Associate Director - AI Innovation Lab, Human-centered Design

Kyndryl; Liverpool; Hybrid; GBP 90,000 - 135,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Be Well program

Hybrid-friendly culture

Certifications with Microsoft, Google,

Job summary

Kyndryl is seeking an Associate Director of Customer Innovation & Design Leadership to drive end-to-end engagements, framing challenges and directing prototype work with multidisciplinary teams. This role bridges business problems, research insights, and tangible concepts for testing.

You will guide senior leaders through ambiguity, shape value hypotheses, and steer projects from discovery to funded sprints and enterprise transformation, leveraging practical AI fluency.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Design, HCI, Business, Engineering, Computer Science, Architecture, or equivalent practical experience.
• 10+ years in design, innovation, or consulting, including 3+ years leading multidisciplinary teams and owning executive customer relationships.
• Proven portfolio of end-to-end innovation engagements, detailing challenge framing, prototyping, testing, and business outcomes.
• Executive presence and facilitation skills, with a track record of guiding C-suite stakeholders through complex co-design and decisions.
• Strong business acumen and human-centered design leadership spanning research, framing, validation, and live implementation.
• Practical AI opportunity fluency, with enough understanding of generative and agentic systems to direct credible prototypes.
• Multidisciplinary direction capability, aligning designers, researchers, engineers, and commercial teams around unified goals.

Responsibilities

• Own the customer journey, shaping brief arcs, success measures, immersion, co-design workshops, builds, and post-Lab follow-through.
• Lead CIOs, CTOs, COOs, and senior leadership teams through ambiguity, constructive challenge, and strategic decisions.
• Translate enterprise priorities, user needs, and operational realities into clear value hypotheses and actionable design challenges.
• Define human‑AI system interactions—designing handoffs, exceptions, control, and accountability between people and agents.
• Direct multidisciplinary teams through focused prototype builds, setting fidelity and defining evidence using realistic scenarios and synthetic personas.
• Connect engagement findings and validation evidence to definitive executive recommendations and owned next steps.
• Turn validated work into reusable methods, patterns, prompts, agent states, policies, and reference builds.

Skills

Bachelor-level degree in Design / HCI

10+ years design/innovation/consulting

Executive stakeholder engagement

AI fluency for human‑AI systems

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Design, HCI, Business, Engineering, Computer Science, Architecture, or equivalent

Master’s degree or MBA

Tools

Figma

Miro

Job description

Who We Are

At Kyndryl, we run and reimagine the mission‑critical technology systems that drive advantage for the world’s leading businesses. We are at the heart of progress; with proven expertise and a continuous flow of AI‑powered insight, enabling smarter decisions, faster innovation, and a lasting competitive edge. For our people—Kyndryls—that means doing purposeful work that powers human progress. Join us and experience a flexible, supportive environment where your well‑being is prioritized and your potential can thrive.

The Role

As Associate Director, Customer Innovation & Design Leadership, you will lead customer innovation engagements end to end—from challenge framing and executive workshops through prototype direction, evidence, and the decisions that follow. Serving as the customer’s strategic contact and a trusted advisor to senior leadership, you will bridge the gap between complex business problems, research insights, and tangible concepts people can test. This is a strategic design‑leadership and consulting role focused on human‑AI systems. Composed in ambiguity, you will create just enough structure to move fast while directing multidisciplinary teams of creative technologists, designers, researchers, and engineers. You bring practical AI fluency and a clear point of view on how AI reshapes customer experiences, driving outcomes that lead directly to funded sprints, pilots, and enterprise transformation.

What You Will Do

• Own the customer journey, shaping brief arcs, success measures, immersion, co‑design workshops, builds, and post‑Lab follow‑through.
• Lead CIOs, CTOs, COOs, and senior leadership teams through ambiguity, constructive challenge, and strategic decisions.
• Translate enterprise priorities, user needs, and operational realities into clear value hypotheses and actionable design challenges.
• Define human‑AI system interactions—designing handoffs, exceptions, control, and accountability between people and agents.
• Direct multidisciplinary teams through focused prototype builds, setting fidelity and defining evidence using realistic scenarios and synthetic personas.
• Connect engagement findings and validation evidence to definitive executive recommendations and owned next steps.
• Turn validated work into reusable methods, patterns, prompts, agent states, policies, and reference builds.
• Build practice capability, coach multidisciplinary talent, and dedicate capacity to moonshot initiatives in human‑AI collaboration.

