Senior UX Designer
📍 Job Overview
Job Title: Senior UX Designer Company: Broadsign Careers Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada Job Type: Full-time Category: User Experience (UX) Design / Product Design Operations Date Posted: September 24, 2025 Experience Level: Mid-Senior Level (5+ years) Remote Status: On-site
🚀 Role Summary
- Spearhead the development and implementation of robust user and customer research practices, processes, and tools to enhance data-driven product decision-making.
- Design comprehensive, end-to-end product experiences from conceptualization through to polished implementation, translating user needs and business goals into intuitive interfaces.
- Act as a key advocate for the user, championing user-centricity in all product discussions and influencing product strategy with actionable insights derived from research.
- Collaborate closely with product management, engineering, and design system leads to ensure seamless integration of UX principles and design consistency across the platform.
📝 Enhancement Note: While the title is "Senior UX Designer," the emphasis on leading research practices and establishing organizational processes positions this role with significant operational responsibilities within the product development lifecycle, bridging design and operational excellence. This isn't just about individual design contributions; it's about shaping how the organization understands and responds to user needs at scale.
📈 Primary Responsibilities
- Establish, document, and maintain user research processes, tools, and best practices, including usability testing, surveys, and discovery frameworks, to foster a consistent research methodology.
- Develop and provide resources, templates, and guidance to empower product managers, engineers, and other designers to conduct lightweight user studies independently.
- Lead or conduct key research activities, such as in-depth usability testing, discovery interviews, and synthesis sessions, to uncover deep user insights and inform design strategy.
- Ensure research findings are synthesized into accessible, actionable insights and effectively communicated across the organization to drive informed product development.
- Translate user needs, research insights, and business requirements into detailed user flows, wireframes, interactive prototypes, and high-fidelity UI designs.
- Collaborate with the design system lead to ensure all designs adhere to established visual patterns, accessibility standards, and maintain platform-wide consistency.
- Partner effectively with product managers and engineering teams throughout the product development lifecycle, from concept ideation to final implementation, ensuring design integrity.
- Champion user needs and advocate for user-centered design principles in all product strategy discussions, balancing user requirements with business objectives and technical feasibility.
- Translate user insights into concrete design opportunities that actively shape the future direction of the company's products.
- Contribute to fostering a strong culture of research and user-centered design practices across all product development teams.
📝 Enhancement Note: The responsibilities highlight a dual focus: leading operational research processes and executing hands-on design. This "lead and do" approach is common in smaller, high-impact teams, requiring strong process-thinking alongside design craft. The emphasis on empowering others suggests a mentorship or enablement component to the research aspect of the role.
🎓 Skills & Qualifications
Education:
- A Bachelor's or Master's degree in Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), Design, Psychology, Computer Science, or a related field, or equivalent practical experience.
Experience:
- A minimum of 5 years of professional experience in User Experience (UX) Design, with a demonstrated history of building solutions aligned with complex business needs and user requirements.
- Proven experience in establishing and leading user research methodologies and processes within a product development environment.
- Demonstrated success in translating user needs and business goals into effective UX/UI designs across various platforms.
Required Skills:
- User-Centered Design (UCD): Strong theoretical and practical understanding of UCD principles and their application in product development.
- User Research Methodologies: Expertise in a range of research techniques, including usability testing, user interviews, surveys, ethnographic studies, and competitive analysis.
- Design Tools & Prototyping: Proficiency in industry-standard design and prototyping tools (e.g., Figma, Sketch, Adobe XD, InVision) to create wireframes, interactive prototypes, and high-fidelity mockups.
- Analytical Thinking: Ability to analyze user data, research findings, and business requirements to identify pain points and opportunities for improvement.
- Communication & Collaboration: Exceptional verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to articulate design decisions, present research findings, and collaborate effectively with cross-functional teams, stakeholders, and clients.
- Time Management & Iteration: Excellent organizational and time management skills, with the capacity to manage multiple projects simultaneously and iterate on designs efficiently under tight deadlines.
- Problem-Solving: A natural passion for solving complex user pain points through thoughtful, creative, and pragmatic design solutions.
Preferred Skills:
- Experience with A/B testing and other quantitative methods to validate design decisions.
- Familiarity with heuristic analysis and other evaluation techniques for assessing user interfaces.
- Knowledge of design systems, component libraries, and their role in maintaining UI consistency and scalability.
- Experience working in an Agile development environment.
