Senior Design Strategist

Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory•Laurel, MD

About The Position

Does working with multi-disciplinary teams to tackle complex challenges and rapidly deliver human-centered solutions energize you? Do you have knowledge of human centered design, innovation, and strategic planning methods, and are always working to expand and further develop your skills? Are you motivated by delivering high-impact products, services, and experiences that solve complex challenges? If so, we’re looking for someone like you to join our team at APL! Who We Are APL’s Human Centered Design Group is a multi-disciplinary team of engineers, designers, and makers who apply Human Centered Design (HCD) and Design Thinking (DT) methodologies to take on gnarly national security challenges. We immerse ourselves in the use-case environment and collaborate with government and industry partners to rapidly develop impactful, concepts, prototypes, and user experiences. We’re relentlessly focused on the humans at the center of every challenge and believe that authentic connections, intellectual humility, and endless curiosity are the keys to developing and delivering the most powerful solutions. Who We’re Searching For We are seeking Senior Design Strategists to lead multi-functional teams in the application of DT and HCD to frame opportunity areas and deliver novel solutions to gnarly challenges! As a strategy leader in APL’s Human Centered Design Group, you will work with talented teammates to conduct rigorous user research across the national security ecosystem and define all aspects of end-to-end solution design, ranging from product to organizational to service design. As a Design Strategist, you will… Be a vital member of the Human Centered Design Group, joining multi-functional teams passionate about developing novel concepts and solutions for our customers. Demonstrate an understanding of design principles, contextual inquiry, and how to translate research into solutions and requirements. Incorporate strategic and operational planning methods to guide problem framing, design decisions, and implementation/transition pathways. Apply qualitative and quantitative research and analytic methods to identify patterns between various user groups, workflows, and emerging technology trends. Design simple, easy to understand, and impactful outcomes ensuring customer relevance and partnership throughout the process. Scout for opportunities to solve emerging national security problems in unusual and innovative ways. Commit to growing your expertise, learning new approaches, and applying human centered design methods in new and novel ways . Mentor other design thinking practitioners and strategists. Use iterative and collaborative methods to establish a number of design decisions and scenarios on short timelines Explore new ways to create compelling pitches, stories, presentations, and workshops for teammates and customers alike. Note: This job summary and listing of duties is for the purpose of describing the position and its essential functions at time of hire and may change over time.

Requirements

BA/BS or MA/MS in a relevant field, including Interactive, Visual, or Product Design; Human Factors; Psychology; Cognitive Science; Engineering; or equivalent professional experience, with a minimum of 7 years of related experience.
Experience using design thinking or human-centered design frameworks as an approach to problem solving.
Training in human-centered design, design thinking, experience design, product design, industrial design, and strategic planning, or equivalent educational or professional experience.
Experience planning, conducting, and communicating user research findings to a broad group of partners.
Experience planning and/or conducting both qualitative and quantitative research.
Willingness to travel up to 30% of the time. Locations are TBD, but include Naval Bases, Research Locations, and meeting in geographies such as San Diego, Hawaii, Norfolk, Groton, and San Francisco.
Hold an active Top Secret level security clearance and can ultimately obtain a TS/SCI level security clearance. If selected, you will be subject to a government security clearance investigation and must meet the requirements for access to classified information. Eligibility requirements include U.S. citizenship.

Nice To Haves

Experience in federal government, federal government consulting, or equivalent.
Experience working with Joint and Service Staff, Combatant Commands, and the Intelligence Community
Strong visual, written, and/or oral story-telling capabilities.
Experience quoting and planning complex front-end innovation projects in a consulting or design firm environment.
Product or project management experience and/or credentials.
An active Secret or Top Secret security clearance or above.
Experience with Agile and other development methodologies.

Responsibilities

Be a vital member of the Human Centered Design Group, joining multi-functional teams passionate about developing novel concepts and solutions for our customers.
Demonstrate an understanding of design principles, contextual inquiry, and how to translate research into solutions and requirements.
Incorporate strategic and operational planning methods to guide problem framing, design decisions, and implementation/transition pathways.
Apply qualitative and quantitative research and analytic methods to identify patterns between various user groups, workflows, and emerging technology trends.
Design simple, easy to understand, and impactful outcomes ensuring customer relevance and partnership throughout the process.
Scout for opportunities to solve emerging national security problems in unusual and innovative ways.
Commit to growing your expertise, learning new approaches, and applying human centered design methods in new and novel ways .
Mentor other design thinking practitioners and strategists.
Use iterative and collaborative methods to establish a number of design decisions and scenarios on short timelines
Explore new ways to create compelling pitches, stories, presentations, and workshops for teammates and customers alike.