21GRAMS - Director, Product Design (UI)

Description

The agency is a healthcare-focused advertising and communications firm and a subsidiary of a larger group. It works across healthcare communications and marketing for clients, including major pharmaceutical and biotech companies, and operates globally.

The agency's values are Best Together, Impact-Obsessed, Excellence Expected, Evolve Always and Accountability with an I. It holds Great Place to Work certification.

This is a senior design leadership role. You set the product design direction, raise the standard of the work and give teams what they need to deliver cohesive, accessible and effective digital experiences across websites, platforms, products, services and connected ecosystems.

The role turns user needs, brand strategy, business goals, technical limits and healthcare requirements into clear experience direction. It is not purely hands-on: you own design strategy, client leadership, team development, resourcing, design operations and measurable results, while staying close enough to the work to guide key decisions, run discovery, critique designs and step in at high-impact moments.

Success means clients see product design as a strategic partner, teams have clear direction and decision criteria, the portfolio becomes more consistent, accessible and high quality, designers grow measurably through strong coaching, the practice scales through better systems and ways of working, and recommendations tie to defined user, client and business outcomes.

Responsibilities

• Define the product design vision and experience strategy across a set of complex client engagements, linking user needs, brand intent, business objectives and technical feasibility.
• Work with experience strategy, UX, product management, creative, technology, data, medical, strategy and account leads to shape opportunities, set roadmaps and agree measurable outcomes.
• Run discovery and definition work: align stakeholders, set experience principles, frame journeys, map service blueprints, shape value propositions, prioritise, and plan products or platforms.
• Spot opportunities beyond the original brief and turn them into clear recommendations that clients and agency leaders can act on.
• Set a high bar for interaction, visual, responsive, content hierarchy, prototyping, motion and end-to-end coherence.
• Guide teams from early concepts through detailed design, validation, launch and optimisation, keeping the strategy intact during build.
• Oversee design systems, component libraries, pattern governance and Figma documentation, working with engineers to raise quality and speed up delivery.
• Build accessibility in from the start using WCAG 2.2 AA principles and inclusive design, not as a final check.
• Use qualitative research, analytics, usability findings and business measures to judge design decisions and recommend iteration.
• Act as a trusted senior design partner, explaining strategy, rationale, trade-offs, risks and recommendations to executives and working teams.
• Lead high-stakes presentations, workshops, critiques and decision sessions to align internal and external stakeholders.
• Work with project and account leads on scope, staffing, schedules, assumptions and change, raising delivery risks early with practical fixes.
• Represent product design in new business, estimates, proposals, capability presentations and pitches.
• Manage, coach and grow product designers at all levels through clear expectations, actionable feedback, growth plans and regular career conversations.
• Build a team where designers do their best work, with strong critique, psychological safety, accountability and sensible delegation.
• Partner with experience leadership on hiring, staffing, performance, succession and capability building.
• Improve the practice through reusable methods, templates, standards, training and responsible use of new tools, including AI-enabled workflows.
• Encourage collaboration across product design, UX, creative, technology and strategy to reduce silos and keep work continuous from concept to launch.

Requirements

• 10+ years in product design, experience design, interaction design or a related field, including 3+ years managing and developing designers.
• A portfolio showing leadership on complex, multi-channel digital products or platforms, from strategy and concept through detailed design to launch.
• Experience leading several workstreams or a portfolio of client work in an agency, consultancy, product organisation or similarly complex setting.
• Deep skill in human-centred design, interaction design, visual systems, prototyping, responsive design, information architecture and design systems.
• Strong working knowledge of Figma and modern collaborative design workflows.
• Practical knowledge of accessibility standards, including WCAG 2.2 AA, and the ability to guide teams toward inclusive experiences.
• Proven ability to work with engineering, product, research, content, analytics, strategy, creative and account teams.
• Excellent executive communication, facilitation, storytelling, critique, negotiation and stakeholder management skills.
• Experience setting design outcomes and using research, usability testing, analytics and performance data to improve experiences.
• Comfort with ambiguity, making informed trade-offs, and balancing strategic leadership with hands-on help when the work needs it.
• Helpful: familiarity with Adobe Creative Cloud and with prototyping or motion tools.
• You move between the big picture and the detail that makes an experience work.
• You are direct, low-ego and generous with feedback, while still challenging the work and supporting the people doing it.
• You bring structure to ambiguity and help teams decide faster.
• You care about craft but judge success by quality, usefulness, accessibility and impact.
• The company values above really speak to you.
• You adapt your scope, responsibilities and focus as the agency grows.
• You are proactive, driven and resourceful, with strong prioritisation skills and a appetite for data.
• You are an organised self-starter who can work independently and under tight deadlines.
• Preferred: healthcare, pharmaceutical, patient support, medical technology or other regulated-industry experience.
• Preferred: experience with privacy, consent, regulated content and design needs for patients, caregivers and healthcare professionals.
• Preferred: experience supporting business development, scoping, estimating and presenting capabilities or pitch work.
• Preferred: experience leading enterprise websites, authenticated platforms, service ecosystems, omnichannel programmes or AI-enabled experiences.

Conditions

The agency expects to pay within a stated range for this role at the time of posting. Pay depends on job-related, non-discriminatory factors such as work experience, skills, certifications and geographic location, and the range may be changed at any time.

Work arrangements vary by role and location. Some roles are hybrid or remote, while others are office-based, including certain teams and regions such as some UK operations.

Employees within a one-hour commute of an office attend in person two days a week, either at an office or when working onsite with clients.

Employees in regions without a nearby office may work remotely and meet up during the year for collaboration, culture and learning.

If you need more flexibility, you can discuss it with your recruiter and the HR team.

Be wary of scammers using the agency's name. Never share personal or financial details or make payments to unverified contacts claiming a link to the agency.

Benefits

• Free snacks in offices in key markets.
• Generous holiday and paid time off.
• Options for private medical, dental and vision plans.
• Support for saving for the future.
• Mental wellness coaching and support.
• Access to more than 13,000 online classes through LinkedIn Learning.
• Benefits and perks tailored to your region.