Head of UX and Brand

About us

At National Grid, we keep people connected and society moving. But it’s so much more than that. National Grid supplies us with the environment to make it happen. As we generate momentum in the energy transition for all, we don’t plan on leaving any of our customers in the dark. So, join us as a Head of UX and Brand  and find your superpower. 

National Grid is hiring a Head of UX and Brand  - This position can be based from our Warwick or London office. Hybrid Working model.

Job Purpose

Reporting to the Head of Product Management the Head of User Experience (UX) Design is responsible for leading, coaching, developing and building a resilient and highly collaborative team of UX designers who are capable of analytical, creative design and can capture user needs and solve problems. 

The Head of UX & Brand inspires business and departmental culture, values, and brand promise. As the head of the UX department, there is a responsibility to forge a vision that the whole team can use as a direction in the performance of their duties. Articulating the team's vision for customer engagement through the production of a creative product ensuring that the business' product is relevant and engaging to the customer.

In addition to team leadership, this role is also expected to be a subject matter expert in their respective leadership discipline, the person who can remove blockers, solve problems and make decisions for their teams while also defining and executing the strategy for their own discipline. Section 1 - General Information The role also has accountability to deputise for their line manager (whenever necessary) and is expected to support the IT&D leadership team while also driving a positive culture (primarily through role modelling) across the information technology & digital department and wider business 

Key Accountabilities

• UX Strategy: Own and implement the UX strategy to meet organisational needs, focusing on future roadmaps, innovation, and design methodologies.

• Team Leadership: Build and develop a high-performing UX team that delivers user-centred design solutions and fosters continuous improvement.

• Objective Alignment: Define UX objectives that align with individual growth, business priorities, and NGED’s strategic goals.

• Stakeholder Engagement: Collaborate with senior stakeholders to embed UX in decision-making processes.

• Budget Management: Oversee the UX budget, optimally allocating resources for research, design, and usability initiatives.

• Training and Development: Assess and manage the training needs of the UX team for continuous professional growth.

• Third-Party Management: Manage relationships with third parties on UX projects, ensuring clear scopes and adherence to budgets and quality expectations.

• Business Alignment: Ensure UX solutions align with business goals, balancing commercial viability and accessibility standards.

• Agile Advocacy: Champion Agile and human-centred design methodologies, embedding best practices within Agile frameworks.

• Resource Oversight: Manage UX team resources across projects, retaining key skills and optimising design expertise.

• Design Leadership: Advocate for UX principles, accessibility, and inclusive design within the organisation.

• Risk and Compliance: Foster a culture of risk assessment, ensuring compliance with governance frameworks and regulatory requirements.

• Operational Optimisation: Lead the UX team in establishing efficient design workflows that integrate with Agile development.

• Deputy Role: Represent UX in strategic discussions as needed, acting as a deputy for the Head of Product Management.

• Business Support: Undertake additional duties to support the execution of business and digital strategies.

• Collaboration with Leaders: Partner with senior leaders to align business, product, and UX vision, enhancing customer satisfaction.

• Best Practices: Lead cross-functional teams in experience design planning, ensuring UX best practices are embedded within the SAFe framework.

• Compliance and Viability: Ensure UX solutions are commercially viable and adhere to design principles and accessibility standards.

• Iterative Improvements: Champion a human-centred design approach to drive data-driven UX improvements.

• Product Management Alignment: Maintain strong alignment with product management and engineering to integrate UX strategies into development lifecycles.

• UX Execution Accountability: Execute the UX strategy across digital platforms, ensuring alignment with key business KPIs.

• Agile Practices Promotion: Promote Agile UX practices, embedding processes like rapid prototyping and usability testing.

About you

• Strong Decision-Making Ability: Demonstrate a robust capacity for making informed decisions that drive positive outcomes.

• Exceptional Communicator: Possess outstanding interpersonal skills with extensive experience in stakeholder management, effectively engaging with diverse audiences.

• Influencing Skills: Exhibit strong influencing capabilities, adept at communicating technical information clearly and concisely to both technical and non-technical stakeholders.

• Team Development: Excel in working with people, fostering team development through coaching, training, facilitating, and collaboration.

• Knowledge of NGED Product Suite: Have detailed knowledge and experience with the National Grid Electricity Distribution (NGED) product suite.

• Adaptability Under Pressure: Able to thrive under pressure, adapting to shifting priorities and demands while promptly updating stakeholders on potential or actual impacts to delivery timelines.

• High Self-Awareness: Demonstrate high self-awareness and emotional intelligence, recognising the impact of personal behaviour on others.

• Commitment to Continuous Development: Show eagerness to continually develop through high-quality training and staying abreast of the latest industry trends, engaging in regular self-reflection and mentoring.

• Clear Communication of Complex Concepts: Possess excellent communication skills, capable of conveying complex concepts in a clear and understandable manner.

• Subject Matter Expert (SME) Leadership: Act as a SME leader and role model within the delivery community and the wider NGED organisation.

• Engaging Presentation Skills: Create engaging content for presentations aimed at executive leadership, business stakeholders, and cross-functional product department personnel.

• Interpersonal and People Skills: Exhibit strong interpersonal skills that facilitate smooth interactions with all parties, enabling effective collaboration and task performance in cross-functional settings.

What you'll get

A competitive salary £80,000 - £92,000 – dependent on capability.

As well as your base salary, you will receive a company car or allowance, a bonus of up to 20% of your salary for stretch performance, and a competitive contributory pension scheme where we will double match your contribution to a maximum company contribution of 12%. You will also have access to a number of flexible benefits such as a share incentive plan, a salary sacrifice technology scheme, support via the employee assistance line, and matched charity giving to name a few.

More Information

The closing date for this vacancy is 22nd August. However, we encourage candidates to submit their applications as early as possible and not to wait until the published closing date. National Grid’s recruitment periods can and may vary. We reserve the right to remove this advert or close it to further applications at any point during the recruitment process.

DE & I statement:

At National Grid, we work towards the highest standards in everything we do, including how we support, value, and develop our people. Our aim is to encourage and support employees to thrive and be the best they can be. We celebrate the difference people can bring into our organisation and welcome and encourage applicants with diverse experiences and backgrounds, offering flexible and tailored support, at home and in the office.

Our goal is to drive, develop, and operate our business in a way that results in a more inclusive culture. All employment is decided on the basis of qualifications, the innovation from diverse teams & perspectives, and business need. We are committed to building a workforce that can represent the communities we serve and have a working environment in which each individual feels valued, respected, fairly treated, and able to reach their full potential.

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