- Understanding of front-end development principles (HTML, CSS, JavaScript) to inform design feasibility.
📝 Enhancement Note: The combination of leading research and design implies a need for strong strategic and organizational skills in addition to core UX competencies. Candidates should be prepared to demonstrate how they've built or improved research processes, not just executed them.
📊 Process & Systems Portfolio Requirements
Portfolio Essentials:
- Demonstrate end-to-end product design process, showcasing how user research, ideation, wireframing, prototyping, and user testing informed your design decisions.
- Include case studies that highlight your ability to translate complex user needs and business requirements into intuitive and effective UX/UI solutions.
- Showcase examples of how you have established or improved research processes, including documentation of methodologies, tools used, and insights gained.
- Present examples of user-centered design implementations that have had a measurable positive impact on user satisfaction, task completion, or business metrics.
- Include work that demonstrates your ability to collaborate with cross-functional teams (product managers, engineers) and incorporate their feedback into the design process.
Process Documentation:
- Provide evidence of documented research plans, user journey maps, personas, and usability testing reports that clearly outline your research approach and findings.
- Showcase examples of how you have created and maintained design documentation, style guides, or contributed to design systems to ensure consistency.
- Present case studies that detail how you have implemented new processes or optimized existing ones to improve team efficiency or research effectiveness.
📝 Enhancement Note: Given the role's emphasis on leading research practices, the portfolio should not only showcase design outcomes but also the process of discovery and validation. Evidence of process improvement and enablement for others will be highly valued.
💵 Compensation & Benefits
Salary Range:
- Based on industry benchmarks for Senior UX Designers in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, with 5+ years of experience, the estimated annual salary range is CAD $100,000 - $140,000. This range accounts for the senior level, the specific responsibilities including leading research initiatives, and the cost of living in Toronto.
Benefits:
- Comprehensive Insurance: 100% employer-paid health, dental, vision, and travel insurance, effective from day one.
- Health Savings Account: $500 annual Health Care Savings Account (HCSA) for additional health-related expenses.
- Virtual Healthcare: Unlimited access to a virtual healthcare platform (Telus Health).
- Wellness Fund: $500 annual fund for mental and physical health, as well as office-related expenses.
- Generous Paid Time Off: Minimum 3 weeks of vacation, plus an additional week off during the holidays, 5 sick/personal days, and 2 volunteer days.
- Retirement Savings: Group RRSP with 50% employer matching up to 4% of salary.
- Transportation Reimbursement: Support for travel expenses to a Broadsign office.
- Family Support: Parental leave salary supplement.
- Professional Development: Yearly budget allocated for training and development opportunities to support career growth.
Working Hours:
- The role is expected to align with standard full-time working hours, typically around 40 hours per week. While specific daily schedules may have some flexibility to accommodate collaboration and personal needs, the emphasis on an on-site presence suggests a need for consistent availability during core business hours.
📝 Enhancement Note: The benefits package is robust, indicating a strong commitment to employee well-being and professional development, which are attractive aspects for experienced operations and design professionals. The salary estimate is based on publicly available data for similar roles in the Toronto tech market.
🎯 Team & Company Context
🏢 Company Culture
Industry: Digital Signage Software / Advertising Technology (AdTech) Company Size: Broadsign is a global leader in the digital out-of-home (DOOH) advertising industry, indicating a significant market presence and a dynamic, fast-paced environment typical of growing tech companies. The "small, collaborative design team" mentioned suggests that while the company is large, the immediate team operates with the agility and close-knit dynamics often found in smaller units. Founded: Broadsign was founded in 2004, giving it over two decades of experience and established market leadership in its niche. This history suggests a stable yet innovative company culture.
Team Structure:
- The design team is described as "small" and "collaborative," with each designer contributing to end-to-end product design.
- There's a clear division of specialization: this role leads research practices, while other team members might focus on areas like design systems or visual patterns.
- The role will report into a Design Lead or Head of Product/Design, working closely with Product Managers and Engineering leads.
Methodology:
- The company emphasizes a "research-driven design" approach, indicating a commitment to data and user insights.
- There's a stated goal to "establish research practices, tools, and resources," suggesting a focus on operationalizing UX research for broader team adoption and effectiveness.
- Collaboration with product managers and engineers implies an Agile or Lean product development methodology, where cross-functional teams work closely together.
