Design Manager

📍 Job Overview

Job Title: Design Manager

Company: IVC Evidensia

Location: Remote, England, United Kingdom (with potential for hybrid in City of London, Greater London, England)

Job Type: Full-Time

Category: Design Leadership / Product Design Management

Date Posted: August 19, 2026

Experience Level: Mid-Senior Level (equivalent to 5+ years for Customer role, 2+ years for Clinics role)

Remote Status: Remote First (Hybrid options available)

🚀 Role Summary

• Lead and develop a team of Product Designers, focusing on both individual growth and team performance within a fast-paced digital product environment.

• Drive the delivery of high-quality, user-centered digital experiences across either customer-facing ecosystems or internal clinic operations.

• Partner closely with Product and Engineering leadership to influence product strategy, manage capacity, and ensure efficient delivery of ambitious ideas.

• Act as a player-coach, staying hands-on with design craft while guiding the team and upholding design quality standards through critiques and reviews.

• Contribute to building and scaling the design team by leading hiring efforts and setting a high talent bar for future growth.

📝 Enhancement Note: The "Design Manager" title, coupled with the description of leading teams of Product Designers and partnering with Product/Engineering leadership, strongly indicates a Revenue Operations or Go-To-Market (GTM) adjacent role, specifically within the product development lifecycle that directly impacts customer acquisition, retention, and operational efficiency. The focus on user experience for both pet owners (customer-facing) and veterinary professionals (clinic-facing) highlights the critical role of design in driving adoption and satisfaction, which are key GTM metrics.

📈 Primary Responsibilities

• Coach and develop Product Designers at various levels, providing regular feedback, supporting career progression, and setting clear performance expectations.

• Own team health and delivery by balancing priorities, managing capacity, and ensuring the well-being of design team members in collaboration with Product and Engineering.

• Lead hiring processes for Product Designers, maintain a high talent bar, and shape the team's skills and experience to meet evolving business needs.

• Elevate the quality of design output through effective coaching, constructive critique sessions, and design reviews to ensure cohesive and brilliant user experiences.

• Represent the Design function in leadership discussions with Product and Engineering counterparts, contributing to strategic priorities, delivery planning, capacity assessment, and risk management.

• Actively participate in design craft, jumping into Figma, prototyping, or unblocking team members as needed to maintain momentum and quality.

• Drive the design strategy for either the customer-facing digital ecosystem (bookings, accounts, communications) or the clinics ecosystem (veterinary professional tools, practice management).

• Ensure end-to-end journey thinking and system-level design approaches are adopted by the team, moving beyond individual screen design.

📝 Enhancement Note: The responsibilities clearly point to a GTM enablement and customer experience optimization focus. Leading design for customer-facing digital ecosystems directly impacts lead generation, conversion rates, and customer satisfaction. Similarly, optimizing the clinic ecosystem enhances operational efficiency, which indirectly supports GTM by improving service delivery and client retention. The emphasis on "brilliant, joined-up experiences" is a direct link to customer journey mapping and sales enablement.

🎓 Skills & Qualifications

Education: A strong foundation in design principles is expected, though a specific degree is not explicitly stated. A Bachelor's degree in Design, HCI, Computer Science, or a related field would be advantageous.

Experience:

• Design Manager – Customer: Approximately 5+ years of experience managing and developing Product Designers in complex digital product environments, with a strong Product Design background.

• Design Manager – Clinics: Approximately 2+ years of experience managing and developing Product Designers, with a strong Product Design background and ambition for broader strategic leadership.

Required Skills:

• Proven track record of coaching, mentoring, and developing Product Designers, including career progression and performance management.

• Experience leading design teams within fast-moving product organizations, balancing quality with pace and delivery.

• Strong ability to think in systems and design end-to-end user journeys.

• Excellent stakeholder management skills, with the ability to build strong partnerships with Product, Engineering, and senior leadership.

• Proficiency in modern design practices, including hands-on experience with Figma, prototyping, and user research methodologies.

• Experience in hiring Product Designers and building high-performing teams.

• Exceptional communication and interpersonal skills, demonstrating kindness, humility, and authenticity.

• Comfort with ambiguity, evolving priorities, and shaping underdeveloped areas. Preferred Skills:

• Experience with Design Systems.

• Familiarity with AI-enabled design tools.

• Experience with consumer products at scale.

• Experience in multi-market organizations.

• Experience growing design teams.

• Background in healthcare or veterinary sectors.

• Experience with legacy technology systems.

• Partnership experience with Brand, Marketing, or CRM teams.

