Details

• Department: Ascension Studio
• Schedule: Full time
• Location: Fully remote with potential for quarterly travel

Benefits
Paid time off (PTO)
Various health insurance options & wellness plans
Retirement benefits including employer match plans
Long-term & short-term disability
Employee assistance programs (EAP)
Parental leave & adoption assistance
Tuition reimbursement
Ways to give back to your community
As a military friendly organization, Ascension promotes career flexibility and offers many benefits to help support the well-being of our military families, spouses, veterans and reservists. Our associates are empowered to apply their military experience and unique perspective to their civilian career with Ascension.
*Please note, benefits and benefits eligibility can vary by position, exclusions may apply for some roles (for example: PRN, Short-Term Option, etc.). Connect with your Talent Advisor today for additional specifics.
Responsibilities
The Ascension Studio is seeking a Director of Experience Research and Design (xRD) to serve as a leader for one of our consumer digital experience portfolio teams. The director is responsible for setting strategy for the product portfolio and guiding the associated product teams to deliver against that strategy - all in close collaboration with product management and digital engineering counterparts.
Background
Ascension, one of the largest non-profit healthcare systems in the United States, is committed to delivering compassionate, personalized care to all, with special attention to people experiencing poverty and those who are most vulnerable in our society. In 2019, Ascension established the in-house, interdisciplinary Ascension Studio to leverage human-centered design, data and technology in service of delivering system-wide products that advance the healthcare experience.
The multidisciplinary Experience Research and Design team uses human-centered design methods to understand the needs and motivations of those we serve, explore and evaluate potential solutions, and deliver solutions to market. This team - in deep partnership with colleagues in product management, digital engineering, and many Ascension teams beyond the Studio - informs Ascension's consumer experience strategy and advances Ascension's mission and business through continuous value delivery.
Our vision is to create seamless, end-to-end healthcare and consumer experiences for those we serve through a cohesive ecosystem of well-designed, user-friendly applications, products, and services. From problem discovery to product delivery, we strive to put people at the center of everything we do.
What You Will Do
There are three overarching, interrelated responsibilities of the Director of xRD:

• Set strategy and ensure delivery for your digital experience product portfolio, alongside your counterpart leads in product management and digital engineering
• Serve as the interdisciplinary research and design guide for the portfolio
• Act as direct manager of the digital product designers on your portfolio

Responsibilities

• Define a vision for your strategic area and drive alignment of feature teams to deliver against that vision, especially through leadership of discovery and delivery planning each quarter
• Collaborate with Studio and xRD leadership to organize against achieving strategic vision and ensuring on time and on spec implementation of deliverables
• Prioritize Features & Experiences in alignment with the Studio Charter and Success Metrics, including prioritization refinement based on continuously measured outcomes
• Define, manage, and communicate performance metrics and analytics, including OKRis
• Lead stakeholder engagement & communication of vision, strategy, plans, and delivery progress
• Maintain awareness of market, competitive, legislative and customer trends to refine strategy
• Support and advise go-to-market strategy
• Support tracking of budget against plan and budget refinement, as needed
• Plan and guide all experience research and design activities related to the product(s) within your assigned team's portfolio (the "strategic tile")
• Serve as subject matter expert on human-centered design, design thinking, and digital product (UX) design
• Ensure proper staffing and cultivate a strong team of individual contributors and/or contractors to deliver against tile strategies
• Create and prioritize the tile discovery backlog, and oversee cross-functional discovery activities
• Guide activities across exploratory, evaluative, and validation phases, including but not limited to research, synthesis, ideation, co-design sessions, prototyping, usability testing, production design, acceptance testing, go-to-market communications, and ongoing analytics review - ensuring quality and timely delivery, including reviewing and participating in those activities directly as required
• Lead cross-functional workshops with key stakeholders to review and approve emergent design work and drive user-centric alignment, including personal review and approval of completed design work (design review) and pre-deployment development work (experience review)
• Serve as reporting manager for the team of Digital Product Designers on your tile
• Oversee and ensure creation of digital experience design specifications
• Ensure digital product design work adheres to established internal and industry best practices, including interaction conventions, brand standards, accessibility practices, and proper use of the Helix design system
• Inspire Studio teams and Ascension leadership through communication of experience visions and advocating for great design within healthcare

Requirements
Education:

• High school diploma/GED with 2 years of experience, or Associate's degree, or Bachelor's degree required.
• Master's degree preferred.

Work Experience:
• 5 years of experience required.• 10 years of experience preferred.• 2 years of leadership or management experience required.• 5 years of leadership or management experience preferred.
Additional Preferences
Preferred Qualifications

• Experience leading research and design programs, with multiple portfolio examples
• Direct experience as an individual contributor or design lead embedded in digital product development teams, and expert fluency in digital product design operations
• Fluency in agile software development practices, scaled agile (SAFe), and direct collaboration with product management and digital engineering teams
• Multiple portfolio examples of compelling product vision communications, including demonstrating strong storytelling, presentation design, and writing capabilities
• Experience designing relevant consumer experiences, such as online marketing, ecommerce, search, scheduling, chat, account creation and management, or health records.

Portfolio required. Please include a link to your portfolio on your resume.
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Why Join Our Team
Ascension associates are key to our commitment of transforming healthcare and providing care to all, especially those most in need. Join us and help us drive impact through reimagining how we can deliver a people-centered healthcare experience and creating the solutions to do it. Explore career opportunities across our ministry locations and within our corporate headquarters.
Ascension is a leading non-profit, faith-based national health system made up of over 150,000 associates and 2,600 sites of care, including more than 140 hospitals and 40 senior living communities in 19 states.
Our Mission, Vision and Values encompass everything we do at Ascension. Every associate is empowered to give back, volunteer and make a positive impact in their community. Ascension careers are more than jobs; they are opportunities to enhance your life and the lives of the people around you.
Equal Employment Opportunity Employer
Ascension will provide equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all associates and applicants for employment regardless of race, color, religion, national origin, citizenship, gender, sexual orientation, gender identification or expression, age, disability, marital status, amnesty, genetic information, carrier status or any other legally protected status or status as a covered veteran in accordance with applicable federal, state and local laws.
For further information, view the EEO Know Your Rights (English) poster or EEO Know Your Rights (Spanish) poster.
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