Senior Director, UX

Description: U.S. News & World Report is a multifaceted digital media company dedicated to helping citizens, consumers, business leaders and policy officials make important decisions in their lives. We publish independent reporting, rankings, data journalism and advice that has earned the trust of our readers and users for 90 years. Our platforms on usnews.com include Education, Health, Money, Travel, Cars, News and 360 Reviews.

We reach more than 40 million people monthly during moments when they are most in need of expert advice and motivated to act on that advice directly on our platforms. Our signature franchises include our “Best” series of consumer guides on colleges, graduate schools, hospitals, diets, cars, financial services and more. These guides provide an easy-to-digest list for consumers to better understand and compare when making their decisions. We continue to publish annual guides of the authoritative Best Colleges and Best Hospitals rankings on our website and in print. And our U.S. News Live flagship conferences highlight important national conversations including Healthcare of Tomorrow and Healthiest Communities.

We believe in having a broad range of talent and backgrounds at U.S. News. We strive to maintain a welcoming workplace where everyone is given an opportunity to succeed and contribute to their fullest. Learn more about our Diversity, Equity and Inclusion initiative.

Your role in helping us shape the future:

The (Senior) Director of User Experience (UX) & Product Design oversees the user experience, design, and user research strategies for the company. The (Senior) Director drives design thinking through a user-centric approach that aligns business goals with user goals and incorporates qualitative and quantitative research, competitive research, and analytic tools. Their success as a design leader is dependent on tight collaboration with cross-department stakeholders, including leaders in product, tech, SEO, and editorial. The (Senior) Director of UX & Product Design will oversee the design strategy for a wide variety of consumer products on usnews.com, a native mobile app, and our B2B platforms.

Are you up to the challenge?

• UX & design strategy: Define and socialize the UX, design, and user research strategies for the company via UX analyses and competitive research. Provide robust direction to the UX Team to guide execution on our user experience and product goals.
• User research program: Lead user research across the company by maintaining tools and processes, facilitating testing methods, guiding decision making, and analyzing results.
• Align user and business goals: Execute key business objectives with industry-leading user experience solutions. Ensure that design aligns with key goals including revenue programs and registration/customer acquisition.
• Proactive Iteration & Impact: Continuously introduce improvements to the user experience and visual language of the website and USN products. Engage in feedback loops with business leaders to understand the impact of UX decisions on key metrics. Map UX improvements to KPIs.
• UX team management: Manage UX Team operations through visual roadmaps, priorities and resource allocation. Hire and retain top talent. Provide iterative feedback, create opportunities for design collaboration, and facilitate team communication. Guide UX team members to execute on a holistic design vision for a wide variety of products.
• Subject matter expert: Consistently provide departments with specific, actionable recommendations for UX improvements across key metrics. Maintain a well-versed understanding of UX best practices.
• Cross-departmental collaboration: Collaborate with other teams, including Product and Tech, to resolve issues regarding UX decisions, process, and priorities.

Position Requirements: You should definitely have:

• 7+ years designing and shipping products as part of an in-house, cross-functional team preferably with a major web publisher or e-commerce company; inclusive of a minimum of 3 years of experience managing people.
• Proficient in industry-standard design tools like Figma, Adobe XD, Sketch, or similar.
• Expertise in user research techniques, including usability testing, A/B testing, surveys, and interviews.
• Knowledge of analytics tools like Google Analytics, Adobe Analytics or similar to track user behavior and measure design impact.
• Hands-on experience in designing and developing user interfaces using Material UI components and guidelines.
• Experience in creating and maintaining design systems, including style guides, component libraries, and pattern libraries.
• Strong communicator, ability to clearly communicate design decisions and sell other leaders on the value they provide.
• Understands how SEO impacts a consumer website and how to incorporate SEO best practices into UX decisions.
• Portfolio or case studies showcasing experience in executing on key business objectives through user experience.

It would be nice if you had:

• Thrives in a fast-paced environment.

What it’s like to work with us:

Talent is our best asset

We invest in people with passion and potential who understand U.S. News’ dedication to our consumers.

• Entrepreneurial, mission-driven culture with core values of quality and integrity.
• Focus on fostering personal and professional growth.
• Competitive benefits including paid vacation time, medical, tuition reimbursement, and training.
• Collaborative Work Environment ~ Fun, diverse, inclusive and ambitious co-workers.

Other Job Info:

• These statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by employees assigned to this job. This is not intended to be an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties, and skills required of employees assigned to this job.
• U.S. News & World Report strongly encourages all employees to be fully vaccinated (including boosters).
• Preference for New York or Washington, DC based applicants to work a hybrid schedule in those office locations. Remote applicants will be considered.
• The anticipated base salary for this position is $130,000 to $175,000. The actual base salary offered will depend on a variety of factors, including without limitation, the qualifications of the individual applicant for the position, years of relevant experience, level of education attained, certifications or other professional licenses held, interview performance, and if applicable, the location in which the applicant lives and/or from which they will be performing the job.

Full-Time/Part-Time: Full-Time

Number of Openings: 1

About the Organization: U.S. News & World Report is a publisher of news and information that empowers people to make better, more informed decisions about important issues affecting their lives.

EOE Statement: We are an equal employment opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status or any other characteristic protected by law.

Tags: This position is currently accepting applications.

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