Lead UX Designer

Job Description

Job Requisition ID: 16456

Additional Locations: This position will be strategically remote until end of 2020. Return to office date yet to be determined.

The UX Team at HMHCO, part of Digital Product Design (DPD), focuses on building an intuitive digital experience for teachers, students and administrators in and out of the classroom. We work to simplify and delight teachers and administrators while helping students to achieve success with the HMHCO product lines.

We are looking for a Lead UX Designer with a proven track record creating and driving the user experience for world-class enterprise platforms. You will be a key player in the digital creative under-takings, from user research, problem identification, project concept, user testing to design execution and upper management presentations. You will be shaping your team while helping the other Leads, UX Director, and the VP refining the UX department vision.

• You have a proven track record in running and facilitating design thinking workshops among inter-departmental teams to build a world-class platform.
• You have passion to mentor 1-3 Senior and UX designers helping them to grow, achieve design excellence and manage their workload while working on your own project.
• You enjoy working with UX researchers, product owners and the engineering team and don’t get discouraged easily when people do not agree immediately. Instead, you think out of the box to find ways to gain consent and assert the relevance of UX into the team.
• You are comfortable in managing down as much as managing up. You will work closely with the UX Director and other Leads to sell-in UX strategies and design concepts to the VPs.
• You believe in data-driven design. “I have a hunch” is not a part of your vocabulary.
• You are not shy and bring up ideas on how to improve internal team processes.

Responsibilities:

• Lead the ideation, direction and creation of UX designs within a multifunctional team and with a strong understanding of an iterative, user-focused approach.
• Organize and lead workshops to promote and implement design thinking including whiteboarding, Affinity Mapping, Role-Play and mind-mapping to name a few.
• Take ownership of dedicated tasks under the UX Director to keep up with technological changes, new UX methodologies, design patterns and innovations within the industry.
• Collaborate with other team members to provide mentorship and lead by example to ensure UX team efficiency and effectiveness in delivering on the project and team goals.
• Own the validation, usability, design quality and execution of final designs, from user research through final visual designs to development.
• Ensure appropriate UX methodologies and design best practices persist on projects – so that design decisions result in optimal end-user experiences and outcomes.

Requirements:

• Bachelor's Degree in design or design-related discipline (graphic design, user experience design, visual design, etc.) or equivalent experience.
• 7+ years of relevant experience in UX planning and design, with a strong understanding of identifying User Insights, articulating UX visions, and how to leverage them to successfully deliver enjoyable and successful experiences.
• 1-2+ years of experience in organizing and running workshops including whiteboarding, affinity mapping, mind-mapping, role-play etc.
• A solid User-Centered Design approach to solving creative challenges. Your portfolio shows examples in how you integrated user research, consumer & user journeys, to develop experience ecosystems composed of multiple components, touchpoints, channels and platforms.
• A strong collaborator across diverse groups, including Product Owners, Engineers, other stakeholders and team members.
• Have excellent written, verbal and room management communication skills: the right candidate must be able to communicate in writing and/or present in person, strategic design concepts and creative vision – in any team or stakeholder setting – with passion and confidence.
• Strong experience in tools such as Sketch, Figma, Axure, Zeplin, Invision for creating user flows, wireframes, interactive prototypes and visual designs.
• Experience working with cross-functional teams in an Agile environment.
  

Physical Requirements:

• Might be in a stationary position for a considerable time (sitting and/or standing).
• Constantly operates a computer and other office productivity machinery, such as a calculator, copy machine, and computer printer.
• Must be able to collaborate with colleagues via face to face, conference calls, and online meetings.
• Ability to work in cross-functional teams and as well as work independently.

ABOUT US:
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (NASDAQ:HMHC) is a global learning company dedicated to changing people’s lives by fostering passionate, curious learners. As a leading provider of pre-K–12 education content, services, and cutting-edge technology solutions across a variety of media, HMH enables learning in a changing landscape. HMH is uniquely positioned to create engaging and effective educational content and experiences from early childhood to beyond the classroom. HMH serves more than 50 million students in over 150 countries worldwide, while its award-winning children's books, novels, non-fiction, and reference titles are enjoyed by readers throughout the world.
For more information, visit http://careers.hmhco.com

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt is committed to a comprehensive policy of Equal Opportunities and we aim to create a workplace which provides for equal opportunities for all employees and potential employees.