[ref. c16173116] Manchester - Service and Interaction Design Lead

We provide the Research Ethics Service (RES), Confidentiality Advice function, assessments and assurances on behalf of the NHS, and learning, guidance and advice for the research community. Our ambition is to make the UK a great place to do research, where more money invested in research goes into carrying out relevant, good quality research.

We have already delivered significant improvements by centralising and simplifying the approval of research in the NHS in England, and are undertaking a range of significant programmes to deliver further improvements.

1. The service and interaction design lead is a key part of the user centred design team within the digital directorate, an expert practitioner responsible for providing professional leadership to ensure the most appropriate service design and interaction design decisions are taken for service users.

In this role, you will be responsible for:

1. leading our design community, demonstrating a range of leadership and management skills, guidance and supportive approaches for the activities required in the HRA’s journey to develop its digital services for the research community
2. working with the Head of User Centred Design and the product team undertake strategic planning through service design responsible for ensuring the team takes a user-centred, evidence based approach to service design and delivery
3. considering the impact of new technologies and ensuring that designs meet legal requirements and government guidelines
4. blue-printing, prototyping, user journey flows and story boarding
5. Communicating the importance of inclusive, equitable, accessible and sustainable public services.

The role sits within the HRA digital directorate which is responsible for developing, providing, and supporting complex solutions within the HRA’s portfolio of national information systems for health research.

Main duties of the job

The service and interaction design lead will:

1. Demonstrate excellent communication skills, influencing across multiple groups of people including suppliers, external partners, and senior internal stakeholders, you will form a deep understanding of user and organisational needs.
2. Lead internal and external activities within the design specialism to develop and convey complex concepts.
3. Engage with stakeholders to facilitate and foster collaborative approaches to prioritising service and interaction design requirements of users and partners.
4. Lead a proactive approach to our alignment with the Government Service Standard and work with user centred design colleagues to constantly improve the design of our services.
5. Work collaboratively with the Head of User Centred Design and the product team to guide both design and organisational strategy and priorities.
6. Using expert knowledge and previous experience to advise on design standards, methods, tools and applications, so that optimum approaches and solutions are delivered to meet user needs, organisational objectives and policy intent.
7. Analyse and interpret functional and non-functional design requirements to ensure the overall needs of the business are met from a digital perspective

Working for our organisation

As a flexible working friendly organisation, we want to be sure that you can work in a way that is best for you, not just us and the work we do.

We’re committed to creating an inclusive workplace that promotes and values diversity. We know from experience that different ideas, perspectives, and backgrounds create a stronger, more creative workplace that help us to deliver the best services.

• age
• disability
• ethnicity
• gender identity and expression
• religion or belief
• sex
• sexual orientation
• other diverse characteristics

We have policies in place to ensure that all applicants are treated fairly and consistently at every stage of the recruitment process.

When applying to work here, speak to us about how we might be able to accommodate a flexible working arrangement – if it works for you, we’ll do our best to make it work for us.

Please note, if applying to our Manchester, Nottingham or Bristol locations, we are only able to offer the role as home based.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

This role sits within HRA Digital. The HRA Digital directorate is responsible for developing, delivering and supporting complex solutions within the HRA’s portfolio or national information systems for health research. This includes a major programme to build a new Integrated Research Application and Workflow system and to achieve the successful migration and eventual closure of current systems (IRAS and HARP).

The HRA Digital team is a collaborative, supportive team consisting of HRA employees, secondees, contractors and vendors.

attached.

In submitting your application with us, please note the following:

Where applicants fail to demonstrate how they meet any one of the essential criteria of the person specification, the application will not be shortlisted. You will be considered based only on the information in your application form. CVs will not be considered.

The HRA reserves the right to close this vacancy early should it receive a sufficient number of applications.

Person specification

Qualifications

• Master’s Degree or post-graduate qualification in a relevant area or significant relevant experience in service and interaction design
• Ongoing continuous professional development

Knowledge, Skills and Expertise:

• In depth specialist knowledge and significant experience of developing service designs based on evidence of user needs and organisational outcome.
• Expert interaction design practitioner with experience of influencing and mentoring others
• Set direction and assure best practice by determining and documenting design standards and policies.
• Thorough knowledge of user centred design and product development process.

Experience

• Onboarding of new staff within a user centred design team or professional community
• Identifying design needs, creating new design patterns and components where needed and ensuring they are captured and implemented as part of a project and across the government design system.

• Experience of successfully leading a design team through GDS/CDDO or NHS Service Standard assessments
• Past experience working in government or an NHS Organisation

Analytical and Judgemental Skills:

• Able to have an overall perspective on business issues and activities, understand their wider implications and long-term impact
• Evaluate design proposals from external suppliers, and make recommendations to senior stakeholders
• Working across multiple services and leading groups of UCD professionals to set direction, assuring the quality of service and interaction design

• Interpreting strategy and translate emerging trends and technologies which might impact or benefit the organisation

Interpersonal Skills:

• Engaging and building relationships with a range of stakeholders to support delivery of user and business needs

Knowledge, Skills and Expertise

• Confident in providing advice and guidance across projects on service design and interaction design to influence others, in line with the Government Service Standard.
• Knowledge and expertise in blue-printing, prototyping, user journey flows and story boarding techniques, including giving direction on tools and methods to use

Experience

• Designing clear, usable, accessible digital interfaces that are inclusive and work across a range of devices
• Demonstrable experience of managing service and interaction design as a lead or as part of a user centred design team to iterate design processes
• Work effectively in a multidisciplinary, agile environment, adapting quickly to changes in requirements, priorities or user needs

Interpersonal Skills

• Coaching and leading teams in user centred design principles
• Influence and manage in a complex matrix department

Other

• Champion accessibility and inclusion, consider the impact of new technologies and ensure that designs meet legal requirements

Knowledge, Skills and Expertise

• Significant experience in combining user research and analytics to problem solve through design iterations to improve user experience.
• Understand and communicate the importance of inclusive, equitable, accessible and sustainable public services

Analytical and Judgemental Skills

• Multi-tasking, analysing opportunities, defining successful approaches, and proactively solve problems

Interpersonal Skills

• Supporting the design team to maintain a focus on delivery whilst instilling the importance of professional development and continual learning
• Facilitating conflict resolution within teams or professions

Please discuss any preferred flexibility at your interview.

The HRA reserves the right to close this vacancy early should we receive a sufficient number of applications.

The HRA does not hold a sponsor licence in respect of skilled worker visas and so is unable to employ candidates requiring sponsorship.

Please check your account regularly.

After applying via NHS Jobs, your submitted application will be imported into our Third-party recruitment system. All subsequent information regarding your application will be generated from apps.trac.jobs. If you are appointed to a post, information will also be transferred into the NHS Electronic Staff Records system.

If you have a query relating to your application, please contact the recruitment team on [email protected] or 0300 330 9416.

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HRA Recruitment Privacy Notice