UX Design Manager - Design System

Location: London, Bristol or Glasgow

But you have the flexibility to work wherever suits you best

Team: Product 

Salary range:  £80,000 to £95,000

Experience: Expert level

Working pattern: Full-Time

Reporting to: James Ferguson - Head of UX

Sponsorship: Unfortunately we are unable to offer sponsorship for this role.

This role in 3 words: Design System, Platform, Enablement

Top 3 qualities for this role: System thinker, Craft expert, Influence

 

In the words of the team, you should leave your current role for this one because….

You’ll have the opportunity to create and scale a robust design system that is central to our mission of achieving zero carbon. This role allows you to be a player/coach, balancing hands-on design with leadership and collaborating closely with senior leadership to shape the future of our design vision. You’ll enhance and expand our design language across web and app platforms, driving consistency, quality, and accessibility. 

Everyone belongs at OVO

At OVO, we are on a mission to solve one of humanity's biggest challenges, the climate crisis. And we know it takes all of us to change the world. That's why we need diverse people from all gender identities, ethnicities, ages, sexual orientations, life experiences and backgrounds to join us.

Teamworking for the planet

Everything we do here spins around Plan Zero. So, naturally, the team you’ll be joining plays a gigantic role in making that happen. Here’s how:

The UX team are the DNA that exists to connect our customers, business and brand. We play a pivotal role in helping and supporting our customers on our Zero Carbon journey by crafting experiences that power the movement today and lead the path to the future. 

This role in a nutshell:

We’re seeking a UX Design Manager who is a player/coach that enjoys both being hands on  as well as leading a small team. You will balance your time between designing, collaborating with the UX Leadership team and creating a path to our future design vision. 

Your key outcomes will be to:

• Build a robust Design System: Develop a comprehensive design platform – from tokens and components to larger patterns, you’ll take a holistic approach to ensure consistency, quality and accessibility needs are built into every moment.
• Develop a vision and strategy: Collaborate with senior leadership and peers to craft and communicate a clear vision, strategy, and roadmap for OVO’s design system.
• Evolve and scale design language: Enhance and expand OVO’s product design language to deliver a modern, unique user experience that aligns with OVO’s brand identity across our web and app platforms.
• Raise the bar: Elevate our brand through exceptional visual and interaction design, including motion and delightful moments
• Accessibility: Make our digital products more accessible for our users
• Consolidate Product & UX architecture: Audit, define, and advocate for a coherent product architecture across our platforms.
• Collaborate across teams: Work closely with our Brand, Product, and Engineering teams to ensure cohesive and integrated design solutions.
• Drive adoption: Create documentation, self-service tools and contribution models to scale the adoption of the design system.
• Lead and nurture a team: Build and sustain a small, highly engaged, challenged, and fulfilled team of designers.
• Mentor and coach others: Help designers to level up their use of the design system and improve their visual and interaction design skills
• Proactive Leadership: Take ownership in leading our UX leadership team to build an inclusive creative culture and drive cross-team initiatives.

Who you are:

An experienced design leader who is:

• Creative and inspiring: Has a proven track record of building and scaling cross-platform design systems – this is not your first rodeo.
• A master of their craft: Deep expertise in visual, motion and interaction design.
• Knows Figma inside and out: Advanced proficiency in Figma, including key features such as Variables and Tokens Studio for developing multi-theme design systems.
• An accomplished people manager: Skilled in leading a small team of Product Designers and Content Designers, fostering growth, and managing performance.
• Detail-oriented: Take pride in sweating the details across every pixel and to the last letter.
• Excellent communicator: Possesses exceptional communication skills and the ability to build compelling, succinct narratives.
• Influential: You manage stakeholders with ease across the entire business
• Technically sound: Seamlessly translate design speak into developer speak and vice versa. Bonus: You have some working knowledge of web and app technologies
• An accessibility champion: Has advanced knowledge of accessibility across both web and app platforms.
• A hands-on designer: Enjoys executing design work and leading by example with a deep knowledge of mobile and app design
• Strong portfolio: Has a robust portfolio with case studies demonstrating your approach and impact, particularly in design systems.

You’ll be successful at OVO if you…

• Have built and scaled design systems across multiple platforms, considering both design and content.
• Can lead complex projects and manage large groups of stakeholders.
• Are a confident presenter and comfortable presenting to large, diverse audiences.
• Experienced in managing and collaborating with third-party vendors.
• Thrive in a fast-paced environment and take accountability for driving results.

You won’t like this role if you…

• Would prefer to be purely managing
• Like to focus on one thing at a time

Let’s talk about what’s in it for you

We’ll pay you between £80,000 and £95,000, depending on your specific skills and experience. If your expectations are a little different, have a chat with us!

We keep our pay ranges broad on purpose to give us, and you, flexibility to match your experience to our zero carbon mission.

You’ll be eligible for an on-target bonus of 15%. We have one OVO bonus plan that focuses on the collective performance of our people to deliver our Plan Zero goal. 

We also offer plenty of green benefits and progressive policies to help you feel like you belong at OVO…and there’s flex pay.  It’s an extra 9% of your salary on top of your core pay to use as you like. You can take it as cash, add to your pension, or choose to spend it on a huge range of flex benefits.

Here’s a taster of what’s on offer: 

For starters, you’ll get 34 days of holiday (including bank holidays).

For your health
With benefits like a healthcare cash plan or private medical insurance depending on your career level, critical illness cover, life assurance, health assessments, and more

For your wellbeing
With gym membership, gadget, travel and cyber insurance, workplace ISA, will writing services, DNA testing, dental insurance, and more

For your lifestyle
With extra holiday buying, discount dining, culture cards, tech loans, and supporting your favourite charities with give-as-you-earn donations

For your home 
Get up to £300 off any OVO Energy plan (when you pay by Direct Debit), plus personal carbon offsetting and great discounts on smart thermostats and EV chargers

For your commute
Nab a great deal on ultra-low emission car leasing, plus our cycle to work scheme and public transport season ticket loans

Want to hear about our full range of flexible benefits and progressive people policies? Our People Team can tell you everything you need to know.

For your Belonging

To find better ways to support our people, we need to listen to each other’s experiences and find ways to build a truly inclusive and diverse workplace. As part of this, we have 8 Belonging Networks at OVO. Led by our people, for our people - so when you join OVO, you can play a part - big or small - with any of the Networks. It's up to you.

 

Oh, and one last thing...

We’d be thrilled if you tick off all our boxes yet we also believe it’s just as important we tick off all of yours. And if you think you have most of what we’re looking for but not every single thing, go ahead and hit apply. We’d still love to hear from you!

If you have any additional requirements, there’s a space to let us know on the application form; we want to make the process as easy and comfortable for you as possible..

 

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Last updated on Aug 3, 2024