Senior UX Designer

📍 Job Overview

Job Title: Senior UX Designer

Company: VML Enterprise Solutions

Location: Faro, Faro District, Portugal

Job Type: Full-time

Category: User Experience (UX) Design / Customer Experience (CX)

Date Posted: February 24, 2026

Experience Level: 5-10 Years

Remote Status: Remote OK

🚀 Role Summary

• This Senior UX Designer role is integral to VML's rapidly expanding CX team, focusing on delivering exceptional digital experiences for enterprise clients.

• The position requires a strong emphasis on e-commerce and complex customer journeys, demanding a proven track record in end-to-end UX design process ownership.

• You will collaborate closely with UX, UI, and Service Design Leads, as well as Optimisation and Consulting specialists, to craft innovative solutions.

• A key aspect of this role involves leading design initiatives, from initial business requirements workshops and user research to the creation of detailed design artifacts and presenting strategic design rationale.

📝 Enhancement Note: While the job title is "Senior UX Designer," the description strongly emphasizes elements of Customer Experience (CX) strategy, service design, and consulting, indicating a role that bridges traditional UX with broader CX initiatives. The mention of "Enterprise Solutions" and working with major brands suggests a focus on complex, B2B or B2C enterprise-level digital platforms.

📈 Primary Responsibilities

• Design and Facilitate Workshops: Lead and design product definition, UX requirements, and business requirements workshops to gather critical project insights.

• Conduct User Research: Scope, manage, and execute a variety of qualitative and quantitative research initiatives to understand user behaviors and needs.

• Analyze Research Data: Synthesize research findings to identify meaningful insights, behavioral patterns, and opportunity areas for new experiences, products, and services.

• Develop Design Artifacts: Create comprehensive design deliverables, including personas, journey maps, storyboards, process flows, information architecture diagrams, wireframes, and interactive prototypes.

• Apply Design Thinking: Utilize design thinking methodologies to ideate, explore, and develop feasible and viable solutions that meet both user needs and client objectives.

• Stakeholder Management & Communication: Effectively communicate, defend, and build consensus around product strategy and design approaches with internal teams, clients, and C-suite executives.

• Cross-functional Collaboration: Work closely with fellow designers, UI/UX Leads, Service Design, Optimisation, Consulting Leads, program managers, and developers to ensure high-quality design output and a seamless user experience.

• Client Leadership: Collaborate with Account Leads, Head of UX, and Head of CX to provide UX leadership, understand business drivers, and contribute to the creative process for major brands.

• Improve Design Quality: Contribute to the continuous improvement of design quality within the team and across client projects.

📝 Enhancement Note: The responsibilities clearly indicate a senior-level role requiring leadership, strategic thinking, and end-to-end ownership of the UX process, extending beyond just design execution to include research, strategy, and client-facing communication.

🎓 Skills & Qualifications

Education:

Experience:

• Significant proven experience in UX design, ideally gained within an agency environment.

• Extensive experience in e-commerce or designing for complex customer journeys is crucial.

• Demonstrated experience owning the complete UX process, from discovery phases (internal/external) through to final delivery.

• Experience in managing and executing both qualitative and quantitative research methodologies.

Required Skills:

• UX Design Mastery: Deep expertise in information architecture, interaction design, and overall experience design principles.

• Portfolio Excellence: A compelling and high-quality portfolio showcasing best-in-class UX design work, particularly in e-commerce and complex digital journeys.

• Research & Analysis: Proficiency in conducting and analyzing qualitative and quantitative user research.

• Prototyping & Wireframing: Strong skills in creating wireframes, interactive prototypes, and other essential design artifacts.

• Design Thinking: Ability to apply design thinking frameworks and methods to problem-solving.

• Client Communication: Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to present complex ideas clearly and persuasively to diverse audiences, including C-suite.

• Technical Understanding: Ability to grasp technical constraints, user goals, and business requirements that influence design decisions.

Preferred Skills:

• Experience with Service Design principles and methodologies.

• Familiarity with optimisation techniques and A/B testing.

• Consulting experience, particularly within a digital transformation context.

• Experience working with major global brands and enterprise-level clients.

