UI/UX Designer

Guidehouse•Rockville, MD

23d•$98,000 - $163,000•Onsite

About The Position

The ideal candidate is a user-centered designer with strong web form experience who can create accessible, intuitive, and compliant digital experiences for a mission-critical federal grants platform. This role emphasizes Section 508 compliance, usability, form design, stakeholder engagement, and continuous improvement of public-facing Grants.gov capabilities. As a UI/UX Designer, you will design and improve user experiences for Grants.gov web applications, online forms, applicant and grantor workflows, help content, chatbot-related touchpoints, and public-facing digital services. You will work closely with federal stakeholders, product owners, developers, testers, accessibility specialists, content contributors, helpdesk partners, IV&V teams, and modernization teams to translate user needs, requirements, usability findings, and compliance expectations into clear, accessible, and implementable designs. You will help ensure Grants.gov interfaces and web forms are intuitive, browser-compatible, Section 508 compliant, and aligned with HHS EPLC expectations, federal accessibility standards, and the needs of diverse public users and agency stakeholders.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree . Additional Four(4) years of exp needed in lieu of degree.
5+ years of experience in UI/UX design, interaction design, service design, product design, or human-centered design for web applications, enterprise systems, or public-facing digital services.
Demonstrated experience designing web forms, digital workflows, data entry experiences, validation patterns, error messages, help text, and accessible form layouts.
Strong working knowledge of Section 508 requirements and accessibility practices for web applications and forms, including screen reader support, keyboard accessibility, focus management, semantic structure, color contrast, labels, instructions, and error prevention.
Experience translating user needs, business requirements, technical constraints, and compliance requirements into wireframes, prototypes, design specifications, and implementation-ready recommendations.
Experience conducting usability reviews, stakeholder interviews, accessibility reviews, heuristic evaluations, and user-centered analysis to improve digital products and services.
Ability to coordinate effectively with product owners, federal stakeholders, developers, testers, accessibility specialists, content teams, helpdesk partners, IV&V teams, and other contractors.
Strong understanding of: Human-centered design, usability, information architecture, interaction design, and content clarity Accessible web and form design patterns aligned with Section 508 expectations Responsive design, browser compatibility, design systems, and reusable interface components Form validation, error handling, instructional content, data entry efficiency, and user support needs Design documentation, accessibility findings, usability recommendations, and stakeholder presentations
Experience using design and collaboration tools such as Figma, Sketch, Adobe Creative Cloud, Axure, Mural, Jira, Azure DevOps, Confluence, SharePoint, Microsoft Teams, or similar platforms.
Excellent communication, facilitation, visual storytelling, problem-solving, and stakeholder engagement skills with the ability to explain design rationale and accessibility considerations to executive, federal, technical, and non-technical audiences.
Must be able to OBTAIN and MAINTAIN a Federal or DoD "PUBLIC TRUST"; candidates must obtain approved adjudication of their PUBLIC TRUST prior to onboarding with Guidehouse. Candidates with an ACTIVE PUBLIC TRUST or SUITABILITY are preferred.

Nice To Haves

Experience supporting federal grants management systems, shared service platforms, or large public-facing government applications.
Experience with HHS, ACF, CMS, HRSA, NIH, or other federal grant-making agencies.
Knowledge of HHS Enterprise Performance Life Cycle (EPLC), federal IT governance, accessibility documentation, testing evidence, and compliance-driven delivery environments.
Experience applying Section 508, WCAG, U.S. Web Design System, or similar federal accessibility and design standards to public-facing websites, forms, workflows, or enterprise applications.
Experience with Grants.gov-like capabilities, including funding opportunity search, applicant registration, application submission, grantor user management, online/offline forms, XML/PDF form outputs, help content, or status messaging.
Experience supporting website updates, broken link remediation, public-facing user support content, chatbot feedback loops, helpdesk escalation analysis, or customer satisfaction improvement efforts.
Experience supporting modernization, consolidation, transition-in, or multi-vendor integration initiatives involving multiple applications and stakeholder organizations.
Relevant certifications or credentials such as: Certified Professional in Accessibility Core Competencies (CPACC), Web Accessibility Specialist (WAS), or equivalent accessibility credential
Human-centered design, UX design, service design, or product design certification
U.S. Web Design System, Section 508, WCAG, or accessibility testing training
SAFe, Agile, or product delivery certification

Responsibilities

Design intuitive, accessible, and user-centered experiences for Grants.gov web applications, online forms, applicant workflows, grantor workflows, public website content, and related digital services.
Create wireframes, prototypes, user flows, journey maps, form layouts, interaction patterns, and design specifications that support usability, accessibility, and implementation by development teams.
Design and improve web forms that are platform- and browser-independent, reduce duplicate data entry, support validation and simple calculations, and align with Grants.gov forms requirements.
Ensure designs, forms, content layouts, and interaction patterns comply with Section 508 requirements and accessibility best practices, including keyboard navigation, screen reader compatibility, color contrast, focus order, labels, instructions, and error handling.
Conduct usability reviews, accessibility reviews, heuristic evaluations, stakeholder interviews, and technical requirements interviews to identify user pain points and improvement opportunities.
Collaborate with developers and testers to validate that implemented designs meet usability, accessibility, browser compatibility, responsive design, and Section 508 expectations.
Support corrective and preventative maintenance for website and form-related user experience issues, including broken links, confusing content, layout inconsistencies, inaccessible interactions, and helpdesk escalation trends.
Partner with content, communications, outreach, and helpdesk teams to improve user documentation, online help, FAQs, troubleshooting guidance, release notes, status updates, and other public-facing materials.
Support Grants.gov chatbot and AI-enabled customer support touchpoints by reviewing conversation flows, feedback patterns, content gaps, missed intents, and user experience opportunities.
Prepare design artifacts, accessibility findings, usability recommendations, wireframes, prototypes, and presentation materials consistent with HHS EPLC, program documentation, and stakeholder communication needs.
Present design recommendations, usability findings, accessibility risks, tradeoffs, and implementation considerations clearly to executive, federal, technical, and non-technical audiences.

Benefits

Medical, Rx, Dental & Vision Insurance
Personal and Family Sick Time & Company Paid Holidays
Parental Leave
401(k) Retirement Plan
Group Term Life and Travel Assistance
Voluntary Life and AD&D Insurance
Health Savings Account, Health Care & Dependent Care Flexible Spending Accounts
Transit and Parking Commuter Benefits
Short-Term & Long-Term Disability
Tuition Reimbursement, Personal Development, Certifications & Learning Opportunities
Employee Referral Program
Corporate Sponsored Events & Community Outreach
Care.com annual membership
Employee Assistance Program
Supplemental Benefits via Corestream (Critical Care, Hospital Indemnity, Accident Insurance, Legal Assistance and ID theft protection, etc.)
Position may be eligible for a discretionary variable incentive bonus