📝 Enhancement Note: The "Design Manager – Customer" role is positioned as more senior, likely involving greater strategic input into the GTM funnel. The "Design Manager – Clinics" role, while requiring management experience, suggests a growth path towards more strategic GTM-related design leadership. Proficiency in Figma and prototyping directly supports the creation of sales enablement tools and customer-facing marketing assets.

📊 Process & Systems Portfolio Requirements

Portfolio Essentials:

• Demonstrate a portfolio showcasing leadership in product design, with clear examples of how you have managed and developed design teams.

• Include case studies highlighting your ability to think in systems and map end-to-end customer or operational journeys.

• Showcase examples of how you have raised design quality and driven product delivery in collaboration with Product and Engineering.

• Provide evidence of your experience in hiring and building design talent. Process Documentation:

• Detail your approach to coaching and developing designers, including methodologies for feedback, performance reviews, and career pathing.

• Outline your strategies for managing team capacity, balancing priorities, and ensuring project delivery within agile frameworks.

• Describe your process for conducting design critiques and reviews to ensure consistent quality and alignment with user needs and business objectives.

• Explain how you collaborate with Product and Engineering leadership to define and refine product roadmaps and strategies.

📝 Enhancement Note: For a Design Manager role that interfaces with GTM, a portfolio should emphasize not just visual design, but also the strategic impact of design on user acquisition, conversion, and retention. Case studies should ideally demonstrate how design improvements led to measurable business outcomes, such as increased user engagement, higher conversion rates, or improved operational efficiency that frees up sales/support resources.

💵 Compensation & Benefits

Salary Range:

• Design Manager – Customer: Based on the seniority (5+ years management experience) and strategic impact, and considering the London/England location, a competitive salary range is estimated between £70,000 - £95,000 per annum.

• Design Manager – Clinics: Given the 2+ years management experience requirement and growth potential, the estimated range is £55,000 - £75,000 per annum.

These estimates are derived from market research for Design Management roles in the UK technology and digital product sectors, factoring in the company's size and industry.

Benefits:

• Healthcare Cash Plan: Provides coverage for routine healthcare expenses.

• Cycle to Work Scheme: Encourages sustainable commuting with tax benefits.

• Green Cars Salary Sacrifice Scheme: Offers access to eco-friendly vehicles with cost savings.

• Voluntary Benefits: A flexible program allowing employees to select benefits tailored to their needs.

• Discounted Staff Pet Care: A unique benefit relevant to the company's industry, offering savings on veterinary services.

• Access to Retail Discounts and Cashback: A broad program providing savings with numerous retailers.

• Clear career pathways and progression opportunities within Central Functions and beyond.

• Ongoing learning and development supported by tailored programmes and resources.

• Flexible working with a remote-first working policy.

Working Hours: 40 hours per week, with a flexible, remote-first approach.

📝 Enhancement Note: The salary ranges are estimates based on typical UK market rates for Design Managers with the specified experience levels in London/England, considering the company's scale and industry. The benefits package is comprehensive, with unique offerings like discounted pet care and a strong emphasis on professional development and flexible working, which are attractive to operations and GTM professionals seeking work-life balance and growth.

🎯 Team & Company Context

🏢 Company Culture

Industry: Veterinary Care Group (Technology & Healthcare Services). IVC Evidensia operates within the highly competitive and rapidly evolving veterinary services market, leveraging technology to enhance care delivery and operational efficiency across its extensive network. This industry context means a focus on high-quality service, patient outcomes, and efficient practice management.

Company Size: Large (900+ practices and referral hospitals). This scale indicates a complex operational environment with diverse needs across many locations, requiring robust and scalable technology solutions. For operations professionals, this means opportunities to impact a wide user base and deal with significant data volumes.

Founded: IVC Evidensia was founded in 2011. This relatively young company has experienced rapid growth, suggesting a dynamic, entrepreneurial, and change-oriented culture. The company is in the midst of a significant transformation, implying a focus on innovation, process improvement, and adapting to new technologies.

Team Structure:

• The Design team is part of the larger Central Functions, specifically within the Technology teams that support the global network.

• The Design Managers will lead teams of approximately five Product Designers each.

• They will work closely with Product and Engineering leadership, suggesting a strong, integrated, cross-functional product development structure.

• A Principal Designer is also mentioned, likely providing overarching design direction and mentorship. Methodology:

• The company is undergoing a "significant transformation," implying a move towards more agile, data-driven, and customer-centric methodologies.

• Emphasis on "smarter ways" and "innovation" suggests a culture that embraces new technologies and process optimization.

• The "remote first" policy indicates a modern approach to work, prioritizing flexibility and digital collaboration tools.

