Senior Service Designer

📍 Job Overview

Job Title: Senior Service Designer

Company: Version 1

Location: London, Birmingham, Manchester, Newcastle upon Tyne, Edinburgh, Belfast, United Kingdom

Job Type: Full-time

Category: Digital, Data and Cloud / Service Design

Date Posted: 2026-04-27

Experience Level: 5-10 years

Remote Status: Hybrid

🚀 Role Summary

• Lead the design and delivery of end-to-end services that are accessible, efficient, and user-centered, working across the full service lifecycle from discovery to live operations.

• Collaborate with multidisciplinary teams including content designers, interaction designers, product managers, user researchers, business analysts, and technical leads to shape service visions and define underlying structures, processes, and journeys.

• Apply systems thinking to complex, systemic challenges, using research, evidence, and data-driven insights to break down problems and shape solutions that demonstrably improve user outcomes and organizational efficiency.

• Champion accessibility and inclusion by default, ensuring services are designed for diverse user needs and align with commercial realities, contract scope, and budget appetites.

📝 Enhancement Note: The role is positioned within Version 1's Digital, Data and Cloud capability, specifically within the Transformation Design Group (TDG). This suggests a focus on complex, systemic challenges often found in public sector or large enterprise digital transformation initiatives. The emphasis on "leading," "shaping," and "mentoring" indicates a senior-level position with significant responsibility for driving design strategy and team development.

📈 Primary Responsibilities

• Lead the mapping of current and future state service designs, ensuring alignment between digital delivery, policy, and operational realities.

• Facilitate workshops and collaborative sessions with clients and internal teams to drive alignment, clarity, and decision-making around service vision and strategy.

• Design and deliver services that demonstrably improve people's lives and achieve measurable organizational impact, utilizing user research and data-driven insights.

• Develop and maintain service blueprints, journey maps, and other key service design artefacts, tailoring them for various audiences to enhance clarity and understanding of complex systems.

• Collaborate closely within agile, multidisciplinary teams to deliver services iteratively, ensuring continuous improvement and adaptation based on feedback and performance data.

• Shape and secure new work by translating client needs into high-value opportunities and developing compelling service design propositions.

• Mentor and coach other Service Designers and team members, fostering a learning culture and equipping them with necessary structures, guidance, and frameworks for effective delivery.

• Drive progress and maintain momentum on service design initiatives, proactively identifying and addressing roadblocks, and turning around underperforming efforts when necessary.

• Ensure service design delivery is conducted with integrity, making difficult conversations constructively when needed to uphold quality and organizational values.

📝 Enhancement Note: The responsibilities highlight a blend of strategic leadership, hands-on design execution, and team enablement. The emphasis on "shaping work," "driving progress," and "mentoring" aligns with a senior role that contributes to business development and capability growth within Version 1's services.

🎓 Skills & Qualifications

Education: While no specific degree is mandated, a strong portfolio and demonstrated experience in service design, UX, or related fields are essential. Degrees in Design, HCI, Computer Science, or relevant technical/analytical fields may be advantageous.

Experience: A strong track record of leading end-to-end service design projects, from problem definition and discovery through to delivering measurable impact, is required. Experience in a consultancy or client-facing environment is highly desirable.

Required Skills:

• Service Design: Proven ability to lead the design and delivery of complex, end-to-end services.

• Systems Thinking: Ability to understand and design for the interplay between people, processes, policy, data, and technology within a service ecosystem.

• User-Centred Design: Deep commitment to grounding design decisions in real user needs and organizational context, championing accessibility and inclusion.

• Stakeholder Management: Skill in building trust, navigating complex stakeholder dynamics, and conducting difficult conversations constructively.

• Workshop Facilitation: Expertise in planning and running effective workshops that drive alignment, clarity, and decision-making.

• Service Blueprinting & Journey Mapping: Proficiency in creating and utilizing these artefacts to visualize service flows and user experiences.

• Agile Methodology: Experience working collaboratively within agile, multidisciplinary teams for iterative delivery.

• Data Analysis: Ability to interpret performance data to inform design decisions and measure service success.

• Strategic Planning: Capacity to think beyond immediate problems and design scalable, sustainable services.

• Communication: Excellent ability to communicate complex ideas simply and adapt to different audiences and contexts.

• Emotional Intelligence: Skill in understanding and managing one's own emotions and those of others to navigate interpersonal dynamics effectively.

• Commercial Awareness: Understanding of how service design delivery relates to commercial realities, including contract scope, budget, and future opportunities.

• Mentoring: Ability to foster a learning culture and actively support the growth and development of team members.

