Sarah Stutts

I ask the questions your product team is too busy to ask.

Anthropologist and UX research leader with seven years of mixed-method research across tech, healthcare, media, and education. Based in NYC, I’m Associate Director of Design Research at Desklight, where I lead researchers, PMs, and designers on EdTech and emerging AI products.

Sarah Stutts smiling, with curly brown hair and a pink floral button-up shirt
30clients across tech, media, consumer goods, and education
7 yrsleading applied research
25+product launches
5countries in a single international study
500+total hours spent moderating qualitative user research
30+week-long qualitative research sprints for Google
+24%retention, from research on a multilingual streaming platform
+28%user satisfaction, from usability research for Dell
+40%user engagement on a student-facing digital platform

Selected work

Uber · Teen product line

The research that laid the groundwork for Uber’s product for teenage users

Research on data privacy, transparency, and parental engagement, run through AnswerLab, that helped define how a rideshare product could work for teens and the parents who trust them with it.

Lead researcher spearheading in-depth qualitative interviews facilitated with live trained translators. Unearthed the parameters of parent safety needs and teenager usability that shaped feature design and roadmap for Uber for Teens.

Multilingual streaming platform

International study · AnswerLab

Led a $350K study with 75 participants across 5 countries. Findings shaped how the platform approached personalization across languages.

+24% retention

Dell usability and satisfaction

Mixed methods · End to End User Research

Ran usability testing, interviews, and surveys, then folded the findings into agile product cycles and stakeholder reports.

+28% user satisfaction

Digital credentialing in higher education

Research lead · University of North Texas

Directed mixed-method research on the Student Learner Record. The work reached leadership to inform program expansion and engagement strategy, and became my master’s thesis.

+200 non-degree credentials evaluated

Pediatric check-in safety

Pilot study · Children’s Health, Dallas

Executed pilot usability research on pediatric identification systems, improving both patient safety and check-in efficiency.

$250,000 saved

Clients and partners

Technology

  • Google
  • Apple
  • Uber
  • eBay
  • Dell

Consumer packaged goods

  • Bumble Bee Tuna
  • Truvia Sweeteners
  • Good Karma FlaxMilk
  • Purely Elizabeth
  • Poppi Beverages

Media and entertainment

  • Amazon Prime Video
  • Sony Music
  • Bravo Television Network

Education and culture

  • University of North Texas
  • Arizona State University
  • Perot Museum of Nature and Science
  • McGraw Hill

Automotive and energy

  • Nissan
  • Rhythm Energy

Medical and healthcare

  • Children’s Medical Center

About

My training in applied anthropology shapes everything I do: I examine the whole cultural context around a person, not just the screen in front of them, so the insights I deliver are actionable and roadmap-relevant.

I’m comfortable with ambiguity, and I’ve built my range purposefully through contract work with Fortune 500 companies, research operations, market research, and teaching. I mentor junior researchers. I care deeply about equity-centered, accessible, and ethical research—including the ethics of AI, and I focus on centering humans in product design.

Off the clock, you’ll find me with my dog, volunteering at a museum, or reading a library book.

  • M.S. Applied Anthropology, University of North Texas
  • B.A. Anthropology, University of North Texas, cum laude
  • “Contested Spaces, Shared Concerns,” Journal of Business Anthropology, 2020
  • Mentor, Out in Tech RUXStars program, 2025
  • Teaching fellow in UX research, University of North Texas

Let’s collaborate

sarahstutts.uxr@gmail.com

Find me on LinkedIn