User Experience Lead, Content Acquisition

We’re looking for a lead user experience designer to join a large programme of work - Content Acquisition - that looks at innovation and transformation of internal legacy systems and processes in the business.

Springer Nature has a portfolio of over 3,000 peer-reviewed journals and books across all areas of science. The Content Acquisition (CA) programme you’ll be joining has been looking at the legacy systems and processes across our imprints and working on creating a world-class submissions experience for our global audience of scientific researchers and editorial staff.

You will be part of the Springer Nature global UX team and embedded within the CA programme. The role can be based in London (UK), Lisbon (Portugal), or Berlin (Germany) working in-person and remotely with colleagues in these locations and elsewhere, such as Pune (India). 

About you

You are a User Experience lead that has experience collaborating with senior stakeholders to define, action and maintain a strategy.

You are able to lead a multi-disciplined UX team that feels trusted and empowered yet supported in delivering upon the strategy. Able to identify and act upon any resource gaps or issues that may arise. 

You will have previous experience working strategically at programme level. However, experience of publishing is not required but would be useful.

About the role

You will:

Within 3 months

• Understand the goals of the programme and the near-term challenges

• Familiarize yourself with current research and design artifacts such as personas, user archetypes and the service design blueprints.

• Work with UX leads in other domains and within the Customer Experience Group to understand the overall researcher experience, how this domain will support other initiatives, and where opportunities might be (e.g. single SN profile and sign on, third party portals, project Darwin, etc). 

• Identify and meet with key stakeholders and customers. 

• Work with your partner domain leads to develop and structure the domain so that it is set up to deliver excellent outcomes for our users and our business.

• Work with Snapp and Oasis UX leads, partners in UX Research, among others, to understand what research will be useful and to establish a longer-term research plan to fill gaps in understanding.

• Manage UXD resources for the domain, supporting the hiring goals, identifying where there are resourcing issues and escalating those to both the Head of UXD and Domain Lead.

• Working with the Snapp and Oasis UX leads, align the UXD team to work towards a user-centered approach to the domain's goals.

• Facilitate regular forums with the domain UX group to reduce silos, for knowledge sharing and other activities that help advance the impact of UX in the domain, discipline and organization.

Within 6 months

• Create a culture of research and testing on the programme in tandem with Lean product development.

• Get senior stakeholders and management on board with our research approach and how it moves the programme to deliver excellent user experiences. 

• Align the UX team towards a common vision of how researchers of all kinds need to interact with our platforms and services.

• Continue to collaborate closely with other UX leads to ensure that work programmes align and deliver for all our customers. 

• Provide UX insight and advice on decisions that affect the user experience when needed and appropriate at leadership and team level.

• Promote the work the UXD team does within the domain, to the wider company and beyond.

• Track and maintain record of UX resources and allocation in the domain, and escalate to both domain lead and Head of UX any gaps or risks. As required, work with the Head of UX to assist with recruitment activities, where you are the hiring manager, be actively engaged in the whole recruitment process to attract and assess potential candidates in a timely manner.

6 months +

• Work with the group product owner, VP of Product and senior stakeholders to define the longer-term vision and strategy.

• Working with the group product owner and VP of Product, shape the programme around users' actual overall experience – not individual tasks – and deliver maximum value to them and the business.

• Drive the definition of key measures of value to our different users and create the baseline for future on-going benchmarking and regular communication.

• Carry out domain level analysis of incoming big pieces in conjunction with the other CEG/domain leads, as well as breaking them down into sizeable chunks that can be allocated to programmes/teams for further detailed analysis.

• Ensure that discovery and innovation are at the heart of all work.

• Ensure user-centered design is increasingly part of the domain culture.

Line management responsibilities

You'll be line managing people, ensuring they're challenged, developing and becoming even better. You'll be mentor, coach, champion and supporter for your direct reports.

You will:

• Help create performance objectives and coach and monitor the progress of reports.

• Define job descriptions using our preferred "performance-based hiring" approach when gaps in resourcing are identified and drive the UXD recruitment within the domain.

• Deal with line management admin issues such as leave requests, sickness and approval of software and hardware requests.

• Escalate any HR issues to both the Head of UX and HR.

At Springer Nature, we value the diversity of our teams and work to build an inclusive culture, where people are treated fairly and can bring their differences to work and thrive. We empower our colleagues and value their diverse perspectives as we strive to attract, nurture and develop the very best talent.

Springer Nature was awarded Diversity Team of the Year at the 2022 British Diversity Awards. Find out more about our DEI work here.

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