Lead Service/Interaction Designer at Cabinet Office, UK Office/Remote, 6 Months, £Contract Rate

The Cabinet Office supports the Prime Minister and ensures the effective running of government. The Cabinet Office is also the corporate headquarters for the government, in partnership with HM Treasury, and takes the lead in certain critical policy areas. More information about the Cabinet Office can be found on its website at: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/cabinet-office

We are developing a Digital Assurance Navigator platform that translates complex policies into an automated, machine-readable rules engine. Because we are currently in the Alpha phase, we are prototyping an intelligent, AI-driven interface that interviews users about their project and dynamically generates a tailored, step-by-step checklist of exactly what is required to achieve compliance.

We are seeking a Service/Interaction Designer to help us map this complex ecosystem and design an intuitive, user-centred journey that removes friction and guides teams safely from inception to deployment.

As a user centred design practitioner, you'll be ensuring that our product is accessible and easy to use for our users. You will also be expected to engage with our active community of users, working closely with our user researcher and community designer to continuously update our engagement practices and product offering.

As a Lead Service / Interaction Designer your main responsibilities will be:

• Lead service design work.
• Work effectively in a multidisciplinary, agile environment, adapting quickly to changes in requirements, priorities or user needs.
• Use research and analytics to understand users needs, identify service failures and test different designs.
• Design collaboratively and in the open, engaging your whole team with the design process and adapting it if necessary.
• Identify and create new design patterns and components.
• Iterate and improve complex designs based on successive rounds of research.
• Independently prototype complex ideas at an appropriate fidelity.
• Adapt designs quickly to changes in requirements, priorities or user needs.
• Champion accessibility and inclusion, consider the impact of new technologies and ensure that designs meet legal requirements.
• Collaborate with designers in other teams and departments, reviewing each other 's work and developing shared patterns.

Essential:

• An active SC Clearance is an essential requirement for this role, as a minimum you must be willing & eligible to undergo checks. (Please note, due to the exceptional requirements of this position (short-term nature of this role and speed at which we require a postholder in situ) preference may be given to candidates who meet all of the essential criteria and hold active security clearance.) 
• Experience in designing the full lifecycle of services for users in complex environments.
• Experience of working in an agile environment in a multidisciplinary team and with non-digital stakeholders.
• Experience of working with the GOV.UK Design System and to GOV.UK standards (i.e. using HTML, Javascript and CSS).
• Understanding of inclusive and accessible design.
• Experience of documenting and communicating design decisions, related risks and any unresolved issues to digital and non-digital colleagues such as policy makers and data analysts.

Desirable:

• Experience of using the GOV.UK prototype kit.
• Experience of using risks, opportunities and constraints in technology, systems and policy to shape design.
• Working with government policy teams and those less familiar with technology.

Please be aware that this role can only be worked within the UK and not Overseas.

Disability Confident 

As a member of the Disability Confident Scheme, The Cabinet Office guarantees to interview all candidates who have a disability and who meet all the essential criteria for the vacancy. In cases where we have a high volume of candidates who have a disability who meet all the essential criteria, we will interview the best candidates from within that group. This scheme encourages candidates with a disability and/or neurodivergence to apply. In exceptional circumstances, we may also need to apply the desirable criteria in our shortlisting process which may include holding active security clearance.

Armed Forces Covenant

The Cabinet Office guarantees to interview veterans or spouses / partners of military personnel who meet all the essential criteria for the vacancy. In cases where we have a high volume of ex-military candidates / military spouses or partners, who meet all of the essential criteria, we will interview the best candidates from within that group. In exceptional circumstances, we may also need to apply the desirable criteria in our shortlisting process which may include holding active security clearance.

In applying for this role, you acknowledge the following this role falls in scope of the Off Payroll Working in the Public Sector legislation. Any rates of payment quoted will reflect the gross rate per day for the assignment and will be subject to appropriate taxes and statutory costs. As such the payment to the intermediary and your income resulting from this contract will be different.