Senior UX Researcher · 6+ years

Research that informs
what gets built —
and how.

Bad bets on what users want are expensive. I find out what's actually true — what users need, where designs break down, and what's worth building next.

I've done this across AI, SaaS, crypto, and consumer products, from early discovery through rigorous design evaluation to post-launch diagnosis. The output is always the same: evidence your team can act on.

Let's talk → LinkedIn
6+
Years of
research experience
5+
Domains &
product types
0→1
Discovery to
post-launch
April Yang
Generative AI Crypto SaaS Consumer apps
What I do for teams

Real decisions, made with confidence

Here's what it looks like when research is working — before you even open a case study.

🛡️

Before development

Validate a design before a single line of code is written

Engineering time is the most expensive thing you have. I run fast usability tests on prototypes so critical flaws surface in a week — not after a full sprint.

De-risked ship, fewer late-stage pivots
🧭

At the start of a new product or feature

Figure out what to build when you don't know yet

When you're entering a new space, I talk to users, map their real workflows, and come back with a clear picture of which problems are worth solving — and which aren't.

Roadmap shaped by evidence, not assumptions
📉

When users are dropping off

Diagnose why retention is struggling — and fix it

If users sign up but don't stick around, I find the exact friction points in the experience and give the team a ranked list of what to fix, with evidence behind each call.

Clear priority fixes, tied to business metrics
⚖️

When stakeholders disagree

Break internal deadlock with user evidence

Teams argue about what users want. I design the right study to answer the contested question — so the team can align around facts instead of opinions.

Faster decisions, shared direction
🧬

When entering a new market or user segment

Understand a new audience before you bet on them

Launching into healthcare, crypto, or enterprise without deep user knowledge is a gamble. I surface mental models, trust barriers, and unmet needs before you commit.

Confident market entry, fewer missteps
📣

When research insights stall in a doc

Turn research into decisions that actually get made

Insights are only valuable if they change something. I deliver findings in the format that moves your team — whether that's a one-pager for a founder or a structured brief for a product review.

Insights that influence roadmap, not just archive
Selected work

Case studies

End-to-end research across discovery, evaluation, and post-launch diagnosis.

Brave Leo AI — Early-Stage Research & Product Strategy
Generative AI Exploratory 0 → 1

Brave Leo AI — Early-Stage Research & Product Strategy

Uncovering user mental models and unmet needs to shape the product strategy for a generative AI assistant before development began.

View case study →
Improving User Retention
SaaS Evaluative Retention

Improving Day 1 Retention — Onboarding Research

Diagnosing where and why users dropped off during onboarding — and delivering a ranked set of fixes tied directly to retention metrics.

View case study →
Reframing the Product Question — Healthcare AI Research
Healthcare AI JTBD Enterprise

Reframing the Product Question — Healthcare AI Research

Applying a JTBD framework to understand what clinicians and administrators actually needed from a predictive analytics platform — and what they didn't.

View case study →
Crypto Wallet Onboarding — From Friction to Measurable Fix
Web3 · Crypto Usability Design

Crypto Wallet Onboarding — From Friction to Measurable Fix

Evaluating the onboarding experience for a crypto wallet — identifying trust barriers and friction points that prevented new users from completing setup.

View case study →
How I contribute

What working with me looks like

Strategic influence first. Methods and tools in service of that.

What I influence

Strategic & collaborative

Roadmap shaping
I translate research into prioritized directions your team can act on in the next sprint — not a doc that sits unread.
Stakeholder alignment
I present findings to leadership, bridge product and design disagreements, and make the case for decisions grounded in evidence.
Research strategy & prioritization
I scope the right study for the right moment — knowing when a quick 5-user test is enough and when you need something more rigorous.
KPI definition & tracking
I connect research outcomes to business metrics so the impact of the work is visible, not just felt.
Embedded in Agile teams
I work inside sprint cycles, not around them — delivering insights when product decisions are actually being made.

How I find answers

Research methods

I choose methods based on the question, not habit. Qualitative for depth, quantitative for scale — often both.

User interviews Usability testing Diary studies Survey design Observational research Unmoderated testing A/B testing Statistical analysis Experimental design Journey mapping Personas Wireframing Prototyping
Tools

Figma · FigJam  ·  Dovetail  ·  Qualtrics · SurveyMonkey  ·  UserTesting · Userlytics  ·  Metabase  ·  SQL · Python  ·  Google Suite · Keynote