UX Design Principal (Mat Cover 10 Months Contract)

📍 Job Overview

Job Title: UX Design Principal (Maternity Cover - 10 Months Contract)

Company: interactive investor

Location: Manchester, England, United Kingdom

Job Type: CONTRACTOR

Category: User Experience (UX) Design / Product Design Operations

Date Posted: 28 May 2026

Experience Level: 10+ Years

Remote Status: Hybrid (3 days in office, 2 days remote)

🚀 Role Summary

• Lead the end-to-end design of complex, high-impact customer experiences within a leading financial services organization.

• Drive product strategy and elevate UX maturity across the business by providing strategic influence and coaching.

• Collaborate closely with UX Research, Product, Engineering, and Design System teams to deliver intuitive, accessible, and effective digital experiences.

• Play a key role in a significant user-centered transformation, setting the benchmark for design quality and craft.

• Champion UX best practices, accessibility (WCAG standards), and inclusive design throughout the product lifecycle.

📝 Enhancement Note: This role is a 10-month contract position, specifically maternity cover. The focus is on a senior-level individual contributor who can lead significant design initiatives and influence strategic direction, rather than managing a team directly. The "Operations" aspect is derived from the strategic leadership, process improvement, and cross-functional collaboration required to elevate UX maturity within the organization.

📈 Primary Responsibilities

• Partner with the UX Design Manager to define and drive UX strategy across products, platforms, and customer journeys, influencing organizational direction.

• Lead the design of complex, strategically important initiatives that span multiple products, teams, and customer journeys.

• Drive end-to-end design activities, from initial discovery and research through to delivery, iterative optimization, and performance analysis.

• Create and contribute to key design artifacts, including journey maps, wireframes, interactive prototypes, and high-fidelity visual designs.

• Serve as a role model for UX excellence, sharing expertise and actively mentoring and growing the capabilities of the broader UX team.

• Champion and enforce UX best practices, accessibility standards (WCAG), and inclusive design principles throughout the entire product development lifecycle.

• Support the adoption, maintenance, and evolution of the company's Design System to ensure consistency, scalability, and efficiency across all digital products.

• Communicate design strategy, rationale, and user insights effectively to a wide range of stakeholders, including senior leadership, product managers, and engineering teams.

• Influence key business and product decisions by leveraging customer insights, data analytics, and deep design expertise.

• Advocate for user-centered design principles and contribute to strengthening a customer-focused culture across the entire organization.

• Identify and propose opportunities to improve customer outcomes and enhance overall business performance through strategic UX interventions.

📝 Enhancement Note: The responsibilities highlight a blend of strategic leadership, hands-on design execution for complex projects, and mentorship. The emphasis on "elevating UX maturity" and "influencing organizational change" indicates a need for strong strategic thinking and communication skills beyond typical design tasks.

🎓 Skills & Qualifications

Education: While not explicitly stated, a Bachelor's or Master's degree in Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), Graphic Design, Interaction Design, Psychology, or a related field is typically expected for senior UX roles. Equivalent practical experience will also be considered.

Experience: Significant experience (10+ years) in a Principal, Lead, Staff, or equivalent senior UX design role. Proven track record designing complex digital products, platforms, and end-to-end customer journeys.

Required Skills:

• UX Strategy & Leadership: Proven ability to define and drive UX strategy, influence product roadmaps, and shape design discipline standards.

• Complex Problem Solving: Expertise in dissecting intricate user problems and developing elegant, effective design solutions for multi-faceted digital products.

• Interaction Design & Information Architecture: Deep understanding of designing intuitive user flows, clear navigation, and logical information structures for complex systems.

• End-to-End Design Process: Mastery of the full UX lifecycle, from discovery and research to wireframing, prototyping, high-fidelity design, user testing, and post-launch optimization.

• Design Systems: Experience working with, contributing to, and championing the use of Design Systems for consistency and scalability.

• Accessibility & Inclusive Design: Strong understanding and practical application of WCAG standards and inclusive design principles to create accessible experiences for all users.

• Stakeholder Management & Communication: Excellent ability to build relationships, manage expectations, and communicate design rationale and strategy clearly to diverse audiences, including senior leadership.

• Presentation Skills: Confident and compelling presentation abilities to articulate design vision, research findings, and strategic recommendations.

• Portfolio Demonstration: Ability to showcase a strong portfolio that clearly demonstrates strategic thinking, design leadership, and measurable impact on user outcomes and business goals.

Preferred Skills:

• Financial Services Experience: Previous experience working within regulated industries, particularly financial services, understanding of compliance and user trust.

• Transformation Leadership: Experience leading large-scale transformation programmes or strategic design initiatives that drive significant organizational change.

• Design Maturity Influence: Proven ability to influence and improve design maturity and user-centricity within an organization.

• Cross-Channel Journey Understanding: Comprehensive understanding of end-to-end customer journeys across multiple digital and potentially offline channels.

• AI-Powered Tools: Familiarity and experience with using AI-powered tools to enhance research, ideation, and design delivery processes.

📝 Enhancement Note: The "Must Have" and "Desirable" sections are well-defined. The emphasis on "significant experience" and "complex digital products" points towards a need for seasoned professionals capable of handling ambiguity and driving strategic initiatives.

📊 Process & Systems Portfolio Requirements

Portfolio Essentials:

• Strategic Impact: Your portfolio must clearly demonstrate strategic thinking and how your design decisions contributed to achieving business objectives and improving customer outcomes.

