Hi! I’m Rodolfo Valdivia Jr, a Senior UX Researcher from New York City.
I am a proud son of Native Americans (Mexihca Tribe), born and raised in New York City. I had the honor to serve my country as a US Marine for five years. After serving my nation, I studied Political Science and Behavioral Economics at Columbia University. Pursuing my curiosity for behavioral economics and problem-solving, I decided to work at Morgan Stanley in New York City.
After working in finance for a while, I decided to become a UX Researcher & Designer because I wanted to have a career that allows me to conduct boots-on-the-ground research that helps me understand WHY people do what they do, think outside the box when creating innovative solutions, and solve problems in a way that benefit users and positively impact the performance and profitability of businesses.
“If I had an hour to solve a problem, I'd spend 55 minutes thinking about the problem and 5 minutes thinking about solutions.”
-Albert Einstein
As a Senior UX Researcher, I have experience in delivering rigorous qualitative and quantitative user research for complex projects. I work closely with UX designers and stakeholders to ensure that research insights remain a critical part of the project throughout. I enjoy working in agile teams and using lean methodologies as well as being flexible and resourceful when it comes to getting research done.
Design should always be driven by user needs. I am happiest when I can do research work that allows me to understand why people do what they do and can use this information to offer data-driven design recommendations that constantly improve the users' experience and provide higher value.
Why is User Experience (UX) Research important?
User experience research is laser-focused investigative work that allows us to discover important psychological and behavioral actionable insights that lead to the creation of highly functional and intuitive digital products for users.
How do I work?
I conduct research for all stages of the product development process: from open explorations in the discovery phase to actionable validation-oriented research in the delivery phase.
What methods do I use?
I utilize a broad toolkit of UX research methods. I select the appropriate method based on stakeholder input and the research questions we are trying to answer.
In-context & behavioral interviews
Co-design workshops
User journeys
Persona creation
Card sorting
Storyboarding
Usability & A/B testing
Design sprints
Benchmark Studies
Shadowing
Survey Creation
Storytelling Insights Presentations
What books have I read that have influenced my work?