Company Website: https://www.ivcevidensia.com/

📝 Enhancement Note: The company's rapid growth and ongoing transformation are key indicators for operations roles. It suggests a need for individuals who can establish, refine, and scale processes, systems, and strategies. The "remote first" policy and focus on technology highlight the importance of digital collaboration and process automation.

📈 Career & Growth Analysis

Operations Career Level: This role represents a significant step into leadership within the design function, bridging the gap between individual contributor design roles and broader strategic management. For operations professionals, this level signifies responsibility for team performance, strategic input into product development that impacts GTM, and significant cross-functional collaboration. It’s a role where impact is measured not just by design quality but by the team's output and its contribution to business objectives.

Reporting Structure: Design Managers will report into senior design leadership (potentially the Principal Designer or Head of Design) and will work in close partnership with Product and Engineering leadership. This structure emphasizes collaboration and shared responsibility for product success, crucial for GTM alignment.

Operations Impact: The Design Managers will have a direct impact on the efficiency and effectiveness of veterinary operations (Clinics role) and customer acquisition/retention (Customer role). By improving user experiences, they can drive adoption of new tools, increase operational throughput, enhance customer satisfaction, and ultimately contribute to revenue growth and market share. Their work is fundamental to enabling both the sales process (customer-facing) and the service delivery process (clinic-facing).

Growth Opportunities:

• Operations Skill Advancement: Opportunity to deepen expertise in managing design teams, refining agile product development processes, and understanding the unique operational challenges within the veterinary sector.

• Strategic Leadership Development: Potential to grow into more senior leadership roles, influencing broader product strategy and GTM approaches, especially within the "Customer" focused role.

• Cross-functional Expertise: Gain significant experience collaborating with Product, Engineering, Marketing, and Operations teams, building a holistic understanding of the business.

• Industry Specialization: Develop deep knowledge of the veterinary technology landscape, becoming a subject matter expert in a growing and impactful industry.

📝 Enhancement Note: For operations candidates, this role offers a pathway to influence the GTM funnel through product design. The growth opportunities highlight the potential to transition into broader GTM strategy, operations leadership, or product management roles, leveraging a strong understanding of user needs and operational efficiencies.

🌐 Work Environment

Office Type: Remote-first with hybrid options available in London. This suggests a modern, flexible work environment that prioritizes autonomy and digital collaboration. The "remote first" policy means that distributed teams are the norm, requiring strong digital communication and asynchronous work practices.

Office Location(s): While primarily remote, the option for hybrid work in the City of London, Greater London, England, provides a central hub for in-person collaboration, team meetings, and strategic sessions when necessary.

Workspace Context:

• The work environment is highly collaborative, requiring seamless interaction with Product, Engineering, and other Central Functions teams, often across different locations and time zones.

• Access to modern design tools (Figma, prototyping software) and potentially AI-enabled design tools is expected, facilitating efficient digital workflows.

• Opportunities for regular interaction with design peers, product managers, and engineers will exist through virtual meetings, dedicated collaboration platforms, and occasional in-person gatherings.

Work Schedule: Standard working hours (approximately 40 per week) are expected, but the remote-first policy allows for flexibility in how and when work is completed, provided deadlines and team collaboration needs are met. This flexibility is crucial for balancing personal well-being with demanding project timelines common in transformation initiatives.

📝 Enhancement Note: The remote-first, hybrid model is highly relevant for operations roles, emphasizing the need for strong self-management, digital communication proficiency, and comfort with asynchronous workflows. It also signals a company that trusts its employees and invests in the tools and processes to make remote collaboration effective.

📄 Application & Portfolio Review Process

Interview Process:

• Initial Screening: A recruiter will likely review your application and CV, focusing on alignment with the specified experience and skills for either the Customer or Clinics role.

• Hiring Manager Interview: A conversation with the hiring manager (likely a senior design leader) to assess your leadership style, team management philosophy, and overall fit for the role and company culture. Be prepared to discuss your approach to coaching, performance management, and stakeholder collaboration.

• Portfolio Review & Design Challenge: This is a critical stage. You will likely present a portfolio showcasing your best work, focusing on leadership examples, system thinking, and end-to-end journey design. A design challenge, either pre-interview or during, may be given to assess your problem-solving skills, design craft, and ability to think critically under pressure.

• Cross-functional Interviews: Meetings with Product and Engineering leadership to evaluate your ability to partner effectively, contribute to strategy, and understand technical constraints.

• Final Interview: Potentially with a more senior executive to discuss strategic vision and long-term impact.