• Familiarity with Agile development methodologies.

📝 Enhancement Note: The emphasis on a "compelling portfolio" and "significant proven experience" underscores the seniority and practical, hands-on nature of this role. The preference for agency experience suggests a fast-paced, client-centric environment.

📊 Process & Systems Portfolio Requirements

Portfolio Essentials:

• Demonstrate End-to-End UX Process: Showcase a comprehensive understanding and application of the full UX design lifecycle, from discovery and research to design, testing, and iteration.

• Highlight E-commerce/Complex Journeys: Provide specific case studies that illustrate your expertise in designing for e-commerce platforms or other complex, multi-step customer journeys.

• Showcase Problem-Solving: Clearly articulate the business and user problems you addressed, your design process, and the rationale behind your solutions.

• Emphasize Research & Testing: Include examples of how you've utilized qualitative and quantitative research, as well as usability testing, to inform design decisions and validate solutions.

• Illustrate Design Artifacts: Present a range of design artifacts such as personas, journey maps, wireframes, and interactive prototypes that demonstrate your design craft and strategic thinking.

• Quantify Impact: Where possible, demonstrate the impact of your designs through metrics, user feedback, or business outcomes (e.g., increased conversion rates, improved user satisfaction, reduced task completion times).

Process Documentation:

• While not explicitly stated as a deliverable, the role implies the ability to document and articulate UX processes for internal and client-facing discussions. This includes:

  • Workflow design and optimization for UX activities.

  • Implementation of research and design methodologies.

  • Measurement and analysis of UX performance metrics.

📝 Enhancement Note: The "portfolio to prove it" requirement is critical. Candidates must be prepared to walk through their portfolio, explaining their role, process, and the impact of their work in detail, especially concerning e-commerce and complex user journeys.

💵 Compensation & Benefits

Salary Range:

Benefits:

• Career Development: Opportunities for professional growth, skill enhancement, and advancement within VML's global network.

• Global Brand Exposure: Chance to work with world-leading brands such as Coca-Cola, EY, Bosch, Unilever, Ford, Mercedes-Benz, and Tiffany & Co.

• Collaborative Culture: A supportive team environment that values connection, belonging, and diverse perspectives.

• Impactful Work: The opportunity to contribute to revolutionary work and deliver end-to-end solutions that shape digital experiences.

• Employee Well-being: VML's culture emphasizes empathy, trust, and human-centric work, fostering a positive and respectful environment.

• Potential for Hybrid Work: The "#LI-HYBRID" tag suggests flexibility, with the possibility of a hybrid work arrangement, though the primary location is Faro.

Working Hours:

• Standard full-time working hours are typically 40 hours per week, common in Portugal and across European agencies. Flexibility may be offered depending on project needs and team agreements.

📝 Enhancement Note: The salary estimate is based on general market data for senior UX roles in Western Europe, adjusted for Portugal's cost of living and the agency's scale. Benefits are inferred from standard offerings at large global agencies and company culture descriptions. The "#LI-HYBRID" tag indicates potential flexibility, but the primary location is Faro.

🎯 Team & Company Context

🏢 Company Culture

Industry: Marketing & Advertising, Technology, Consulting, Digital Transformation. VML is a powerhouse formed by the merger of VMLY&R and Wunderman Thompson, positioning itself as a growth partner blending creative, consultancy, and technology expertise.

Company Size: Over 30,000 employees globally, with the Enterprise Solutions division alone boasting over 4,200 experts in 55 operational centers across 34 countries. This indicates a large, well-resourced, and globally distributed organization.

Founded: VMLY&R and Wunderman Thompson have rich histories, with VML founded in 1992 and Wunderman Thompson tracing roots back to 1958. The combined entity, VML, represents a new era built on a century of combined expertise.

Team Structure:

• CX Team: The Senior UX Designer will join a CX team that includes Leads in UX, UI, Service Design, Optimisation, and Consulting.

• Reporting: Reports into the Lead UX, with close collaboration across various specialized leads and functions.

• Cross-functional Collaboration: High degree of collaboration with Account Leads, Head of UX, Head of CX, program managers, developers, and clients.

