UX UI Lead Designer

Cardiovascular Research Foundation•New York, NY

9d•$95,000 - $115,000•Hybrid

About The Position

The UX/UI Lead Designer is responsible for leading the strategy, design, and continuous improvement of intuitive, visually compelling, user-centered, and accessible digital experiences across CRF websites, mobile-responsive experiences, web applications, digital products, and email marketing communications (eBlasts). This senior individual-contributor role serves as CRF Digital’s lead UX/UI design subject-matter expert. The position establishes and advances UX/UI standards, accessible design practices, reusable design systems, and digital experience patterns across CRF Digital properties. The UX/UI Lead Designer partners closely with Digital Leads (Online News & Editorial, Business Development, Digital Development, Digital Marketing), AD of Creative Services & team, and other Marketing stakeholders across different CRF divisions to translate organizational objectives, audience needs, content requirements, and brand standards into high-quality digital solutions. The role leads design discovery, information architecture, interaction design, wireframing, prototyping, visual design, usability evaluation, and design quality assurance. The UX/UI Lead Designer is expected to provide strategic design direction, influence cross-functional decision-making, and ensure that accessibility is embedded throughout the design and delivery lifecycle.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in UX/UI Design, Interaction Design, Human-Computer Interaction, Graphic Design, Digital Media, Web Design, Computer Science, or a related field; an equivalent combination of education, relevant professional experience, and demonstrated portfolio work may be considered.
4-6 years of progressive professional experience in UX/UI design, product design, web design, digital experience design, interaction design, or a closely related discipline, including demonstrated ownership of complex, cross-functional digital initiatives.
Demonstrated experience leading end-to-end UX/UI design work for responsive websites, mobile experiences, landing pages, web applications, digital products, and/or HTML email campaigns.
A current online portfolio is required with application submission. The portfolio must demonstrate a range of relevant UX/UI design work and clearly communicate the candidate’s individual role and contributions. Portfolio case studies should include examples of problem definition, user flows, information architecture, wireframes, prototypes, visual/interface design, responsive design, accessibility considerations, design-system or component-based work, and delivered or implemented experiences.
Demonstrated professional expertise in digital accessibility, including the application of WCAG 2.1 or 2.2 Level AA standards, ADA-related digital accessibility practices, and inclusive-design principles.
Experience establishing, contributing to, or governing a design system, component library, or reusable UI pattern library.
Experience working in a collaborative, cross-functional environment with front-end and back-end developers, marketing and creative teams, editorial/content teams, project managers, business stakeholders, vendors, and/or external agencies.
Experience in healthcare, medical education, scientific publishing, nonprofit, association, conference/event, or another regulated industry is preferred.
Expert proficiency in Figma, including component libraries, variants, auto layout, prototyping, developer handoff, and design-system management; proficiency with Adobe Creative Cloud or similar visual-design tools is preferred.
Advanced command of user-centered design, interaction design, information architecture, responsive and mobile-first design, visual design, usability evaluation, and iterative product/design development.
Demonstrated ability to translate complex business, technical, editorial, and audience requirements into clear, scalable, user-centered design solutions.
Advanced knowledge of accessible design and accessibility-by-design practices, including WCAG 2.1/2.2 AA principles, color contrast, non-color indicators, keyboard interaction, focus management, accessible forms and error handling, semantic content structure, alternative text, captions, and screen-reader considerations.
Practical experience conducting or supporting accessibility audits and remediation, using tools and methods such as axe DevTools, WAVE, Lighthouse, browser accessibility inspectors, keyboard-only testing, and basic screen-reader testing.
Strong working knowledge of HTML and CSS, including sufficient technical fluency to collaborate effectively with developers, understand implementation constraints, review design fidelity, and identify common accessibility risks. Familiarity with JavaScript, front-end frameworks, and CMS platforms is preferred.
Demonstrated ability to create clear developer-ready documentation, including design specifications, annotations, interaction details, responsive behavior, component states, assets, and accessibility acceptance criteria.
Proven ability to establish design standards, manage multiple concurrent initiatives, facilitate design reviews, articulate design rationale, and influence stakeholders at varying levels of technical and design knowledge.
Excellent written, verbal, visual, presentation, organization, and project-management skills, with strong attention to quality, consistency, brand stewardship, and detail.