Company Website: https://broadsign.com/
📝 Enhancement Note: The company's industry (AdTech) is characterized by rapid technological advancement and a focus on performance metrics. This context suggests that operational efficiency, data analysis, and a results-oriented mindset are crucial for success in any role, including design. The "lightweight studies" approach hints at a pragmatic, iterative methodology.
📈 Career & Growth Analysis
Operations Career Level: This role is classified as "Senior," signifying a level of expertise and autonomy. In an operations context, this means the individual is expected to not only execute but also to define, optimize, and lead processes. The dual responsibility of designing experiences and leading research practices elevates this beyond a typical senior individual contributor role, requiring strategic thinking and the ability to influence organizational processes. Reporting Structure: The Senior UX Designer will likely report to a Design Manager, Director of Product, or Head of Design. They will collaborate extensively with Product Managers, Engineers, and potentially Marketing and Sales operations teams, providing a broad view of the product lifecycle and its operational underpinnings. Operations Impact: The Senior UX Designer's work directly impacts the usability and effectiveness of Broadsign's software platform, which is critical for its customers' success in buying, selling, and delivering out-of-home media. By improving user experience and establishing robust research practices, this role contributes to customer satisfaction, adoption rates, and operational efficiency for Broadsign's clients, indirectly driving revenue and market share.
Growth Opportunities:
- Leadership in Research Operations: The primary growth path involves deepening expertise in establishing and scaling UX research operations, potentially leading to a dedicated Research Operations Manager or Head of User Research role.
- Product Strategy Influence: As a Senior Designer leading research, there's an opportunity to significantly influence product strategy and roadmap decisions based on user insights and market analysis.
- Cross-functional Leadership: Opportunities to mentor junior designers, lead design initiatives, and collaborate on strategic projects across different departments (e.g., Product, Engineering, Customer Success).
- Specialization: Potential to specialize further in specific areas of UX research, design strategy, or to move into product management roles by leveraging a deep understanding of user needs and business objectives.
📝 Enhancement Note: The "lead research practices" component suggests a potential career track towards Research Operations, a specialized field focused on optimizing the systems, processes, and tools that support UX research at scale. This offers a unique growth avenue beyond traditional design progression.
🌐 Work Environment
Office Type: Broadsign operates in a modern office environment, typical for a global tech company. The focus on collaboration and the specific mention of an "on-site" work arrangement suggest a dynamic, interactive workspace designed to foster teamwork and spontaneous idea exchange. Office Location(s): The role is based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. This location offers access to a vibrant tech ecosystem and talent pool. Specific office details would be provided upon inquiry or during the interview process.
Workspace Context:
- Expect a collaborative workspace where designers work closely with product managers, engineers, and other stakeholders to co-create solutions.
- Access to standard design and productivity tools will be provided, supporting efficient workflow and communication.
- Opportunities for direct interaction with the product team, including engineers and product managers, are integral to the role, facilitating rapid feedback loops and iterative design.
Work Schedule:
- Standard full-time working hours are expected, with an emphasis on on-site attendance. While the company likely offers some flexibility, the collaborative nature of the role and the need to lead research activities suggest consistent presence during core business hours.
📝 Enhancement Note: The emphasis on "on-site" work in a collaborative team environment suggests a culture that values in-person interaction for ideation, problem-solving, and team cohesion. This is typical for roles that require significant cross-functional input and process establishment.
📄 Application & Portfolio Review Process
Interview Process:
- Initial Screening: A recruiter or hiring manager will likely conduct an initial phone screen to assess basic qualifications, experience, and cultural fit. Be prepared to discuss your career trajectory and interest in Broadsign.
- Portfolio Presentation & Design Challenge: Expect a session where you present your portfolio, focusing on case studies that demonstrate your research-driven design process, problem-solving skills, and impact. You may also be given a design challenge or asked to walk through a specific project in detail, focusing on your decision-making process and how you've handled research.
- Cross-functional Interviews: Interviews with Product Managers and Engineering leads will assess your collaboration style, technical understanding, and ability to work effectively within a cross-functional team. They will likely probe how you integrate user needs with technical constraints and business goals.
- Research Process Discussion: Be prepared to discuss your experience in establishing and leading research practices. This might involve detailing how you've set up research processes, what tools you've used, how you've onboarded others to research, and how you synthesize and share findings.
- Final Interview: A discussion with senior leadership (e.g., Head of Design, VP of Product) to evaluate strategic thinking, leadership potential, and overall fit with the company's vision and culture.
