Hi,
I am a User Experience Researcher in the job hunt right now.
I am not a UX Designer - which most start-ups demand. I don't code, I can get by with Illustrator and Photoshop stuff but I am definitely not an expert.
But here is what I can do really well - I observe, understand and analyze the things that the users care about and help designers build those things. In brief, conducting usability tests, coming up with workflows, testing scenarios and have a major say in the design and look are some of the things I do best. And these are some of the things that most UX Researchers do.
Do start-ups look for someone with this expertise? Or do they prefer someone who is a jack of all master of none?