Principal UX Designer
MBTA
Posted 9 months ago
At the Customer Technology Department (CTD), our mission is to apply modern principles of research, design, and technology to make our transit system easy for all riders to use. Effective and equitable public transit is essential to the social, economic, and environmental progress of Greater Boston.
The MBTA Customer Technology team is working to transform how people get around the Boston area.
We are a team of designers, engineers, product and content specialists charged with bringing novel ideas, modern standards and a user-centered approach to technology at the T. As the MBTA works to reinvent itself, we have a rare opportunity to craft the future of transportation for Boston and communities all around Eastern Massachusetts, as well as pioneer innovations for other transit agencies around the country.
Do you want to improve the daily transportation experience for 4.7 million people in the Boston region? Ready for the challenge? Then read on.
This role will work across product and project teams to support an accessible and consistent digital experience for MBTA riders and operations staff. They will mentor a team of dedicated Product and UX Designers in deepening the impact and scale of their work. This person will work to connect the digital experience across products and improve the processes and deliverables of Product Designers. They will join a peer group that includes a Principal User Experience Researcher and Lead Content Strategist. This role reports to the Director of Product Design.
Day to day, you will:
- Work with the Director of Product Design to establish accessible and user-centered design practices and standards.
- Identify frameworks, processes, and tools that enable CTD to support user needs consistently and effectively. Implement or advocate for needed frameworks, processes, or tools.
- Work with the Director of Product Design to plan for, evaluate, and test tools to support Product Design at CTD, including software and services.
- Occasionally execute product and user experience work, either as a consultant to other CTD teams or as the lead designer for special initiatives.
- Consult with program leaders to define design needs for new projects, ensuring that the user experience is considered from the beginning.
- Communicate and collaborate with the Principal User Experience Researcher and Lead Content Strategist to execute strategic work within the Product Design Organization.
- With support from the Director of Product Design, manage a subset of product designers; hold 1:1s, address or elevate their needs, support their work, and hold them accountable as needed.
- Support the Director of Product Design in hiring and leveling efforts.
We want to hear from you if:
- You are empathetic: You know how to build trust by centering users. You see users as experts in their field and in their own experience. You seek to collaborate with and empower users in the design process.
- You are a systems-oriented designer who brings experience, frameworks, and repeatable approaches to new problem spaces. You understand the value of bespoke design solutions, but you seek to exhaust existing knowledge and options first.
- You are comfortable with complexity: The MBTA is a 120-year-old transit agency with a huge number of moving parts. To design the right solutions, our team needs to understand the complexities of running transit services, the business operations of the MBTA, and how riders and staff interact with the system.
- You believe in collaboration across disciplines. CTD teams are generally interdisciplinary, so you’re able to work closely with Product Management, Engineering, data specialists, and Content in an agile environment. As a Designer, you’ll help communicate design and content intent to your team members to ensure we deliver rider-facing information consistently.
- You are communicative: CTD is a group of interdisciplinary teams who work within a large public agency. You’re able to take design prototypes, feature ideas, research and testing results, and other design outputs, and communicate them to internal stakeholders clearly and effectively.
Work experience guidelines:
- Although we’re mostly interested in your ability to do the work listed above as demonstrated in your portfolio, here are some guidelines on the capabilities and experience we think might be most suited for this role. Please keep in mind that these are advisory, and not required.
- 10+ years of professional experience in user experience design, product design, interface design, interaction design, or a related field
- Experience doing or leading design work across multiple connected product
- Experience designing with a design system of any variety
- Experience working on a cross-functional team
- Mentorship or leadership experience
- Experience using online collaboration tools (e.g., Slack, Asana, etc.)
- Solid understanding of accessible design principles for the web and for physical spaces
- Familiarity with the MBTA transit system as a rider
- Formal education in design, usability, fine art, writing, or a related field, which could be a college degree, a bootcamp, a certificate program, or something else entirely
Location:
This role is hybrid. While most activities can be accomplished remotely, a component of this role requires in-person working sessions.
Unfortunately, we are unable to hire candidates who would perform their work in California, Connecticut, Washington DC, Hawaii, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Washington, West Virginia, and Puerto Rico.
Compensation:
Pay rate range is $85 - $115 per hour (W-2), up to 1880 hours per year.
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion:
CTD is dedicated to creating a diverse and inclusive environment—it’s essential to the work we do. In order to effectively partner with MBTA departments and do our best work for riders, our team must reflect the wide variety of people who use the MBTA’s services. We welcome people with different strengths, experiences, and backgrounds who share a passion for improving people's lives. Our team is deeply committed to diversity, inclusion, and continual learning. We strive to foster an environment where each individual is valued, feels a sense of belonging, and is welcomed to bring their best self to work.
Here at CTD, we provide equal opportunity for all employees and applicants. We recruit, hire, train, promote, compensate, and manage all personnel without regard to race, color, national origin, cultural identification or expression, socioeconomic background, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, family status, marital status, learning style, neurodiversity, genetics, disability, age, veteran status, or any other non-merit based or legally protected grounds.
Research has shown that women and people of color are less likely to apply for roles unless they believe they meet all qualifications. We strongly encourage candidates from marginalized groups to apply, even if you don't believe you meet every one of the job qualifications listed. We’re committed to maximizing the diversity of our team and want to hear from anyone who is passionate about our efforts and interested in supporting our work for riders.