Design Leader

The Mav Group; Pittsburgh (Allegheny County); On-site; USD 90,000 - 140,000; Full time

Job summary

Workscape, the exclusive MillerKnoll dealership serving Western Pennsylvania and Northern West Virginia, seeks a Design Leader to grow and guide our Design Team while delivering innovative workplace solutions from Pittsburgh. You’ll balance people leadership with hands-on project involvement, ensuring high quality design work and on-time delivery.

Reporting to the Design Director, you’ll drive resource planning, performance reviews, and cross-functional collaboration, fostering a culture of

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Interior Design, Interior Architecture, or related field.
• Minimum of five years of leadership experience in contract furniture or workplace design.
• Strong knowledge of furniture specification and dealership operations.
• Proficiency in CET Designer, AutoCAD, and Microsoft Office.
• Excellent communication, presentation, and organizational skills.
• Ability to lead teams, manage multiple priorities, and deliver high-quality results.
• Ability to mentor design professionals and provide constructive feedback.

Responsibilities

• Lead, manage, and hold the Design Team accountable for performance, quality, and growth.
• Recruit, interview, onboard, and develop designers to meet business needs.
• Conduct coaching, quarterly reviews, and annual performance evaluations.
• Identify ongoing training and development opportunities with the Design Director.
• Recognize and celebrate team accomplishments and drive engagement.
• Assess workload and capacity to ensure effective resource allocation.
• Lead weekly meetings to balance workload and priorities.
• Review and assign incoming design requests based on deadlines and client fit.
• Monitor deadlines and team performance to ensure timely delivery.
• Provide guidance to designers and remove obstacles during execution.
• Coordinate resources with Design Director and SVP to balance utilization.
• Maintain high design quality, documentation, and standards.
• Support implementation of evolving workplace trends and design technologies.
• Contribute to projects while balancing leadership responsibilities.

Skills

Leadership

Communication

Multiple priorities

Mentoring

Problem solving

Team collaboration

Quality focus

Education

Bachelor's degree in Interior Design

Tools

CET Designer

AutoCAD

Microsoft Office

Job description

At Workscape, we believe great spaces have the power to inspire, connect, and transform how people work, learn, and thrive. As the exclusive MillerKnoll dealership serving Western Pennsylvania and Northern West Virginia, and one of Pittsburgh’s fastest-growing companies, we partner with organizations to create innovative, human-centered environments that support culture, collaboration, and performance.

On behalf of our client, Workscape, we're seeking a Design Leader to lead and develop our Design Team while delivering innovative, thoughtful workplace solutions. This role combines people leadership, resource management, quality oversight, and cross-functional collaboration to drive successful projects and an exceptional client experience.

What you’ll do:

As a player-manager, you'll balance departmental leadership with active involvement in allocating and assessing design workload while maintaining an active design workload on selected projects. This role is heavily focused on the operational leadership of the Design Department, with approximately 60% or more of time dedicated to resource planning, workload management, process improvement, quality oversight, team performance, and cross-functional coordination. You'll oversee team performance, manage design resources, review and assign incoming Design Requests, and ensure projects are delivered accurately and on schedule. Working closely with the Design Director, Sales, Project Management, and Project Coordinators, you'll help drive design excellence while fostering a collaborative, accountable, and continuously improving team culture.

Workscape Core Values:

• Be Fred Rogers - Lead with kindness, respect, empathy, and authenticity in every interaction. Be a good neighbor.
• Problem Solver - Approach challenges with curiosity, creativity, and a solutions-oriented mindset.
• The Standard is The Standard - Hold yourself and others accountable to consistently deliver exceptional quality and service. Be a true professional.
• #WINNING - Embrace teamwork, celebrate success, and drive results for our clients, partners, and each other. We hate to lose.

Key Responsibilities:

Team Leadership and Development

• Lead, manage, and hold the Design Team accountable for performance expectations, quality standards, productivity goals, and professional growth.
• Recruit, interview, onboard, and develop designers to support current and future business needs.
• Conduct regular coaching conversations, quarterly touchbases, and annual performance reviews while incorporating technical feedback from the Design Director.
• Partner with the Design Director to identify ongoing training and development needs and coordinate opportunities that strengthen technical expertise, product knowledge, design capabilities, and professional growth.
• Recognize and celebrate team accomplishments while fostering employee engagement, accountability, and alignment with Workscape's Core Values.

Resource and Workload Management

• Assess department workload, project priorities, and team capacity to ensure effective resource allocation and project execution.
• Conduct weekly Design Team meetings to assign and balance outstanding workload, align priorities, and address operational needs.
• Review, prioritize, and assign incoming Design Requests based on project requirements, timelines, team expertise, workload, and client fit.
• Monitor project deadlines, department workload, and team performance to ensure timely completion of deliverables and exceptional client service.
• Provide guidance and support to designers throughout project execution, helping remove obstacles and ensure successful outcomes.
• Coordinate department resources with the Design Director and SVP of Sales and Design to support strategic project assignments and balanced team utilization.

Design Excellence & Quality Assurance

• Maintain high standards of design quality, specification accuracy, and documentation consistency across all projects.
• Conduct quality reviews of design deliverables to ensure alignment with client requirements, manufacturer standards, and Workscape best practices.
• Partner with the Design Director to ensure consistent application of design standards, technical requirements, manufacturer guidelines, and specification quality across the Design Team.
• Support implementation of evolving workplace trends, manufacturer standards, and design technologies through collaboration with the Design Director.
• Contribute to project work by maintaining an active design workload on selected projects while balancing leadership responsibilities and supporting the Design Team.

Department Operations & Process Improvement

• Manage departmental resources, support team performance, and identify opportunities for continuous improvement.
• Collaborate closely with Sales, Project Management, Project Coordinators, and the Design Director to support successful project outcomes and exceptional client experiences.
• Lead implementation of department process improvements in partnership with the SVP of Sales and Design and the Design Director to improve efficiency, communication, consistency, and project performance.
• Monitor departmental processes and recommend adjustments to workflows, staffing, and resource allocation to support business needs.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in Interior Design, Interior Architecture, or a related field required.
• Minimum of five years of experience within a contract furniture dealership, workplace design firm, or related commercial interiors environment.
• Previous leadership, supervisory, or team management experience required.
• Strong knowledge of furniture specification, workplace design principles, project delivery processes, and dealership operations.
• Proficiency in CET Designer, AutoCAD, Microsoft Office Suite, and other industry-related design technologies.
• Excellent communication, presentation, organizational, and problem-solving skills.
• Demonstrated ability to manage multiple priorities, lead teams, and deliver high-quality results in a fast-paced environment.
• Demonstrated ability to provide technical leadership, mentor design professionals, and share expertise effectively across a team.
• Ability to provide constructive feedback and navigate difficult conversations with professionalism and respect.
• Self-motivated and consistently demonstrates initiative, drive, sound judgment, and perseverance in achieving objectives.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities while maintaining accuracy, organization, and attention to detail.