Preferred Skills:

• Experience working within frameworks aligned to SFIA (Skills Framework for the Information Age) or DDaT (Digital, Data and Technology) capability frameworks.

• Experience in a consultancy or professional services environment.

• A track record of influencing organizational thinking and redefining best practices in service design.

📝 Enhancement Note: The extensive list of required skills, particularly "systems thinker," "inclusive by default," "commercially aware," "multiplier," "mentor," and "wave-maker," strongly indicates a senior role focused on leadership, strategic impact, and capability building within Version 1's design practice. The emphasis on "commercial awareness" suggests a need to understand the business context of service delivery.

📊 Process & Systems Portfolio Requirements

Portfolio Essentials:

• Demonstrate leadership in end-to-end service design projects, showcasing the entire lifecycle from discovery to measurable impact.

• Showcase examples of complex, systemic challenges tackled, illustrating the application of systems thinking and data-driven insights.

• Include evidence of designing for accessibility and inclusion, with specific examples of how diverse user needs were considered and met.

• Present case studies that highlight commercial awareness, demonstrating an understanding of how service design aligns with contract scope, budgets, and business opportunities.

Process Documentation:

• Showcase how you have documented service blueprints, journey maps, and other artefacts to bring clarity to complex systems, tailored for different audiences.

• Provide examples of how you have used data and research to inform design decisions and measure the success of delivered services.

• Illustrate your approach to turning vision into reality, guiding teams through structured thinking and pragmatic execution to achieve user-centered outcomes.

• Demonstrate your ability to set clear service visions and align teams and stakeholders behind shared directions.

📝 Enhancement Note: A portfolio is implicitly required given the senior nature of the role and the emphasis on demonstrating a track record. The focus should be on showcasing strategic thinking, leadership in complex projects, and tangible outcomes.

💵 Compensation & Benefits

Salary Range: Based on the Senior Service Designer title, significant experience requirement (5-10 years), and the locations (major UK cities), a competitive salary range can be estimated. For London, a Senior Service Designer typically commands £65,000 - £90,000 per annum. For other listed cities (Birmingham, Manchester, Newcastle, Edinburgh, Belfast), the range might be slightly lower, approximately £55,000 - £80,000 per annum. This estimate reflects the seniority, required skills, and regional cost of living differences within the UK.

Benefits:

• Hybrid Schedule: Offers flexibility to balance work and life, combining remote work with office presence.

• Business Travel: Opportunity to travel for client engagements and project needs.

• Tech Scheme: Access to innovative technology to stay current with industry advancements.

• Private Medical Insurance: Comprehensive health coverage for employees and potentially their families.

• Life Insurance: Financial security for beneficiaries in the event of an employee's passing.

• Free Eye Tests: Support for employee vision care.

• Incentivized Certifications: Financial and professional support for acquiring industry-recognized certifications (e.g., AWS, Microsoft, Oracle, Red Hat).

• Profit Share Scheme: Quarterly distribution of a portion of company profits, directly rewarding employee contributions.

• Pathways Career Development: Structured program designed to support professional growth and career advancement.

Working Hours: 40 hours per week, with a hybrid work arrangement offering flexibility.

📝 Enhancement Note: The salary estimate is based on industry benchmarks for Senior Service Designers in the UK, considering location variance. The benefits listed are directly from the job description and highlight Version 1's investment in employee well-being, professional development, and financial security.

🎯 Team & Company Context

🏢 Company Culture

Industry: Technology Services, Digital Transformation, Cloud, Data, and Software Consulting. Version 1 serves a diverse client base, including large global brands and likely public sector organizations, given the mention of DDaT frameworks.

Company Size: Version 1 is a significant player in the technology services sector, indicated by its 30+ years in business, multiple strategic technology partners, and an award-winning employer status across UK and Ireland. While not explicitly stated, the scale of operations and client base suggests a company size of 1,000+ employees.

Founded: Version 1 has celebrated over 30 years in Technology Services, indicating a founding date around the late 1980s or early 1990s. This longevity suggests a stable, experienced, and adaptable organization.

Team Structure:

• The Senior Service Designer will be part of the Transformation Design Group (TDG), which is within Version 1's Digital, Data and Cloud capability.

• TDG itself comprises over 15 Service Designers, indicating a substantial and specialized design community.

• The role involves working within multidisciplinary teams, suggesting a collaborative structure that integrates design with product management, development, and business analysis.

Methodology:

• Data-Driven Insight: Version 1 emphasizes using research, evidence, and data-driven insights to break down complex challenges and shape solutions.

• User-Centred Design: A core principle guiding their work, ensuring solutions are designed with empathy and curiosity for real users.