Portfolio Review Tips:
- Highlight Process Over Polish: While polished designs are important, focus on detailing your thought process, the research that informed your decisions, and how you iterated based on feedback. For this role, showcasing your approach to user research and process development is crucial.
- Quantify Impact: Whenever possible, use metrics to demonstrate the impact of your designs and research initiatives (e.g., improvements in task success rates, reduction in user errors, increased engagement).
- Showcase Research Leadership: Include examples where you've led or significantly contributed to user research, ideally demonstrating how you've structured research efforts, synthesized findings, and influenced product direction. If you've established research processes, detail that experience.
- Tell a Story: Structure your case studies as compelling narratives, outlining the problem, your approach, the solutions you designed, and the outcomes achieved. Clearly articulate your role in each project.
- Be Prepared for Deep Dives: Anticipate detailed questions about your design decisions, research methodologies, and how you handle trade-offs between user needs, business goals, and technical constraints.
Challenge Preparation:
- Review common UX design challenges, focusing on problem decomposition, user empathy, and solution ideation.
- Practice articulating your thought process clearly and concisely, as if presenting to a mixed audience of designers, product managers, and engineers.
- Consider how you would approach a research-focused challenge, such as designing a research plan for a new feature or identifying key user pain points in a given scenario.
📝 Enhancement Note: The interview process will likely heavily weigh your ability to not only design but also to operationalize and lead UX research. Be ready to speak to both your individual design craft and your process-building capabilities.
🛠 Tools & Technology Stack
Primary Tools:
- Design & Prototyping Software: Proficiency in industry-standard tools such as Figma, Sketch, Adobe Creative Suite (XD, Illustrator, Photoshop), and InVision is expected for creating wireframes, interactive prototypes, and high-fidelity mockups.
- User Research Platforms: Experience with tools for usability testing (e.g., UserTesting.com, Lookback), survey creation (e.g., SurveyMonkey, Typeform, Google Forms), and potentially session recording/analysis (e.g., Hotjar, FullStory).
- Collaboration & Project Management: Familiarity with tools like Jira, Confluence, Asana, Trello, and Slack for managing projects, tracking tasks, and facilitating team communication.
Analytics & Reporting:
- Web Analytics: Understanding of tools like Google Analytics or Adobe Analytics for tracking user behavior on web-based platforms.
- Product Analytics: Experience with product analytics platforms (e.g., Amplitude, Mixpanel) to gain insights into user engagement and feature adoption.
- Data Visualization: Ability to use or interpret data presented through dashboards and reporting tools (e.g., Tableau, Power BI) to inform design decisions.
CRM & Automation:
- While not a primary focus for a UX Designer, an understanding of how CRM systems (like Salesforce) and marketing automation platforms impact user journeys and data collection can be beneficial for a holistic product perspective.
📝 Enhancement Note: The role requires strong proficiency in core UX design tools. Experience with tools that support research operations, data analysis, and project management will be highly advantageous, reflecting the operational aspect of the position.
👥 Team Culture & Values
Operations Values:
- User-Centricity: A fundamental commitment to understanding and prioritizing user needs in all design and research activities, ensuring that products are intuitive, accessible, and valuable.
- Data-Driven Decision Making: Valuing research insights and data analytics to inform design choices, validate hypotheses, and measure the impact of solutions.
- Collaboration & Transparency: Fostering an open and communicative environment where ideas are shared freely, feedback is constructive, and teams work together effectively towards common goals.
- Efficiency & Pragmatism: Embracing efficient workflows and practical solutions, with a focus on delivering high-quality outcomes while managing resources effectively. This is particularly relevant for establishing streamlined research processes.
- Continuous Improvement: A mindset of always seeking to learn, adapt, and refine processes and designs to achieve better results.
Collaboration Style:
- The team operates with a collaborative spirit, encouraging cross-functional teamwork between design, product management, and engineering.
- Expect regular design critiques, brainstorming sessions, and joint problem-solving initiatives.
- The emphasis on empowering others to conduct research suggests a culture of knowledge sharing and mentorship.
📝 Enhancement Note: The company culture appears to value a blend of user advocacy, data-informed decisions, and collaborative execution. The emphasis on establishing research practices implies a culture that supports process innovation and team enablement.
⚡ Challenges & Growth Opportunities
Challenges:
- Establishing Research Infrastructure: A key challenge will be to build and operationalize robust research processes and resources from the ground up, ensuring they are adopted and utilized effectively by the wider team.