Portfolio Review Tips:

• Tailor Your Presentation: Clearly indicate which role (Customer or Clinics) your portfolio is most relevant to, or present sections relevant to both.

• Highlight Leadership: Focus on projects where you led a team, mentored designers, or influenced strategic direction, rather than just individual design contributions.

• Showcase System Thinking: Use journey maps, system diagrams, and process flows to illustrate your understanding of complex interactions and end-to-end experiences.

• Quantify Impact: Whenever possible, use metrics to demonstrate the business impact of your team's design work (e.g., improvements in conversion rates, user satisfaction scores, operational efficiency gains).

• Articulate Your Process: Be ready to explain your design process, decision-making rationale, and how you adapted to challenges and feedback.

Challenge Preparation:

• Familiarize yourself with IVC Evidensia's business, target users (pet owners, vets), and their digital presence.

• Practice articulating your thought process clearly and concisely, especially when solving design problems.

• Be prepared to discuss how you would approach building or improving a specific feature or user flow within their ecosystem, considering both user needs and business goals.

• Consider how design can support GTM objectives like user acquisition, onboarding, and retention.

📝 Enhancement Note: For a Design Manager role impacting GTM, the portfolio and interview process will heavily scrutinize your ability to translate design strategy into tangible business results. Demonstrating how your leadership has directly contributed to user adoption, conversion optimization, or operational efficiency that supports sales will be key.

🛠 Tools & Technology Stack

Primary Tools:

• Figma: Essential for UI/UX design, prototyping, and collaborative workflows. Expect to be proficient and potentially guide the team in its advanced features.

• Prototyping Tools: In addition to Figma's capabilities, familiarity with tools like InVision, Axure, or similar for more complex interactive prototypes.

• Design Systems Tools: Experience building, maintaining, or utilizing design systems (e.g., Storybook, Zeroheight, or native Figma libraries) for consistency and efficiency.

Analytics & Reporting:

• Web Analytics Platforms: Familiarity with tools like Google Analytics, Adobe Analytics, or similar to understand user behavior and track key GTM metrics (e.g., website traffic, conversion rates, user engagement).

• Product Analytics Tools: Experience with tools like Mixpanel, Amplitude, or Pendo for in-depth product usage analysis and user journey tracking.

CRM & Automation:

• CRM Systems: While not directly a CRM role, understanding how design impacts CRM data capture and user journeys within systems like Salesforce or Microsoft Dynamics would be beneficial, especially for the Customer role.

• Marketing Automation Platforms: Awareness of how user journeys and communications are managed via platforms like HubSpot or Marketo, and how design contributes to their effectiveness.

• Project Management Tools: Proficiency with tools like Jira, Asana, or Trello for managing design tasks, sprints, and team capacity.

📝 Enhancement Note: For a Design Manager role, understanding how design outputs integrate with and influence CRM and marketing automation systems is crucial for driving GTM outcomes. The ability to interpret data from analytics platforms to inform design decisions and demonstrate ROI is also highly valued.

👥 Team Culture & Values

Operations Values:

• Care: A core value, extending from animal care to customer and colleague care. This translates to empathy in design, user-centricity, and supportive team dynamics.

• Innovation: Given the company's transformation, a drive to find "smarter ways" and embrace new technologies is paramount. Operations professionals are expected to be proactive in identifying and implementing improvements.

• Continuous Improvement: A commitment to ongoing refinement of processes, systems, and user experiences. This aligns with the core of operations work – optimizing for efficiency and effectiveness.

• Collaboration: Essential for success in a large, distributed organization. Operations professionals need to build strong relationships across functions to drive change.

• Kindness, Humility, Authenticity: These values emphasize a positive and respectful work environment, encouraging open communication and psychological safety, which is vital for effective teamwork and problem-solving.

Collaboration Style:

• Cross-functional Integration: Expect a highly integrated approach where Design, Product, and Engineering work hand-in-hand from ideation through delivery. This is critical for ensuring GTM strategies are effectively translated into product features.

• Process Review Culture: An environment where workflows and methodologies are continuously evaluated and improved, encouraging feedback and iterative adjustments.

• Knowledge Sharing: A culture that promotes sharing best practices, learnings, and insights across teams, especially important in a remote-first setting.

📝 Enhancement Note: The emphasis on "Care" and "Continuous Improvement" resonates strongly with operations principles. A GTM-focused operations professional would look for opportunities to apply these values to enhance customer journeys, streamline sales processes, and improve client retention through excellent user experiences.

⚡ Challenges & Growth Opportunities

Challenges:

• Navigating Transformation: The company is in a significant transformation, meaning priorities may shift, and processes may still be evolving. This requires adaptability and resilience.