Methodology:

• Data-Driven Insights: Emphasis on analyzing research data to generate meaningful insights and behavioral patterns.

• Design Thinking: Application of design thinking techniques to identify opportunities and develop solutions.

• End-to-End Solutions: Focus on delivering comprehensive solutions across the entire customer journey, from acquisition to loyalty.

• Agile Practices: Likely to employ agile methodologies given the nature of digital product development and agency work.

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

📝 Enhancement Note: VML's scale and merger history suggest a dynamic, globally integrated environment. The "Enterprise Solutions" division specifically focuses on large-scale digital commerce and experience platforms, indicating a need for robust, scalable design solutions.

📈 Career & Growth Analysis

Operations Career Level: Senior UX Designer. This level signifies a high degree of autonomy, expertise, and responsibility. The role is expected to lead complex projects, mentor junior designers, and contribute strategically to client engagements.

Reporting Structure: Reports to the Lead UX, working within a broader CX team structure. This offers opportunities to learn from experienced leads and contribute to strategic direction.

Operations Impact: The role directly impacts client success by designing user-centric digital experiences that drive customer acquisition, engagement, conversion, and loyalty. This translates into tangible business growth for VML's clients, contributing to the agency's overall revenue and reputation.

Growth Opportunities:

• Leadership Development: Potential to grow into a Lead UX or CX role, managing teams and larger strategic initiatives.

• Specialization: Opportunity to deepen expertise in specific areas like e-commerce, service design, or user research.

• Mentorship: Chance to mentor junior designers and contribute to the team's skill development.

• Client Relationship Management: Develop stronger client-facing skills and strategic advisory capabilities.

• Global Mobility: As part of a large global organization, there could be opportunities to work on international projects or even relocate.

📝 Enhancement Note: The "Senior" title implies a path towards leadership or deep specialization. VML's extensive client roster and global presence offer significant scope for career advancement and diverse project experience.

🌐 Work Environment

Office Type: While the role is listed as "Remote OK" and "#LI-HYBRID," VML operates globally with numerous offices. The Faro location suggests a potential base for hybrid work, offering a blend of remote flexibility and in-office collaboration. The company culture values connection and belonging, hinting at well-designed collaborative office spaces when needed.

Office Location(s): The primary stated location is Faro, Faro District, Portugal. VML has a significant presence across 64 markets and 150+ offices globally.

Workspace Context:

• Collaborative Hubs: Offices are likely designed to foster collaboration, with spaces for workshops, presentations, and team interaction.

• Technology-Rich: Expect access to modern design tools, software, and potentially VR/AR facilities for advanced prototyping and immersive experience design.

• Dynamic Team Interaction: Regular opportunities to connect with diverse teams, including UX, UI, Service Design, Strategy, Technology, and Account Management.

Work Schedule:

• The standard 40-hour work week is typical, but agency life often involves project-driven demands. The "Remote OK" and "Hybrid" indicators suggest a modern approach to work-life balance, allowing for flexibility in managing personal and professional commitments.

📝 Enhancement Note: The "Remote OK" and "#LI-HYBRID" tags provide flexibility. Candidates should clarify expectations regarding office presence and hybrid arrangements with the hiring team. The environment is expected to be fast-paced, client-focused, and collaborative.

📄 Application & Portfolio Review Process

Interview Process:

• Initial Screening: HR or recruiter call to assess basic qualifications, cultural fit, and salary expectations.

• Portfolio Review & Discussion: A key stage where candidates present their portfolio, detailing their role, process, and outcomes for specific projects, especially e-commerce and complex journeys. Be prepared to discuss your design rationale, problem-solving approach, and how you handled constraints.

• Skills Assessment/Challenge: Potentially a design exercise or case study to evaluate problem-solving skills, design thinking, and ability to articulate solutions under pressure. This might involve a take-home assignment or a live working session.

• Team/Stakeholder Interviews: Meetings with the Lead UX, Head of CX, other designers, and potentially cross-functional leads or clients to assess collaboration style, strategic thinking, and client communication skills.

• Final Interview: Often with a senior leader to discuss overall fit, career aspirations, and finalize the offer.