• Agile & Iterative Delivery: Collaboration within agile, multidisciplinary teams to deliver outcomes iteratively.

• Systems Thinking: Applying a systemic lens to understand and address complex, interconnected issues.

• No-Blame Culture: Fostering an environment of psychological safety, trust, and shared purpose.

Company Website: https://www.version1.com/

📝 Enhancement Note: Version 1's culture appears to be a blend of established expertise (30+ years) and a forward-thinking, digital-first approach. The emphasis on awards for innovation, partnership, and employee well-being suggests a positive and growth-oriented environment. The specific mention of TDG and its size indicates a well-developed and supported design practice.

📈 Career & Growth Analysis

Operations Career Level: This is a Senior role within the Service Design discipline, positioned as a key contributor within the Transformation Design Group (TDG). It requires significant experience (5-10 years) and the ability to lead end-to-end service design, mentor junior staff, and influence strategic direction. The role is expected to be a "multiplier" and a "wave-maker," indicating a high level of autonomy and impact.

Reporting Structure: While not explicitly detailed, a Senior Service Designer typically reports to a Design Lead, Head of Transformation Design, or a similar senior leadership role within the Digital, Data and Cloud capability. They will work closely with Product Managers, Technical Leads, and Business Analysts within project teams.

Operations Impact: The Senior Service Designer's impact is on shaping successful, user-centered digital services for Version 1's clients. This involves driving efficiency, improving user experiences, ensuring accessibility, and contributing to the commercial success of projects. By leading design efforts and mentoring teams, they directly influence the quality of service delivery and the growth of Version 1's design capability.

Growth Opportunities:

• Leadership Development: Opportunities to lead larger, more complex service design initiatives, potentially managing small teams or workstreams.

• Capability Building: Contribute to evolving Version 1's service design methodologies, frameworks, and best practices.

• Client Engagement & Business Development: Play a role in shaping proposals and securing new opportunities, developing commercial acumen.

• Specialization: Deepen expertise in specific areas of service design, such as digital transformation, public sector services, or specific industry verticals.

• Mentorship & Coaching: Further develop coaching skills by actively mentoring junior designers and contributing to the design community.

• Advanced Certifications: Leverage incentivized certifications to gain deeper expertise in complementary areas like cloud technologies or specific methodologies.

📝 Enhancement Note: The role is clearly designed for experienced professionals who are ready to take on significant responsibility, mentor others, and influence strategic design decisions. The growth paths are geared towards leadership, specialized expertise, and contributing to the broader consulting practice.

🌐 Work Environment

Office Type: Version 1 operates a hybrid work model, meaning the environment is a blend of remote work and in-office collaboration. The offices are likely modern, professional spaces designed to support collaborative work, client meetings, and focused individual work.

Office Location(s): The role is open to multiple major UK cities: London, Birmingham, Manchester, Newcastle upon Tyne, Edinburgh, and Belfast. This offers significant geographic flexibility for candidates.

Workspace Context:

• Collaborative Environment: The hybrid model and emphasis on multidisciplinary teams necessitate a workspace that facilitates effective collaboration, both in-person and virtually. Expect areas for workshops, brainstorming, and team meetings.

• Operations Tools & Technology: Access to standard professional tools for design, communication, project management, and potentially specialized service design software. The company's technology partners (Microsoft, AWS, Oracle, etc.) suggest a modern tech stack.

• Team Interaction: Opportunities for regular interaction with a large community of Service Designers (15+), as well as cross-functional team members and clients.

Work Schedule: A standard 40-hour work week is outlined, with the flexibility afforded by the hybrid model allowing for a balance between structured work time and personal life requirements. Business travel is also expected as part of client engagements.

📝 Enhancement Note: The hybrid nature is a key aspect, offering flexibility while still necessitating in-person collaboration. The multiple office locations are a significant advantage for candidates across the UK.

📄 Application & Portfolio Review Process

Interview Process:

• Initial Screening: Likely a review of CV and portfolio by a Talent Acquisition Partner (Ashley Smith is listed). Focus will be on assessing alignment with core requirements and experience level.

• Hiring Manager Interview: A deeper dive into your experience, approach to service design challenges, and alignment with the TDG team's ethos. Expect questions about your track record, leadership style, and how you handle ambiguity.

• Skills/Portfolio Review: A dedicated session to present and discuss your portfolio. This will likely involve walking through specific case studies, explaining your role, methodology, challenges, and outcomes. Be prepared to discuss your systems thinking, user-centered approach, and commercial awareness.

• Team/Panel Interview: Interaction with other Service Designers and potentially stakeholders from multidisciplinary teams. This assesses cultural fit, collaboration style, and ability to articulate ideas clearly to diverse audiences.