Nice To Haves

Accessibility certification or formal training, such as IAAP CPACC, WAS, CPWA, Trusted Tester, or equivalent coursework/certification.
Experience contributing to or maintaining a design system in Figma or a comparable design environment.
Experience working with content-management systems such as WordPress, Drupal, or similar platforms.
Experience collaborating with front-end development teams using tools such as Jira, Monday.com, Asana, Slack, GitHub, or similar project-management and collaboration platforms.
Familiarity with SEO, web performance, conversion-rate optimization, and digital analytics best practices.
Knowledge of medical, scientific, or healthcare content and familiarity with privacy-conscious digital experiences is a plus IAAP CPACC, WAS, CPWA, Trusted Tester, or comparable accessibility certification, training, or demonstrated professional practice.
Experience acting as a design lead or senior individual contributor responsible for UX/UI quality across multiple websites, products, campaigns, or digital properties.
Experience partnering with creative-services and brand teams to establish and enforce digital brand standards.
Experience in a CMS-driven environment, including WordPress, Drupal, Joomla, or similar content-management platforms.
Familiarity with digital analytics, conversion-rate optimization, SEO, email marketing platforms, and cross-client HTML email testing tools.
Knowledge of healthcare, medical/scientific content, privacy-conscious digital design, or regulated digital environments.

Responsibilities

Serve as the lead UX/UI design authority for CRF Digital, setting standards for user experience, interface design, interaction patterns, visual consistency, responsive design, and accessible digital experiences.
Lead and champion digital accessibility across CRF Digital properties. Ensure that UX/UI designs, reusable components, web experiences, and email communications are designed to meet or exceed WCAG 2.1/2.2 Level AA requirements and applicable ADA-related digital accessibility standards.
Establish, maintain, and evolve a scalable design system and component library, including design tokens, reusable components, interaction patterns, accessibility requirements, documentation, and governance processes.
Embed accessibility requirements into design systems, design specifications, prototypes, acceptance criteria, and quality-assurance processes, including requirements for color contrast, typography, keyboard navigation, focus states, semantic structure, headings, form controls, error handling, alternative text, captions, and screen-reader usability.
Provide strategic design direction and hands-on execution from discovery through launch, ensuring that digital solutions align with CRF brand standards, business objectives, user needs, and technical constraints.
Lead or coordinate accessibility reviews, document findings and remediation recommendations, and partner with development teams to validate accessible implementation through automated tools, keyboard testing, browser accessibility inspectors, and assistive-technology testing.
Lead the UX/UI design process for complex and high-priority initiatives, including stakeholder discovery, requirements definition, user flows, journey maps, information architecture, wireframes, interactive prototypes, high-fidelity visual design, and developer handoff.
Serve as a resource to internal teams on accessibility standards, inclusive-design principles, and practical approaches for creating accessible digital content and experiences.
Partner with AD of Creative Services to ensure consistent application and evolution of CRF brand standards across websites, digital products, email communications, campaigns, and other digital touchpoints.
Define and promote effective design workflows, review processes, file-management standards, design documentation, and quality-control practices that improve consistency, scalability, efficiency, and on-time delivery.
Provide design critique, constructive feedback, and subject-matter guidance to internal colleagues, contractors, agencies, and other project contributors.
Collaborate with project stakeholders to identify design risks, define success criteria, prioritize work, manage competing project needs, and recommend practical solutions.
Use qualitative and quantitative inputs—including user feedback, usability findings, web analytics, conversion data, and accessibility audits—to identify opportunities and lead iterative experience improvements.
Champion inclusive and accessible design practices throughout planning, design, implementation, testing, and quality assurance.
Attend CRF-sponsored and related conferences or meetings, where applicable.
Additional duties as assigned.