Portfolio Review Tips:

• Curate Strategically: Select 3-5 of your strongest projects that best showcase your e-commerce/complex journey experience and your end-to-end UX process.

• Tell a Story: Structure each case study with a clear narrative: problem, your role, process, challenges, solutions, and impact (quantified if possible).

• Highlight Your Process: Detail your methodology, research techniques, design decisions, and how you iterated based on feedback or testing.

• Showcase Artifacts: Include key deliverables like personas, journey maps, wireframes, and prototypes to visually support your narrative.

• Be Ready for Deep Dives: Prepare to answer detailed questions about your design choices, how you handled conflicting requirements, and your collaboration with developers and stakeholders.

• Demonstrate Strategic Thinking: Emphasize how your designs align with business goals and client objectives.

Challenge Preparation:

• Understand the Brief: If given a design challenge, thoroughly understand the problem statement, target users, and business goals.

• Emphasize Process: Focus on articulating your thought process, research approach, and design decisions, even if time is limited for a fully polished output.

• Practice Presentation: Rehearse presenting your solutions concisely and clearly, anticipating potential questions.

📝 Enhancement Note: The portfolio review is paramount. Candidates must be able to articulate their design process and impact convincingly, especially concerning e-commerce and complex user journeys.

🛠 Tools & Technology Stack

Primary Design & Prototyping Tools:

• Figma: Highly probable as a primary tool for collaborative design, wireframing, and prototyping.

• Sketch: Still widely used for UI design, especially on macOS.

• Adobe Creative Suite: Photoshop and Illustrator for asset creation and manipulation.

• Prototyping Tools: InVision, Axure RP, or similar for creating interactive prototypes and user flows.

Research & Testing Tools:

• UserZoom / Lookback / Maze: For remote usability testing and user research data collection.

• Hotjar / FullStory: For website analytics, heatmaps, session recordings, and understanding user behavior on live sites.

• SurveyMonkey / Typeform: For creating and distributing user surveys.

Collaboration & Project Management:

• Jira / Confluence: Common for managing project workflows, documentation, and team collaboration, especially in Agile environments.

• Miro / Mural: For virtual whiteboarding, workshop facilitation, and collaborative ideation.

• Slack / Microsoft Teams: For day-to-day team communication.

CRM & Automation (Relevant context due to Enterprise Solutions focus):

• Salesforce: Often integrated with enterprise solutions, understanding its ecosystem can be beneficial.

• Adobe Experience Cloud: Given VML's partnership and client base, familiarity with Adobe's CX platforms is a plus.

• Shopify, BigCommerce, Sitecore, Acquia: Mentioned as strategic partners, indicating potential work with clients leveraging these platforms.

📝 Enhancement Note: Proficiency in industry-standard UX design and prototyping tools is essential. Familiarity with tools used in research, analytics, and collaboration platforms will be highly advantageous. Given the client list, awareness of major e-commerce and enterprise platforms like Salesforce, Adobe Experience Cloud, and various e-commerce CMS is beneficial.

👥 Team Culture & Values

Operations Values:

• Heart: Fostering empathy, trust, and human-centric design, ensuring solutions are considerate of user needs and well-being.

• Brains: Valuing relentless curiosity, analytical thinking, and collaborative intelligence to tackle complex design challenges and drive innovation.

• Courage: Encouraging boldness, experimentation, and advocacy for innovative solutions that push boundaries and challenge the status quo.

• Impact-Driven: A strong focus on delivering measurable results and driving growth for clients through effective digital experiences.

• Collaboration: Emphasis on teamwork, knowledge sharing, and cross-functional synergy to achieve collective success.

Collaboration Style:

• Cross-functional Integration: Seamless collaboration with UX, UI, Service Design, Consulting, Development, and Account teams.

• Client Partnership: Working consultatively with clients, building trust, and co-creating solutions.

• Feedback Culture: Openness to constructive feedback and iterative design processes.

• Knowledge Sharing: A culture that likely encourages sharing best practices, insights, and learnings across teams.

📝 Enhancement Note: The "Heart, Brains, Courage" values are central to VML's identity. Candidates should be able to articulate how their approach to UX design embodies these principles, particularly in how they approach user empathy, problem-solving, and innovative ideation.

