Vacancies

Senior Service Designer

Please Note: The application deadline for this job has now passed.

About the role

If you were to design a council service from scratch, using today’s tools and technology, what would it look like? We’re pretty sure it wouldn’t involve paper forms and 20-year-old systems that don’t speak to each other. This is EXACTLY the sort of challenge the newly formed Service Design team like to get stuck in to! Our new kick-ass service designers will ensure that we’re designing the right things, with the people who will be using them and making their lives easier.

Adele – Service Design and UX Manager

As Senior Service Designer you'll ensure that our design decisions are based on robust evidence and an iterative, agile process. You’ll dive right in to understand the end-to-end journey of a service and make sure we leave no stone unturned in our efforts to understand the wider impact of changing existing, and developing new, services.

As a collaborator, communicator and facilitator, you will work with a team of digital experts to deliver an engaging and robust service to the rest of the organisation.

And finally, you’ll use your skills in user interface design to create front ends that get people from A to B intuitively and without friction.

People depend on what we deliver so what you do will make a real difference to peoples’ lives!

What will you be doing?

Day to day, your job will look like:

You will lead a design team through discovery ensuring everything you do stays true to the ultimate goal and within scope
Undertaking user research activities with individuals and small groups of people including staff and customers
Analysing observations from research and turning them in to insights – documenting the existing user experience and touchpoints along the way
Facilitating workshops and insight sharing sessions with project teams
Presenting outputs and feedback to internal stakeholders
Prototyping, testing and learning
Designing intuitive front-ends and to-be service blue prints ensuring they meet user, and business, needs
Informing business cases and prepare options analysis for improvements and change
Be a proactive thinker, do-er and challenger, so that we can do our best work
Presenting our way of working and acting as an advocate for a service design approach

Above all else, you’ll be an advocate for anyone using a service and you will tell their story to stakeholders at all levels in the organisation.This role is your chance to make real change possible and design services people want to use!

About you

As a senior, you will be someone who brings the energy and empowers design teams and wider stakeholders. You will be key to defining what human-centred design looks like at West Northants and support the Service Design and User Experience Manager in delivering it.

You will be equally happy providing feedback and guidance to technical teams as you will engaging the public in focus groups and creative activities.

You will need:

Natural openness, curiosity and optimism (a bit of bravery probably wouldn’t hurt either)
Service Design, User Experience and User Research experience that is driven by empathy for people and a passion for designing for the user’s needs
User Interface design experience and the ability to conceptualise a user’s end-to-end journey through a service
Familiarity with Government Digital Service principles and how to apply them
To demonstrate understanding of accessibility requirements and regulations
Data led decision making experience
To present a reasoned and rational argument, to influence stakeholders, managers and colleagues to consider options and risks
Mentorship and coaching skills – you will be working with people who aren’t familiar with human-centred design, so take them on the journey with you
Experience of working in an Agile team

You will be familiar with Government Digital Service design practices and have a copy of Lou Downe’s 15 Principles of Good Services covered in post-it notes!

Our benefits

We offer a wide range of benefits to our employees, these include:

A team who will listen to, and appreciate, your ideas, and help make them happen
The opportunity to make a difference to peoples’ lives in an innovative and ambitious team
Generous annual leave entitlement starting at 27 days annual leave per year, 28 days for senior managers (pro rata, depending on how many hours per week you work), plus bank holidays. An additional 5 days, linked to continuous service, and ability to purchase up to 6 weeks additional leave per year.
Local Government Pension Scheme plus immediate life cover (3 times your annual salary from day one) and ill-health protection.
Employee discounts with local and national retailers, days out, finance, health and beauty, travel and eating out plus lots more.
Cycle to Work scheme
Car Lease scheme
Employee Assistance Programme - We have an employee support programme run by Health Assured, an independent, external organisation. Health Assured is available for you and your immediate family members, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year and includes telephone counselling, legal advice, bereavement support and medical information.
Ongoing training and development opportunities.
A variety of flexible working options to support your work/life balance, including full or part time, term time, 9-day fortnight, etc. (subject to business needs).
Our West Ways of Working – We want our workforce to thrive, and we equip our employees with the right technology to support hybrid and collaborative working, on or off site, depending on the role.
Making a difference - If you want to use your skills and experience with an organisation that are genuinely invested in making a difference, are committed to improving people's lives, and whose success has a direct impact on the wellbeing of your family, friends and people in your local area, then West Northamptonshire Council is the place for you.

The council is in the process of implementing a new pay structure and terms and conditions which will be applicable to this role.  The outcome could result in a future variation to the advertised salary, and this will be discussed at interview.

About us

Newly formed West Northants Council is revolutionising local authority digital services. Our strategy is visionary and ground-breaking - to provide innovative, user-led tools and services, to change lives for our residents. You'll join us on our journey as we create better end-to-end services for our councils and residents.

We need smart people! Armed, prepared and ready-to-go game-changers, visionaries, and challengers, people who want to go at 1,000 miles an hour - we’d rather run fast and learn quickly, than walk slowly and never change anything. You’ll work with like-minded, smart people; you’ll take old ways of doing things and challenge them. We’re big on removing barriers and busting constraints, so you’ll have what you need to help us transform this into a forward thinking, digital local authority that delivers public services in a progressive way.

Please apply as soon as you are ready – we are actively recruiting and may draw the role to close when suitable applications are received. We look forward to hearing from you soon!

If you have any questions about the role, please email Adele Gilpin (adele.gilpin@westnorthants.gov.uk)