Project Background
Meta's Messenger UX Research team needs to complete a fast-turn mixed-method study on a new onboarding flow before a Q3 product decision. You are the UXR responsible for recruiting participants and running all sessions across the US and Brazil using Meta's approved research ops process, including scheduling, incentives, consent, and session tracking.
The study requires 24 moderated remote interviews and 60 unmoderated concept tests in 4 weeks. The core team includes 1 UXR, 1 Research Coordinator shared at 50% capacity, 1 Product Designer, 1 Product Manager, and 1 Data Scientist. Leadership wants an early readout in 2 weeks to decide whether Messenger should ship the current onboarding direction or narrow scope.
Key Stakeholders
The Messenger PM wants speed and directional insights before the roadmap review. Legal and Privacy require compliant consent language and approved data handling for recording sessions. The Designer wants balanced coverage across new users and lapsed users, while the Research Ops partner is concerned about overusing the same participant pool and incentive budget.
Constraints
- Timeline: 4 weeks total; interim readout due by end of Week 2
- Budget: $18,000 total for recruiting, incentives, translation, and scheduling support
- Sample: 12 new Messenger users + 12 lapsed users for moderated sessions; 60 unmoderated participants split evenly across US and Brazil
- Languages: English and Brazilian Portuguese
- Tooling: Must use Meta-approved platforms for scheduling, consent, recording, and repository upload
- Dependency: Final prototype from design arrives 3 business days after project kickoff
Complications
- Brazil recruiting historically has a 35% no-show rate for weekday sessions.
- Legal has flagged that the current consent template cannot be used for minors, so participants must be 18+ only.
- The PM asks midway through planning to add caregivers as a third segment without moving the deadline.
Your Task
- Build a recruiting and session operations plan for the 4-week study.
- Define how you would prioritize sample coverage, scheduling, and trade-offs after the prototype delay.
- Create a risk-managed approach to no-shows, reschedules, and incentive handling.
- Specify the milestones, owners, and decision points needed to deliver the Week 2 readout and final report.
- Define success metrics for recruiting efficiency and session completion.
