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Agent guide: [/agents.md](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/agents.md). --- # Lead UX Researcher, AI Enablement - **Company:** Target Brands, Inc. - **Location:** Minneapolis, MN, United States - **Experience:** Expert - **Salary:** $132,000.0 - $238,000.0 - **Contract:** Permanent contract - **Skills:** Artificial Intelligence, Programming Tools, Human-Computer Interaction, Operational Data Store - **Published:** August 18, 2026 - **Apply:** https://target.wd5.myworkdayjobs.com/targetcareers/job/1000-Nicollet-Mall-MinneapolisMN-55403-2542/Lead-UX-Researcher--AI-Enablement_R0000444308/apply ## About the Role * 7+ years of experience in UX research, product research, applied research, human-computer interaction, behavioral science, or a related field. * Proven ability to set research direction across complex products, platforms, services, and multiple workstreams. * Deep qualitative and quantitative research expertise, including foundational research and durable frameworks. * Ability to connect research, analytics, and operational data to actionable recommendations and measurable outcomes. * Experience researching AI-enabled products, developer tools, or similarly complex technologies, including adoption and changes to ways of working. * Experience with technical and enterprise audiences, plus fluency partnering with Engineering, Architecture, Data Science, Security, and platform teams. * Strong systems thinking, facilitation, and storytelling, with the ability to navigate ambiguity, lead multiple initiatives, and influence senior leaders. * Experience mentoring researchers and advancing inclusive, accessible, ethical, privacy-conscious, and high-quality research practices., Please paste this url into your preferred browser to learn about benefits eligibility for this role: https://tgt.biz/BenefitsForYou_E ## Description As a Lead UX Researcher - AI Enablement, you will set the research direction for how Target understands and improves AI-enabled and agentic experiences. This role focuses on tools and workflows used by technical and product practitioners, while flexing to other enterprise team member experiences as priorities evolve. You will lead foundational and applied research across products, platforms, pilots, and live experiences. Your work will clarify user needs, adoption barriers, and the conditions that support confidence, human oversight, and responsible use. You will turn evidence into decisions about what to build, how to improve it, and how to scale it. You will partner with UX, Product, Technology, Data Science, and business teams to connect human-centered insights with behavioral and operational data. You will influence portfolio decisions, mentor other researchers, and strengthen how Target learns about emerging AI experiences. Responsibilities: * Establish and lead the research strategy and learning agenda for AI Enablement, influencing portfolio priorities and investment decisions. * Lead foundational and applied mixed-method research across technical, product, and enterprise team member experiences. * Define audiences, journeys, and adoption needs through personas, journey mapping, service blueprints, and other durable research frameworks. * Evaluate AI-enabled and agentic concepts, pilots, and live experiences for usefulness, confidence, transparency, human oversight, accessibility, and responsible adoption. * Combine qualitative research with behavioral data, analytics, operational signals, system performance, and external benchmarks to identify opportunities and measure impact. * Translate evidence into clear recommendations for product strategy, roadmaps, platforms, tooling, enablement, governance, and investment. * Partner across UX, Product, Technology, Data Science, privacy, and business teams to shape high-value questions and emerging experiences. * Activate insights through compelling storytelling, mentor researchers, and advance rigorous, inclusive, and responsible research practices. 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