Rocket Mortgage · Design research leadership · 2020–2021
The question
How does research become a useful part of product decisions when there are more teams asking questions than researchers available to answer them?
The work
Research had often been conducted ad hoc across product pods. I led a broader UX organization of more than 40 people spanning research, information architecture, design systems, and native mobile design, and built out the UX research practice in partnership with the market research organization.
We organized research around three kinds of decisions: foundational and generative work to understand a problem, directional work to improve an emerging idea, and evaluative work to examine something built or already in market. My role was to structure, hire, allocate, and support the team across many product pods. Researchers conducted interviews, surveys, participatory design, and concept tests; I did not personally execute every study.
The judgment
One foundational question was whether a mobile app for real estate agents should make them a more active part of loan origination. Research showed that agents valued the human side of their work and were less interested in assuming loan-origination duties. The team recommended against that proposed model, avoiding further investment in the wrong direction.
Another stream iteratively tested a consumer mobile entry experience. Questions and labels helped identify why someone had arrived and guide them toward the relevant product. Research refined concepts, language, patterns, and flow efficiency before launch.
The result
The agent-app model was not pursued. The consumer entry experience launched with a design refined through research. In the six to twelve months after launch, internal analytics reported 34% growth in mobile monthly active users and an increase of 15,000 weekly installs. The team also reported a four-percentage-point rise in purchase intent for the organic and search-driven top of funnel, to around 10%.
These measures describe a period of product and marketing work together. The available account does not isolate the research or design contribution to those changes.
Contribution and result
| Field | Account |
|---|---|
| My contribution | Built and structured the research practice; hired and allocated researchers; supported studies and their use in product decisions. |
| Observable consequence | One proposed agent-app model stopped; a researched consumer entry experience launched. |
| Basis | Firsthand management account and internal analytics reporting. |
| Boundary | Growth and intent measures reflect a wider product and marketing effort, without isolating the research or design contribution. |
What I carry forward
Research creates value when it helps a team decide both what to build and what to leave alone.
Project descriptions focus on my role and the contribution I can describe publicly. Confidential materials are omitted. Illustrations identified as reconstructions explain an idea; they are not original project deliverables.