Job Description: UX/UI Designer

About the Role

We are seeking a highly skilled UX/UI Designer to lead user experience and interface design for a large-scale, multi-stakeholder workforce and education technology project. This contract role will be responsible for translating complex requirements into intuitive, accessible, and visually compelling digital experiences that serve diverse audiences including students, job seekers, employers, administrators, and community partners.

This is a hands-on role that requires expertise in research, design systems, prototyping, and collaboration with product managers, engineers, and stakeholders. The ideal candidate brings proven experience designing enterprise SaaS or platform products, balancing user needs with scalability, technical feasibility, and business goals.

Key Responsibilities

• Conduct user research, workshops, and testing with students, job seekers, employers, and educators to capture requirements and validate design decisions.

• Develop information architecture, user flows, and journey maps that reflect multiple audience needs and align to workforce and education use cases.

• Create low- to high-fidelity wireframes and interactive prototypes using Figma (or similar) for validation and iteration.

• Build a design system with reusable components, patterns, typography, and color palettes that ensure scalability and consistency.

• Ensure designs meet accessibility standards (WCAG 2.2) and inclusive design practices, supporting mobile-first and responsive web experiences.

• Collaborate with product management and engineering teams to ensure accurate handoff and implementation of designs.

• Participate in Agile sprints (1–2 weeks), balancing speed of iteration with design quality and stakeholder feedback.

• Support co-design workshops and focus group sessions with community stakeholders to refine user experience.

• Provide visual brand alignment, ensuring design aesthetics support project mission while remaining user-friendly and professional.

• Prepare final design artifacts and documentation as part of a comprehensive Phase 2 delivery package.

Required Skills & Qualifications

• 5+ years of professional experience in UX/UI design for SaaS platforms, enterprise applications, or multi-user systems.

• Demonstrated ability to design for complex, multi-stakeholder ecosystems (education, workforce, HR tech, or related).

• Proficiency in design and prototyping tools such as Figma, Sketch, Adobe XD, InVision, or Zeplin.

• Experience creating and maintaining design systems and libraries.

• Strong knowledge of responsive design and accessibility standards (WCAG 2.2, ADA compliance).

• Solid portfolio showcasing work on user research, wireframes, prototypes, and high-fidelity UI.

• Excellent communication skills with ability to explain design decisions and facilitate workshops.

• Familiarity with Agile methodologies and sprint-based development cycles.

Preferred Skills

• Experience designing for AI-driven features (chatbots, recommendation systems, or data visualization).

• Knowledge of workforce, education, or HR technology platforms.

• Background in human-centered design, service design, or design thinking practices.

Contract Details

• Location: Houston preferred; open to remote with ability to travel for key workshops.