Lead Interaction Designer

Government Recruitment Service; City of Edinburgh; On-site; GBP 100,000 - 125,000; Full time

Job summary

A government agency in Edinburgh is hiring a Lead Interaction Designer to enhance user interactions with digital services. The role involves developing user-centered design patterns, creating prototypes, and collaborating within a multidisciplinary team. Candidates should advocate for accessible design and effectively communicate design concepts to various stakeholders. This position promises a dynamic career in public service, contributing to innovative digital solutions.

Qualifications

• Ability to create and iterate prototypes to test ideas.
• Experience in developing user-centered design patterns and services.
• Understanding of accessibility standards and usability principles.

Responsibilities

• Develop user-centred design patterns based on user needs.
• Create prototypes to effectively communicate ideas.
• Collaborate with developers and researchers on design concepts.
• Explain design decisions to various audiences.
• Promote user-centred design practices within the organisation.

Skills

User-centered design

Prototyping

Collaboration

Accessibility advocacy

Job description

About us

The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) has a clear mission - to grow the economy. Our role is to help businesses invest, grow and export to create jobs and opportunities right across the country. We do this in three ways.

Firstly, we help to build a strong, competitive business environment, where consumers are protected and companies rewarded for treating their employees properly.

Secondly, we open international markets and ensure resilient supply chains. This can be through Free Trade Agreements, trade facilitation and multilateral agreements.

Finally, we work in partnership with businesses every day, providing advance finance and deal-making support to those looking to start up, invest, export and grow.

The Digital, Data and Technology (DDaT) directorate develops and operates tools and services to support us in this mission. The team have been nominated four times in a row for Best Public Sector Employer at the Women in Tech awards!

About the role

As a Lead Interaction Designer at DBT you will work out the best way to let users interact with services in terms of both overall flow and at the level of individual design elements.

You will work in a multidisciplinary team, alongside user researchers, content designers, product managers and technology experts. As a team, you will develop innovative approaches for digital products that are part of integrated services across DBT.

To be effective in this position, you will need to understand the needs of users and stakeholders and be able to communicate this in an engaging way, whether this is by creating prototypes to test an idea and inspire the team and stakeholders or creating design patterns that can be used across our services to ensure consistency and scalability.

Main responsibilities

You will:

• Develop user-centred design patterns and services based on user needs.
• Create and iterate prototypes to test and communicate ideas effectively.
• Collaborate with user researchers and front-end developers to bring concepts to life.
• Explain design decisions to both technical and non-technical audiences, influenced by user research.
• Embrace constructive feedback and provide valuable reviews of others' work.
• Ensure design consistency within the team and across GOV.UK.
• Integrate accessibility and usability from the start, adhering to web standards and GDS/GOV.UK principles and advocating for inclusive design, ensuring accessibility for all users, including those with non-digital needs.
• Consistently advocate for user centred design across an organisation and promote across government organisations to adopt user-centred practices.