Your Future at Kyndryl

Becoming an Associate Director at Kyndryl is an excellent gateway to many different paths. You’ll be creating a well‑rounded skillset while gaining professional certifications and qualifications. You can evolve horizontally into other technical or non‑technical areas, or move vertically into senior leadership or specialized domain roles. There are many different types and flavors of roles at Kyndryl, so everyone can find the opportunity that suits them best.

Who You Are

Who You Are You’re good at what you do and possess the required experience to prove it. However, equally as important – you have a growth mindset; keen to drive your own personal and professional development. You are customer‑focused – someone who prioritizes customer success in their work. And finally, you’re open and borderless – naturally inclusive in how you work with others.

Required Skills and Experience

• Bachelor's degree in Design, HCI, Business, Engineering, Computer Science, Architecture, or equivalent practical experience.
• 10+ years in design, innovation, or consulting, including 3+ years leading multidisciplinary teams and owning executive customer relationships.
• Proven portfolio of end‑to‑end innovation engagements, detailing challenge framing, prototyping, testing, and business outcomes.
• Executive presence and facilitation skills, with a track record of guiding C‑suite stakeholders through complex co‑design and decisions.
• Strong business acumen and human‑centered design leadership spanning research, framing, validation, and live implementation.
• Practical AI opportunity fluency, with enough understanding of generative and agentic systems to direct credible prototypes.
• Multidisciplinary direction capability, aligning designers, researchers, engineers, and commercial teams around unified goals.

Preferred Skills and Experience

• Master’s degree or MBA in Design, HCI, Innovation, Business, or a related field.
• Background working within a design consultancy, innovation lab, product studio, or creative agency.
• Cross‑industry exposure (e.g., Financial Services, Retail, Healthcare) across global markets.
• Hands‑on familiarity with digital, spatial, or physical prototyping, design tools (Figma, Miro), and enterprise AI governance.

Being You

The “Kyn” in Kyndryl means kinship, which represents the strong bonds we have with each other, our customers and our communities. We focus on ensuring all Kyndryls feel included and we welcome people of all cultures, backgrounds, and experiences. Even if you don’t meet every requirement, we encourage you to apply. We believe in growth, and we’re excited to see what you can bring. At Kyndryl, employee feedback has told us that our number one driver of employee engagement is belonging. That sense of belonging — being a valued, respected, trusted member of the team — is fundamental to our culture and fueling great experiences for our customers. This dedication to welcoming everyone into our company means that Kyndryl gives you the ability to thrive and contribute to our culture of empathy and shared success. That’s The Kyndryl Way.

What You Can Expect

Your career with us isn’t just a job—it’s an adventure with purpose. We offer a dynamic, hybrid‑friendly culture that supports your well‑being and empowers you to grow. Our Be Well programs are thoughtfully designed to support your financial, mental, physical, and social health—because we know that when you feel your best, you do your best. From your very first day, you’ll dive into impactful work that powers the systems our customers rely on every day. You won’t just contribute—you’ll make a difference, tackling meaningful projects that sharpen your skills and fuel your growth. We’re here to champion your journey. With powerful tools to chart your career path, personalized development goals aligned with your ambitions, and continuous feedback to keep you inspired and on track, you’ll have everything you need to thrive and evolve. You’ll develop in‑demand skills to grow your career and achieve your ambitions with access to cutting‑edge learning opportunities— from certifications with Microsoft, Google, and Amazon to coaching and hands‑on experiences. And through it all, you’ll be part of a culture that values empathy, restless learning, and a devotion to shared success. We want you to thrive here—and we’re committed to helping you do just that.

We’re glad you’re here.

At Kyndryl, we achieve progress the world depends on, with purpose. Beginning with the purpose that matters to you. Because here, you will be part of a culture designed with purpose. One that is restless, empathetic and devoted. Where we are committed to sustainable progress for our customers and supporting the communities where we work and live. All of you is what we want. And what we need.