Associate Director UX Design User Experience

$200,000 - $270,000/Yr

Kirkland & Ellis - Chicago, IL

Full-time - Senior

Chicago, IL

5,001-10,000 employees

Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services

About the position

The Associate Director of UX Design & User Experience at Kirkland & Ellis is responsible for developing and executing the UX & Design strategy aligned with the firm's core values. This role involves establishing the firm's first User Experience & Design Center of Excellence (CoE) and ensuring its success by delivering innovative user experiences that meet business objectives. The Associate Director will collaborate closely with various teams, lead UX initiatives, and foster a culture of empathy and understanding user needs.

Responsibilities

• Develop and execute the UX & Design strategy in line with the firm's core pillars.
• Establish the User Experience & Design Center of Excellence (CoE) and its vision.
• Align processes with the Firm's Project Management Life Cycle under the IT Portfolio and Business Transformation office.
• Collaborate with the Firm's Business Development group on branding and internal design system principles.
• Foster a culture of empathy centered around understanding user needs and pain points.
• Partner with the Director on vendor resources for UX design services.
• Provide resources with internal design system and UX CoE standards for optimized experiences.
• Apply Human-Centered Design based on initiative complexity.
• Ensure personalized experiences that resonate with users.
• Share UX Design principles and methodologies with IT and business peers.
• Establish key performance indicators to assess success of UX Design & User Experience goals.
• Leverage findings to improve services and report progress to management.
• Use UX industry standards and tools for evidence-based measurements.
• Innovate based on user interaction and emerging UX techniques.
• Nurture a positive, creative, and inclusive atmosphere for collaboration.
• Develop and lead change management efforts across projects.

Requirements

• 10+ years of experience in the design industry, particularly in user experience/interaction design, visual design, and research.
• 2+ years of experience managing UX designers.
• Bachelor's degree in design, UX/UI design, human-computer interaction, or related field.
• Experience designing with accessibility in mind.
• Experience designing complex, data-intensive digital experiences.
• Experience leading and directing cross-functional and multi-geographic teams.
• Proven change management skills.

Nice-to-haves

• Ability to ideate and prototype with users via wireframes.
• Continuous learning to grow skills in UX/User Experience and management.

Benefits

• Professional development opportunities
• Diversity and inclusion initiatives
• Collaborative work environment