• Balancing Pace and Quality: Delivering high-quality, user-centered designs at speed within a fast-moving product organization can be demanding.

• Cross-Functional Alignment: Ensuring consistent vision and execution across diverse teams (Product, Engineering, Marketing, Operations) in a large, distributed organization.

• Scaling Design Operations: As the company grows, scaling the design team, processes, and infrastructure to meet increasing demands will be a continuous challenge.

• Legacy Systems Integration: Potentially working with or around legacy technology while building new digital experiences requires careful planning and creative problem-solving.

Learning & Development Opportunities:

• Leadership Skill Enhancement: Opportunities to refine people management, strategic planning, and cross-functional leadership skills in a growing organization.

• Industry-Specific Knowledge: Deepen understanding of the veterinary healthcare sector and its unique operational and customer-facing challenges.

• Design Systems and AI Tools: Gain hands-on experience with advanced design systems and emerging AI-enabled design tools, staying at the forefront of the industry.

• Mentorship and Networking: Access to senior leaders within Design, Product, and Engineering, as well as potential mentorship opportunities.

• Contribution to GTM Strategy: Directly influence customer acquisition, retention, and operational efficiency through design leadership, providing valuable experience for future GTM or operations roles.

📝 Enhancement Note: For operations professionals, the challenges of transformation and scaling are highly relevant. The growth opportunities in leadership and GTM impact make this an attractive role for those looking to expand their influence beyond traditional operations functions into strategic product development.

💡 Interview Preparation

Strategy Questions:

• "How would you approach building a design strategy for our customer-facing digital ecosystem to drive user acquisition and retention?" (Focus on your strategic thinking, GTM understanding, and ability to align design with business goals).

• "Describe a time you had to balance competing priorities between Product, Engineering, and Design. How did you ensure the best outcome for the user and the business?" (Assess your stakeholder management, negotiation skills, and problem-solving approach).

• "How do you foster a culture of continuous improvement and innovation within a design team, especially during a period of significant organizational transformation?" (Probe your leadership style, change management capabilities, and approach to process optimization). Company & Culture Questions:

• "Based on your understanding of IVC Evidensia, what do you see as the biggest design challenges and opportunities for the Clinics team?" (Demonstrate your research, industry insight, and strategic foresight).

• "How would you integrate the company's values of 'Care' and 'Innovation' into the daily work and decision-making of your design team?" (Show your understanding of company culture and how to translate values into actionable practices).

• "How do you measure the impact of design on business outcomes, particularly in areas like customer satisfaction, operational efficiency, or revenue generation?" (Prepare to discuss metrics and ROI demonstration relevant to GTM and operations). Portfolio Presentation Strategy:

• Structure Your Narrative: For each case study, clearly define the problem, your role, the process, the solution, and the quantifiable results. Emphasize your leadership contribution.

• Focus on Impact: Highlight how your team's design work contributed to key business objectives such as increased conversion rates, improved user engagement, reduced operational friction, or enhanced customer loyalty.

• Demonstrate System Thinking: Use visual aids like journey maps, process flows, and system diagrams to illustrate your understanding of end-to-end experiences and how individual design decisions fit into the larger picture.

• Be Ready for Deep Dives: Anticipate questions about your design decisions, trade-offs made, and how you collaborated with other functions.

📝 Enhancement Note: When preparing for this role, focus on framing your experience through the lens of GTM enablement and operational efficiency. Your ability to articulate how design leadership contributes to business growth, customer acquisition, and operational effectiveness will be highly valued.

📌 Application Steps

To apply for this Design Manager position:

• Submit your application through the provided Lever application link.

• Customize Your Resume: Highlight your experience in team leadership, product design management, cross-functional collaboration, and any experience relevant to the veterinary or healthcare sectors. Quantify achievements where possible, focusing on impact on user experience, product delivery, and team development.

• Prepare Your Portfolio: Curate a selection of case studies that best demonstrate your leadership in product design, system thinking, and driving measurable business outcomes. Ensure it's tailored to either the Customer or Clinics role, or present both aspects clearly.

• Research IVC Evidensia: Understand their mission, values, current transformation, and the specific challenges and opportunities for the role you're applying for. Focus on how design can support their GTM strategy and operational excellence.

• Practice Your Narrative: Rehearse your presentation for the portfolio review and be ready to articulate your leadership philosophy, problem-solving approach, and how you drive impact through design teams.

⚠️ Important Notice: This enhanced job description includes AI-generated insights and operations industry-standard assumptions. All details should be verified directly with the hiring organization before making application decisions.