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In brief

If so, you might be the Lead Service Designer we would like to welcome into our Design and Research team. We’re looking for someone who is unafraid of working with ambiguity & thrives on painting a picture of the future that helps others see what is possible. Someone who is experienced in bringing clarity, vision and excitement to cross functional teams and stakeholders by using design facilitation skills to negotiate a safe environment for great collaborative design to happen.

We value colleagues who have learned as much from failures as from successes and are humble enough to share their learnings without reservations. People who think deeply and have a point of view on everything from workshops to prototypes to work-life balance but are also able to listen to and encourage others to make their own contributions. While growing with us, you will have a strong opportunity to craft your future role in the team.

Our design team is a wonderful mix of researchers, UI, UX and service designers working together with developers to create unique experiences that solve people’s real problems. This is a fast-expanding team within a more established agency, where you’d have the rare opportunity to follow your work across both design diamonds. Unlike most agencies, we don’t just focus on innovation, proof-of-concept and early-stage engagements, we also have the cross functional teams to deliver the amazing experiences we conceive. We work very closely with our clients in intense, user-focused, prototype driven sprints, that grow into long-term relationships.

We don’t just design. We have impact.

So here’s another question – does this sound like you?

Experience and qualifications

• 7+ years’ experience working as a Service or UX designer within an agency, design studio, gov or product environment
• In-depth knowledge and application of design thinking methodology
• With full accountability, have led projects from the design perspective
• Loves planning and facilitating workshops
• A highly strategic mindset – can negotiate the noise and leverage insights to set projects on-course to deliver great services
• Can show us interesting and thought-provoking approaches to design challenges (both successes and failures), i.e. from establishing strategic propositions to applying evidence in the design of complex services to make them simple to use
• Enjoys line management, or has mentoring experience
• Experience working within design sprints/agile methodologies
• Understanding of how to align and prioritise business need to user needs
• Awesome hands-on skills in delivering prototypes and design artefacts. Likes producing sketches, story-boards, user journeys, system maps, blueprints, etc
• A strong POV on how to continuously improve and set the standard for our design output
• Ability and willingness to carry out qualitative research & user testing, collaborated with researchers
• Experience in scoping and outlining approaches to projects – can provide realistic time/scope/risk estimates for a project, define artefacts and milestones
• Work with, challenge and build consensus with senior stakeholders – prioritise and mitigate constraints, turning them into an advantage
• A strong advocate of design quality within a business setting, understanding where this gives the best value
• Help clients through the process of aligning behind strategies and solutions that help deliver their business objectives

About Softwire

Softwire is a leading digital software consultancy. We offer services in software engineering, design, innovation, cloud, mobile and data.

Trusted by well-known organisations, including the BBC, David Lloyd Clubs, LNER and The Cabinet Office, Softwire has grown into a business that consistently delivers large, high-profile digital projects for the UK’s leading brands.

But who are we actually?

We’re innovators. We’re passionate problem-solvers in both software engineering and digital design. We are dedicated. And we love what we do.

It all started when our founders Pete, Dan, and Phil realised that there was a better way to do things. A way that delivers results without squeezing the fun out of what we do. A way that is never corporate, but always professional.

When you work with Softwire, you’re not only becoming part of a team with in-depth technical skills and delivery expertise – you’re joining a team filled with passion, guile, and an absolute dedication to producing the best work possible.

Voted in the Sunday Times as one of the Top 100 Companies to Work For (now known as Best Companies), you’ll be working in a thriving environment full of innovation, devotion, and outright electricity.

What we stand for

Here at Softwire, we hold four key values at the core of everything we do:

We really care about what we do
When we say we care, we honestly mean it. Our work is our passion, and everything that comes through our doors is treated with the utmost respect and with the same level of care that we’d treat our own work. Because honestly – we really do care.

We trust and are trustworthy
We’re not micromanagers. We place a level of trust in each member of our team to work their hardest and produce the best they can achieve. This is an innovative but fun place to work – and we trust that you’ll meet our standards.

We are kind
Clients come to us with complex, exciting, but often challenging projects. And we are the friendly face that will help them reach their goals – and be with them for the long run. Our team is open, accepting, and always ready to accept new ideas. Because after all, in a world where being kind is free – why be anything but?

We are fun
When you’re working at the forefront of technology, every day is different. And in this fast-paced environment, we realise that work isn’t always going to be fun. Some days can be stressful, but despite this, we know the importance of enjoying ourselves. Because at the end of the day, we spend a lot of time at work – so we might as well have fun while we’re there.

Package

• Base salary is based on experience in role and ranges from £73,700 –£82,800 + Profit Share
• You can expect to receive an average of £18,000 in profit share depending on your experience and company performance
• Pension: Additional 5% of salary

Additional benefits

• 25 days annual leave (with the option to buy and sell)
• Time off for company-wide morale activities, time off for charitable / CSR activities
• Free annual eye test, income protection, cycle to work, electric vehicle lease schemes, and payroll charity donations.

For further details on benefits click here

Equal-opportunities employer

Softwire is an equal-opportunities employer and does not discriminate on the basis of age, disability, gender including gender reassignment, marriage and civil part-nership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation, or any other protected status. All matters related to employment are decided on the basis of qualifications, merit, and business need.