• Final Interview: Potentially with a senior leader within the Digital, Data and Cloud capability to discuss strategic alignment and long-term potential.

Portfolio Review Tips:

• Curate Strategically: Select 3-4 strong case studies that best represent your senior-level experience, leadership, and impact. Prioritize projects demonstrating end-to-end service design, complex problem-solving, and measurable outcomes.

• Show, Don't Just Tell: For each case study, clearly outline the problem, your specific role and contributions, the methodologies used (e.g., discovery, mapping, prototyping, testing), key insights, design decisions, challenges faced, and the tangible impact (qualitative and quantitative).

• Highlight Systems Thinking: Explicitly demonstrate how you approached the service as a system, considering all touchpoints, user journeys, internal processes, technology, and policy implications.

• Emphasize Collaboration & Mentorship: Showcase instances where you collaborated effectively with multidisciplinary teams and how you mentored or enabled others.

• Address Commerciality: Include projects where you demonstrated commercial awareness, linking design outcomes to business objectives, budget considerations, or future opportunities.

• Practice Your Narrative: Be prepared to walk through your portfolio concisely and compellingly, adapting your explanation to the interviewer's background.

Challenge Preparation:

• Scenario-Based Questions: Anticipate questions asking how you would approach specific service design problems, how you handle ambiguity, or how you would facilitate a difficult workshop.

• "Tell Me About a Time..." Questions: Prepare examples that illustrate your leadership, problem-solving skills, ability to influence, and experience with systems thinking, user needs, and commercial realities.

• Understanding Version 1: Research Version 1's clients, projects, and values. Understand their approach to digital transformation and service design as outlined in the job description.

📝 Enhancement Note: The interview process is likely multi-stage, with a strong emphasis on portfolio presentation and demonstrating senior-level capabilities. Candidates should prepare detailed case studies that highlight strategic thinking, leadership, and measurable impact.

🛠 Tools & Technology Stack

Primary Tools:

• Service Design Artefact Creation: Tools for service blueprints, journey maps, user flows, wireframing, and prototyping. While specific tools aren't listed, common industry standards include:

  • Diagramming/Whiteboarding: Miro, Mural, Lucidchart, Visio
  • Prototyping/UX: Figma, Sketch, Adobe XD, Axure RP

• Collaboration Platforms: Microsoft Teams, Slack, Google Workspace for communication and co-creation.

• Agile Project Management: Jira, Confluence for tracking work and documentation.

Analytics & Reporting:

• Tools for analyzing user behavior data, service performance metrics, and feedback. This could involve:
  • Web Analytics: Google Analytics, Adobe Analytics
  • BI Tools: Tableau, Power BI (for visualizing performance data)
  • User Feedback Platforms: SurveyMonkey, Typeform, Hotjar

CRM & Automation:

• While not directly a service designer's primary toolset, understanding how services integrate with CRM and automation platforms is beneficial. This might involve familiarity with:
  • CRM: Salesforce, Microsoft Dynamics
  • Automation: Marketing automation platforms, workflow automation tools.

Key Frameworks/Methodologies:

• Agile and Scrum methodologies.

• User-Centered Design principles.

• Systems Thinking approaches.

• SFIA and DDaT frameworks (desirable).

📝 Enhancement Note: The technology stack is inferred based on industry standards for service design and digital transformation consultancies. Proficiency in collaborative digital whiteboarding and prototyping tools is essential. Familiarity with data analysis and visualization tools is also important for demonstrating impact.

👥 Team Culture & Values

Operations Values: Version 1 emphasizes:

• Excellence & Innovation: As evidenced by their awards and strategic partnerships. They strive to deliver high-quality, innovative solutions.

• Customer Success: A core focus, ensuring that services drive positive outcomes for clients and their users.

• Collaboration & Teamwork: Working as one team with clients and within multidisciplinary teams, fostering trust and psychological safety.

• Data-Driven Approach: Using evidence, research, and data to inform decisions and measure impact.

• Inclusivity & Diversity: Championing accessibility and inclusion by default, valuing diversity of background, identity, experience, and thought.

• Integrity: Doing the right thing, even when it involves difficult conversations, to ensure pride in their work.

Collaboration Style:

• Co-creation: Working collaboratively with clients and internal teams to co-create solutions and build strong partnerships.

• Cross-Disciplinary Integration: Seamlessly integrating within agile, multidisciplinary teams to deliver iteratively and holistically.

• Open Communication: Fostering a culture of sharing, feedback, and constructive dialogue to improve services and processes.

• Empathetic & Curious: Leading with empathy and curiosity in all interactions and design processes.