⚡ Challenges & Growth Opportunities

Challenges:

• Balancing Stakeholder Needs: Navigating diverse and sometimes conflicting requirements from clients, internal teams, and end-users.

• Complex Digital Ecosystems: Designing for intricate enterprise-level platforms with numerous integrations and legacy systems.

• Driving Adoption of Best Practices: Educating clients and internal teams on the value of UX and user-centric design.

• Quantifying UX Impact: Clearly demonstrating the ROI of UX initiatives, especially in complex B2B or enterprise contexts.

• Adapting to Evolving Technologies: Staying current with emerging UX trends, tools, and platform capabilities.

Learning & Development Opportunities:

• Advanced UX/CX Training: Access to internal and external training programs to deepen expertise in specialized areas.

• Industry Conferences & Certifications: Opportunities to attend leading UX/CX conferences and pursue relevant certifications.

• Mentorship Programs: Formal and informal mentorship from senior leaders within VML.

• Exposure to Diverse Brands & Industries: Working on a wide array of high-profile clients provides continuous learning and broadens industry knowledge.

• Leadership Tracks: Defined paths for career progression into leadership roles within UX, CX, or related disciplines.

📝 Enhancement Note: This role offers significant opportunities to tackle complex, high-impact projects for leading global brands, which inherently presents challenges that are also growth opportunities for experienced professionals.

💡 Interview Preparation

Strategy Questions:

• "Describe a time you had to balance conflicting requirements from different stakeholders. How did you approach it, and what was the outcome?" (Focus on your negotiation, communication, and problem-solving process.)

• "Walk us through your process for designing a complex e-commerce user journey. What research methods did you use, and how did you iterate on the design?" (Be ready to detail your end-to-end UX process with a specific example.)

• "How do you ensure your designs are technically feasible while meeting user needs and business goals?" (Discuss your collaboration with developers and understanding of technical constraints.)

• "How do you measure the success of your UX designs?" (Prepare to discuss KPIs, metrics, and how you've demonstrated ROI.)

Company & Culture Questions:

• "What do you know about VML and our Enterprise Solutions division?" (Research the company, its recent merger, and its client portfolio.)

• "How do your personal values align with VML's core values of Heart, Brains, and Courage?" (Prepare specific examples of how you embody these.)

Portfolio Presentation Strategy:

• Choose Impactful Projects: Select 2-3 projects that best represent your senior-level experience, particularly in e-commerce or complex journeys.

• Structure Your Narrative: For each project, follow a clear story:

  1. Problem: What was the business and user challenge?
  2. Your Role: What were your specific responsibilities?
  3. Process: Detail your UX methodology (research, ideation, design, testing).
  4. Solutions: Showcase key artifacts (wireframes, prototypes, flows).
  5. Outcome: What was the impact (metrics, learnings)?

• Be Prepared for Questions: Anticipate questions about your design decisions, trade-offs, and how you would approach similar challenges in the future.

• Demonstrate Strategic Thinking: Connect your design solutions back to the client's business objectives and VML's role as a growth partner.

📝 Enhancement Note: The interview process will heavily rely on your portfolio and your ability to articulate your strategic thinking, problem-solving skills, and collaborative approach within the context of VML's values and client needs.

📌 Application Steps

To apply for this Senior UX Designer position:

• Submit your application through the provided Greenhouse link.

• Customize Your Resume: Tailor your resume to highlight your significant experience in UX design, e-commerce, complex journeys, user research, and client communication. Use keywords from the job description.

• Prepare Your Portfolio: Ensure your portfolio is up-to-date, showcases your best work relevant to this role (especially e-commerce/complex journeys), and is easily navigable. Have a clear narrative ready for each case study.

• Research VML: Understand VML's mission, values (Heart, Brains, Courage), client roster (especially Enterprise Solutions clients), and recent work. Familiarize yourself with their approach to growth and digital transformation.

• Practice Your Presentation: Rehearse presenting your portfolio case studies, focusing on clarity, conciseness, and demonstrating strategic thinking and problem-solving abilities. Practice answering common UX interview questions.

⚠️ 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.

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