Staff Creative Director (Sand Table)

Anduril Industries•Seattle, WA

About The Position

As Creative Director for the Sand Table team, you will define and champion the creative vision for next-generation military wargaming and briefing experiences in XR environments. You will lead a talented team of artists, systems design, and scenario design while personally driving hands-on work to shape intuitive, compelling experiences that enable military stakeholders to interact with complex simulations and briefing tools. This role requires balancing strategic creative leadership with direct execution—owning the user experience and core gameplay features that make our XR platform essential for mission-critical operations.

Requirements

10+ years of professional experience in game design, experience design, or interactive simulation development
5+ years of leadership experience managing multidisciplinary design teams
Proven track record delivering AAA game experiences or complex interactive systems from concept to launch, with direct accountability for player experiences
Expertise in player systems, gameplay loops, and campaign design for strategy or simulation games
Experience designing for 3D environments, real-time visualization systems, or XR platforms
Strong portfolio demonstrating end-to-end ownership of design experiences in shipped products
Excellent written and verbal communication skills with experience presenting creative vision to executive, partner, and customer audiences
User-centric design philosophy with demonstrated use of analytics, feedback, and user research to inform decisions
Experience working in cross-functional environments, collaborating with engineering, art, UX, and production disciplines
Ability to balance creative innovation with production reality, business constraints, and customer requirements
Comfortable setting and achieving design goals in ambiguous environments with competing priorities
Proven track record of being self-driven and relentlessly proactive in solving design challenges without waiting for direction
Eligible to obtain and maintain an active U.S. Secret security clearance
Ability to travel up to 15% of the time to support customer meetings, user testing sessions, and field evaluations

Nice To Haves

Experience with AAA strategy, RTS, or simulation game development with shipped titles
Background in both art and design disciplines with understanding of production pipelines
Experience continuous content delivery models
Prior experience with defense applications, military simulations, or government customers
Understanding of Scrum/Agile methodologies and experience implementing team structures
Knowledge of spatial UI design principles and ergonomics for XR environments
Experience with Custom Game Engines, Unity or Unreal Engine

Responsibilities

Creative Vision & Team Leadership
Develop and communicate the overarching design for Sand Table's wargaming and briefing experiences, ensuring alignment with customer needs and business objectives
Establish design principles, quality standards, and design frameworks that drive consistency and excellence across all experiences
Lead the evolution of design team structure, processes, and best practices to scale with program growth
Foster a culture of design excellence, trust, open communication, user focus, and continuous improvement
Build, mentor, and manage a multidisciplinary design team including artists, systems designers, and scenario designers
Partner with engineering, production, and art leadership to align vision with technical execution
Act as a key stakeholder in release processes, representing user experience quality and approving final builds
Hands-on Design
Personally design and iterate on core experience features to create compelling scenario concepts and mission designs that demonstrate product capabilities for business development and customer engagements
Own end-to-end experience design from concept through production and post-launch iteration, ensuring user-centric outcomes
Develop design workflows and documentation using standardized frameworks that enhance scalability and production efficiency
Conduct design reviews, set clear priorities and expectations, translating stakeholder needs into actionable scope of work for your team
Prototype and validate design concepts directly in game engine environments
Conduct regular build reviews and provide feedback to ensure high-quality user experience throughout development
Customer & Stakeholder Engagement
Collaborate with product managers and military customers to understand operational requirements and translate them into intuitive, mission-effective experiences
Present and communicate design roadmaps and creative directions to stakeholders, ensuring alignment with customer expectations
Collaborate with business lines to scope design deliverables for contract budgets and proposals
Develop and maintain effective working relationships with stakeholders to ensure designs support successful mission outcomes from prototyping through production phases
Engage with users through testing sessions and feedback loops to validate design decisions

Benefits

Healthcare Benefits
US Roles: Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision plans at little to no cost to you.
UK & AUS Roles: We cover full cost of medical insurance premiums for you and your dependents.
IE Roles: We offer an annual contribution toward your private health insurance for you and your dependents.
Additional Benefits
Income Protection: Anduril covers life and disability insurance for all employees.
Generous time off: Highly competitive PTO plans with a holiday hiatus in December. Caregiver & Wellness Leave is available to care for family members, bond with a new baby, or address your own medical needs.
Family Planning & Parenting Support: Coverage for fertility treatments (e.g., IVF, preservation), adoption, and gestational carriers, along with resources to support you and your partner from planning to parenting.
Mental Health Resources: Access free mental health resources 24/7, including therapy and life coaching. Additional work-life services, such as legal and financial support, are also available.
Professional Development: Annual reimbursement for professional development
Commuter Benefits: Company-funded commuter benefits based on your region.
Relocation Assistance: Available depending on role eligibility.
Retirement Savings Plan
US Roles: Traditional 401(k), Roth, and after-tax (mega backdoor Roth) options.
UK & IE Roles: Pension plan with employer match.
AUS Roles: Superannuation plan.