The Data Science & Insights team brings together Data Scientists, Data Analysts, and User Researchers to build a deep, shared understanding of SCMP’s readers and subscribers. We operate at the intersection of behavioural data, human insight, and business strategy. Our role is to turn complex quantitative and qualitative signals into clear direction for Product, Editorial, Marketing, and Leadership.In short, the Data Science & Insights team helps SCMP decide where to focus, what to prioritise, and what to stop doing, based on evidence that leaders trust.
Purpose of the Position:
The Senior User Researcher – Product & Market Insights plays a key role in shaping product strategy and subscription growth by grounding decisions in a deep understanding of users, readers, and the broader market.
Reporting into the Data Science & Insights function and working closely with Product and Audience teams, this role ensures that SCMP’s products are built on real user needs, competitive context, and willingness to pay—not assumptions.
This is a product-first research role, with responsibility for both user research and market research.
In this role, you will:
- Lead end-to-end product research across discovery, concept validation, and post-launch learning.
- Partner with Product Managers to inform roadmaps, prioritisation, and trade-offs using evidence.
- Conduct generative research to uncover unmet user needs, motivations, and subscription drivers.
- Design and execute market research to understand audience segments, competitive positioning, brand perceptions, and value propositions.
- Run quantitative studies (data analysis, surveys, segmentation, pricing and value perception research) alongside qualitative methods.
- Translate research findings into clear, decision-ready insights for Product, Audience, and Leadership teams.
- Collaborate closely with Data Scientists to triangulate market and attitudinal data with behavioural data.
- Support experimentation and feature launches by validating concepts before build and evaluating impact after release.
- Build shared research frameworks (needs, segments, jobs-to-be-done) used consistently across teams.
Skills and Experience that will lead to success:
- Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Human-Computer Interaction, Psychology, Sociology, Marketing Research, or a related field.
- Minimum 5 years of experience in user research, market research, or mixed research roles.
- Strong grounding in product research methods (e.g., a/b testing, heuristic evaluation, usability testing, interviews, card sorting, and standardised surveys).
- Solid understanding of market research fundamentals: sampling, survey design, segmentation, brand and value research.
- Proven ability to influence product strategy and business decisions, not just design execution.
- Clear, structured communication skills, tailored to senior and cross-functional stakeholders.
- Comfortable working in fast-paced, ambiguous environments with competing priorities.
- Experience conducting research in subscription-based or content-driven products is a strong advantage.
Work location will be at Causeway Bay office.
Our Privacy Notice aims to comply with all relevant data privacy and protection laws. You should read the Privacy Notice in full at corp.scmp.com/privacy-policy.
Skills Required
- Bachelor's or Master's degree in Human-Computer Interaction, Psychology, Sociology, Marketing Research, or related field
- Minimum 5 years of experience in user research, market research, or mixed research roles
- Strong grounding in product research methods
- Solid understanding of market research fundamentals
- Proven ability to influence product strategy and business decisions
- Clear, structured communication skills tailored to senior stakeholders
- Experience conducting research in subscription-based products
What We Do
The South China Morning Post is a leading news media company that has reported on China and Asia for more than a century with global impact. Founded in 1903, SCMP is headquartered in Hong Kong, where it is the city’s newspaper of record, with a growing correspondent staff across Asia and the United States. Our vision is to “Elevate Thought”, and our mission is to “Lead the global conversation about China”. The South China Morning Post is a global digital news leader with a unique role in championing the plurality of voices in Asia through its breadth and depth of news coverage. SCMP is committed to informing and inspiring through journalism of the highest standards. Apart from its flagship newspaper, SCMP also publishes news 24/7 on SCMP.com. In 2020, SCMP became the first news organisation in Asia to join the Trust Project, a consortium of top news companies developing global transparency standards for credible journalism. Additionally, SCMP publishes a portfolio of premium lifestyle and fashion titles in Hong Kong including Cosmopolitan, ELLE, Esquire and, Harper’s BAZAAR. SCMP is also home to Abacus, a digital news brand focused on China's tech industry; Inkstone, a daily news brief for those curious about China's growing impact around the world; and Goldthread, a content platform with a focus on food, travel and culture in China. For more information, please visit us at www.scmp.com. Our Privacy Notice aims to comply with all relevant data privacy and protection laws. You should read the Privacy Notice in full at http://corp.scmp.com/privacy-policy