📝 Enhancement Note: The culture at Version 1 is built on a foundation of professional excellence, client focus, and strong ethical values. The emphasis on inclusivity, psychological safety, and collaborative co-creation is particularly important for a Senior Service Designer who will be influencing teams and clients.

⚡ Challenges & Growth Opportunities

Challenges:

• Navigating Complex Systems: Dealing with intricate, often legacy, systems within client organizations to design coherent and efficient services.

• Ambiguity & Shifting Priorities: Helping teams find direction when the path isn't obvious and adapting to evolving client needs or project scopes.

• Influencing Stakeholders: Effectively communicating complex ideas and advocating for user-centered design principles to diverse stakeholders who may have different priorities or levels of understanding.

• Driving Adoption of New Services: Ensuring that designed services are not only well-received but also effectively integrated and utilized within client organizations.

• Balancing Commercial & User Needs: Successfully aligning the constraints of contract scope, budget, and timelines with the ideal user experience and service viability.

Learning & Development Opportunities:

• Advanced Service Design Techniques: Opportunities to explore and implement cutting-edge service design methodologies and tools.

• Industry Certifications: Access to incentivized certifications in areas like Cloud (AWS, Microsoft, Oracle), Agile, or specific design disciplines.

• Mentorship Programs: Formal and informal opportunities to be mentored by senior leaders and to mentor junior designers, developing leadership and coaching skills.

• Cross-Functional Exposure: Working on diverse projects across various industries and with different client types, broadening experience and understanding.

• Contribution to Best Practices: Playing a role in shaping and refining Version 1's service design frameworks and standards.

📝 Enhancement Note: The challenges are typical for senior consultants in a dynamic client-facing environment. The growth opportunities are well-defined, focusing on continuous learning, leadership development, and expanding professional expertise.

💡 Interview Preparation

Strategy Questions:

• "How would you approach designing a service for [a specific complex problem, e.g., improving prisoner support, reducing teacher hiring costs]?" - Prepare to outline your discovery, definition, ideation, and delivery phases, emphasizing systems thinking and user research.

• "Describe a time you had to influence a senior stakeholder to adopt a new service direction. What was your strategy, and what was the outcome?" - Focus on how you used evidence, storytelling, and empathy to gain buy-in.

• "How do you ensure services are inclusive and accessible by default? Can you provide an example?" - Prepare to discuss your process for considering diverse user needs and accessibility standards.

• "How do you balance commercial realities (e.g., budget, contract scope) with user needs and design best practices?" - Be ready to discuss pragmatic approaches and trade-offs.

Company & Culture Questions:

• "What interests you about Version 1 and the Transformation Design Group?" - Research their recent projects, awards, and values. Connect your aspirations to their mission.

• "How would you contribute to our culture of psychological safety and a no-blame approach?" - Discuss your experience fostering positive team dynamics.

Portfolio Presentation Strategy:

• Structure: Organize your presentation logically: Introduction to the project, the problem, your role and approach, key artefacts/decisions, challenges, outcomes/impact, and key learnings.

• Storytelling: Weave a compelling narrative around each case study. Explain the "why" behind your decisions and the impact of your work.

• Visuals: Use clear, concise visuals from your portfolio. Highlight service blueprints, journey maps, and key insights.

• Quantify Impact: Where possible, use data and metrics to demonstrate the tangible value of your service design work (e.g., improved efficiency, user satisfaction scores, cost savings).

• Engage and Interact: Be prepared for questions throughout your presentation. Treat it as a collaborative discussion rather than a monologue.

📝 Enhancement Note: Interview preparation should focus on demonstrating senior-level strategic thinking, leadership, and the ability to articulate complex design processes and their impact. Case studies are paramount.

📌 Application Steps

To apply for this operations position:

• Submit your application through the provided link on jobs.smartrecruiters.com.

• Tailor Your CV & Cover Letter: Highlight your experience in end-to-end service design, systems thinking, stakeholder management, and leading multidisciplinary teams. Quantify achievements and align your experience with the required skills and responsibilities.

• Prepare Your Portfolio: Curate 3-4 strong case studies that showcase your senior-level expertise, leadership, and impact. Ensure it clearly demonstrates your approach to complex problems, user-centered design, systems thinking, and commercial awareness. Be ready to present it effectively.

• Research Version 1: Understand their company culture, values, client base, and the work of their Transformation Design Group. Familiarize yourself with their technology partnerships and recent awards.

• Practice Interview Responses: Prepare for behavioral and situational questions, focusing on examples that illustrate your leadership, problem-solving, and collaborative abilities. Practice articulating your portfolio case studies concisely and compellingly.

⚠️ 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.