rooted in customer insights
• Contributing to productive and engaging research and design workshops with peers, partners, and stakeholder from across the organization
• Contribute to evolving the Design Research team. This includes:
• Proposing, trying, and implementing new ways of working (tools, processes, activities, etc.)
• Advocating for our users in key decision moments
• Participating in a supportive and innovative culture in which Design Researchers can do the highest quality work
• Suggesting sources of learning and inspiration including articles, books, podcasts, movies, field trips, and other experiences outside the four walls of McDonald’

Qualifications

• 1-3 years of relevant professional experience
• Experience conducting design research across different types of methodologies (exploratory, generative, evaluative, qualitative, quantitative)
• Experience collaborating with multidisciplinary teams and cross-functional peers / stakeholders (e.g., product managers, designers, engineers, marketing, and other insights teams)
• Ability to think strategically regarding the application of data and research
• Eager to learn and develop research skills to the highest standards, including clear articulation of research objectives, thoughtful selection of methods, rigorous synthesis, and engaging and precise communication of findings
• Emerging communications skills; in particular, the ability to clearly communicate key insights and recommendations to business partners through logical narratives, frameworks, evidence from users, and visions of future user experiences that balance business and tech realities with creative long-term aspirations
• Exceptionally curious with strong collaboration, critical thinking, problem-solving, and analytical skills
• An urgency and hunger to immerse in the problem space. We’re not just sitting at our desks—we want to learn and draw inspiration from the world around us
• A penchant for questioning assumptions and current ways of working and suggest new one

We’re seeking a design researcher who can:

• Execute comprehensive research projects. This includes working with senior researchers to:
• Strategize: provide a perspective on opportunities for conducting research based on product and corporate strategy, as well as societal, cultural, and market trends and shifts
• Scope: collaborate with domain teams to set timelines and determine resources
• Plan: develop learning goals, choose and/or create research methods and activities (both qual and quant), recruit participants, write discussion guides, and collaborate with designers to create stimulus
• Facilitate: help run research sessions using appropriate methods based on learning objectives, and ensuring that research sessions are timely, productive, and well documented
• Synthesize: Make sense of the raw data captured in research by preparing it for synthesis, contribute to developing deep, useful insights and recommendations that drive product strategy and roadmaps, and identify quotes/imagery/video that bring research to life
• Socialize: Help develop and share presentations, workshops, and other mediums to communicate research findings and recommendations to partners and stakeholders
• Collaborate closely with other researchers, designers, and cross-functional partners. This includes:
• Looking for additional opportunities for research to learn more about users, their behaviors, needs, and desires
• Contributing to the vision of the four main product areas alongside colleagues in Design, Product Management, and Tech
• Acting as point of contact to designers, cross functional partners, and beyond for research and research-related activities
• Participating in design critiques within and outside your product area, providing perspectives rooted in customer insights
• Contributing to productive and engaging research and design workshops with peers, partners, and stakeholder from across the organization
• Contribute to evolving the Design Research team. This includes:
• Proposing, trying, and implementing new ways of working (tools, processes, activities, etc.)
• Advocating for our users in key decision moments
• Participating in a supportive and innovative culture in which Design Researchers can do the highest quality work
• Suggesting sources of learning and inspiration including articles, books, podcasts, movies, field trips, and other experiences outside the four walls of McDonald’s

Benefits eligible: Yes
Bonus eligible: Yes
The expected salary range for this role is $98,140 - $125,130
The above represents the expected salary range for this job requisition. Ultimately, in determining your pay, we may also consider your experience, and other job-related factors.

Qualifications

• 1-3 years of relevant professional experience
• Experience conducting design research across different types of methodologies (exploratory, generative, evaluative, qualitative, quantitative)
• Experience collaborating with multidisciplinary teams and cross-functional peers / stakeholders (e.g., product managers, designers, engineers, marketing, and other insights teams)
• Ability to think strategically regarding the application of data and research
• Eager to learn and develop research skills to the highest standards, including clear articulation of research objectives, thoughtful selection of methods, rigorous synthesis, and engaging and precise communication of findings
• Emerging communications skills; in particular, the ability to clearly communicate key insights and recommendations to business partners through logical narratives, frameworks, evidence from users, and visions of future user experiences that balance business and tech realities with creative long-term aspirations
• Exceptionally curious with strong collaboration, critical thinking, problem-solving, and analytical skills
• An urgency and hunger to immerse in the problem space. We’re not just sitting at our desks—we want to learn and draw inspiration from the world around us
• A penchant for questioning assumptions and current ways of working and suggest new ones

Additional Information
Benefits eligible: This position offers health and welfare benefits, a 401(k) plan, adoption assistance program, educational assistance program, flexible ways of working, and time off policies (including sick leave, parental leave, and vacation/PTO). Eligibility requirements apply to some benefits and may depend on job classification and length of employment.
Bonus eligible: This position is eligible for a bonus, calculated based on individual and company performance.
McDonald’s is an equal opportunity employer committed to the diversity of our workforce. We promote an inclusive work environment that creates feel-good moments for everyone. McDonald’s provides reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities as part of the application or hiring process or to perform the essential functions of their job. If you need assistance accessing or reading this job posting or otherwise feel you need an accommodation during the application or hiring process, please contact mcdhrbenefits@us.mcd.com. Reasonable accommodations will be determined on a case-by-case basis.
McDonald’s provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to sex, sex stereotyping, pregnancy (including pregnancy, childbirth, and medical conditions related to pregnancy, childbirth, or breastfeeding), race, color, religion, ancestry or national origin, age, disability status, medical condition, marital status, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, transgender status, protected military or veteran status, citizenship status, genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation and training.
Nothing in this job posting or description should be construed as an offer or guarantee of employment