- Balancing Design and Research Leadership: Effectively managing the dual responsibilities of hands-on design work and leading the organizational approach to user research requires strong time management and prioritization skills.
- Scaling Research Practices: As the company grows, there will be a need to scale research operations to support an increasing number of products and features, requiring adaptable and efficient methodologies.
- Cross-Functional Alignment: Ensuring consistent understanding and application of user insights across different departments (Product, Engineering, Sales, Marketing) can be challenging but is critical for a unified user experience.
Learning & Development Opportunities:
- Deepen Research Operations Expertise: Gain hands-on experience in defining, implementing, and managing UX research operations frameworks, tools, and best practices.
- Influence Product Strategy: Play a significant role in shaping the company's product direction by leveraging user insights to identify new opportunities and validate strategic initiatives.
- Mentorship & Skill Development: Opportunities to mentor junior designers and develop leadership skills through guiding research efforts and cross-functional collaboration.
- Industry Exposure: Engage with the latest trends in UX research, design, and AdTech through internal knowledge sharing, potential conference attendance, and professional development budgets.
📝 Enhancement Note: The primary challenge and growth opportunity lie in the dual mandate: excelling as a Senior UX Designer while simultaneously building a foundational operational capability for user research within the organization.
💡 Interview Preparation
Strategy Questions:
- "How would you approach establishing a consistent user research process within a growing tech company? What are the key components you would prioritize?" (Focus on process documentation, tool selection, and stakeholder buy-in).
- "Describe a time you had to balance conflicting user needs with business objectives or technical constraints. How did you navigate this, and what was the outcome?" (Highlight your problem-solving, negotiation, and decision-making process).
- "How do you ensure that user research findings are effectively translated into actionable design decisions and product improvements?" (Discuss synthesis, communication strategies, and collaboration with product/engineering).
- "Walk us through your process for conducting usability testing, from planning to reporting. What key metrics do you track?" (Demonstrate your methodological rigor and analytical skills).
Company & Culture Questions:
- "What interests you about Broadsign and the digital out-of-home advertising industry?" (Show research into the company's mission, products, and market position).
- "How do you contribute to a collaborative team environment, especially when working with non-designers like engineers and product managers?" (Provide examples of effective communication and partnership).
- "How do you advocate for the user within a product team, and how do you measure the impact of your advocacy?" (Discuss your approach to user representation and ROI of UX efforts).
Portfolio Presentation Strategy:
- Structure for Impact: For each case study, clearly articulate the problem statement, your specific role, the research and design process, key decisions made, challenges overcome, and the final outcomes (quantified where possible). For this role, emphasize any instances where you established or improved research processes.
- Show, Don't Just Tell: Use visuals (wireframes, prototypes, research artifacts) to illustrate your points. Be prepared to discuss the 'why' behind every design decision and research step.
- Focus on Research Integration: Explicitly connect your research activities to your design solutions. Demonstrate how user insights directly influenced the direction and details of your designs.
- Articulate Process Leadership: If you have experience building or refining research processes, highlight these achievements. Explain the methodologies you implemented, the tools you utilized, and the positive impact on team efficiency or research quality.
📝 Enhancement Note: Prepare to discuss not only your design work but also your strategic approach to user research and process development. Demonstrating leadership in establishing operational research practices will be a key differentiator.
📌 Application Steps
To apply for this Senior UX Designer position:
- Submit your application directly through the Broadsign Careers portal via the provided Greenhouse link.
- Portfolio Customization: Tailor your portfolio to highlight case studies demonstrating end-to-end design processes, with a strong emphasis on user research methodologies, process establishment, and measurable impact. Showcase projects where you've led or significantly contributed to research initiatives.
- Resume Optimization: Ensure your resume clearly articulates your 5+ years of UX design experience, specifically calling out expertise in user research, UCD principles, and any experience in building or refining research processes. Use keywords like "user research," "usability testing," "process development," and "stakeholder management."
- Interview Preparation: Practice presenting your portfolio, focusing on storytelling and clearly explaining your design and research decision-making process. Prepare to discuss how you would tackle the challenge of establishing research practices at Broadsign.
- Company Research: Familiarize yourself with Broadsign's products, target market (digital out-of-home advertising), and recent company news to demonstrate genuine interest and understanding of their business context.
⚠️ 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.
Application Requirements
5+ years of experience in UX design with a strong grasp of user-centered design methodologies. Excellent communication and collaboration skills are essential for this role.