• Complexity Demonstrated: Showcase examples of designing complex digital products, platforms, or customer journeys, highlighting your problem-solving approach.

• Process & Methodology: Illustrate your end-to-end design process, including discovery, research, ideation, prototyping, user testing, and iteration.

• Measurable Results: Provide evidence of the impact of your work, ideally through quantifiable metrics such as increased conversion rates, improved user satisfaction, reduced task completion times, or enhanced accessibility compliance.

• Design Leadership: Include examples where you have led design initiatives, influenced stakeholders, mentored junior designers, or championed UX best practices.

Process Documentation:

• Showcase your ability to articulate and document design processes, from user research synthesis to detailed design specifications.

• Demonstrate experience in contributing to or evolving Design Systems, including understanding component libraries, style guides, and governance.

• Provide examples of how you have integrated accessibility (WCAG) and inclusive design principles into your design workflows and documentation.

• Illustrate how you collaborate with cross-functional teams (Product, Engineering, Research, Writing) throughout the design and development lifecycle, including any documentation or communication strategies employed.

📝 Enhancement Note: For a Principal level role, the portfolio is critical. It needs to go beyond just showcasing visual design and delve into strategic thinking, process, leadership, and measurable impact. A focus on how the candidate has driven "UX maturity" and handled "complex initiatives" is key.

💵 Compensation & Benefits

Salary Range: £64,000 per annum (for a full-time equivalent). As this is a contract role, the equivalent hourly or daily rate should be considered based on the 10-month duration.

Benefits:

• Pension: Group Personal Pension Plan with an 8% employer contribution and 4% employee contribution.

• Insurance: Life Assurance and Group Income Protection provided.

• Health: Private Medical Insurance through Bupa.

• Leave: 25 Days Annual Leave, plus bank holidays (pro-rated for the contract duration).

• Discounts: Staff discounts on interactive investor's investment products.

• Wellness: Personal & Well-being Fund to support physical and mental wellness.

• Retail Savings: Access to savings at a wide range of high street and online retailers.

• Flexibility: Voluntary Flexible Benefits scheme to tailor benefits to individual lifestyles.

Working Hours: Approximately 40 hours per week, with a hybrid arrangement requiring 3 days in the Manchester office and 2 days remote.

📝 Enhancement Note: The provided salary is a "From" value. For a Principal UX Designer role in Manchester, especially with financial services experience, the actual negotiated salary for this contract could be higher, potentially £70,000-£85,000 equivalent annually, depending on the candidate's experience and specific skills. The benefits package is comprehensive for a contract role, indicating a commitment to employee well-being.

🎯 Team & Company Context

🏢 Company Culture

Industry: Financial Services (Investment Platform)

Company Size: Large (Over 500,000 customers, assets under administration approaching £75 billion). The description implies a significant operational scale.

Founded: Nearly 30 years ago. interactive investor is a well-established player in the UK investment platform market.

Team Structure:

• The UX team is described as "highly collaborative, supportive, and talented" with a "strong culture of partnership, continuous learning, and shared success."

• This Principal role will work across multiple "squads and initiatives," collaborating closely with UX Research, UX Writing, Product, Engineering, Analytics, and the Design System team.

Methodology:

• User-Centred Transformation: The company is undergoing a "significant user-centred transformation," indicating a strategic focus on improving customer experiences.

• Data-Driven Insights: Collaboration with Analytics suggests a data-informed approach to decision-making and optimization.

• Agile/Squad-Based: Working across "multiple squads" implies an agile or scaled agile (e.g., SAFe) environment where cross-functional teams work on specific product areas.

• Design Excellence Culture: The team culture emphasizes "great ideas can come from anyone" and "design excellence is achieved together," fostering an environment of shared responsibility and continuous improvement.

Company Website: ii.co.uk (derived from domain)

📝 Enhancement Note: The company is a major player in the UK financial services sector, emphasizing customer control and investment. The ongoing "user-centred transformation" suggests a dynamic environment where UX leadership is highly valued and has the potential for significant impact.

📈 Career & Growth Analysis

Operations Career Level: Principal UX Designer. This level signifies a senior individual contributor role focused on strategic impact, complex problem-solving, and thought leadership within the UX discipline. It's a position of significant influence, often acting as a subject matter expert and mentor.

Reporting Structure: The role reports to the UX Design Manager and works closely with Product Managers, Engineering Leads, UX Researchers, and other cross-functional stakeholders within various "squads." This structure emphasizes collaboration and influence over direct management.

Operations Impact: The UX Design Principal is expected to significantly influence product strategy, elevate the overall UX maturity of the organization, and directly contribute to improving customer outcomes and business performance. The role is crucial in shaping the user experience of a leading financial services platform.

Growth Opportunities:

• Strategic Influence: Opportunity to shape the UX strategy and design direction for critical product areas and customer journeys within a major financial services company.

• Mentorship & Capability Building: Act as a key mentor and role model, helping to grow the capabilities and design maturity of the broader UX team.

• Industry Leadership: Gain experience in a regulated financial services environment and contribute to a large-scale user-centered transformation, enhancing expertise in complex product design.

• Cross-Functional Leadership: Develop stronger skills in stakeholder management, communication, and influencing organizational change through close collaboration with diverse teams.

• Design System Evolution: Contribute to the development and strategic application of a Design System, impacting scalability and consistency across the platform.

📝 Enhancement Note: While this is a 10-month contract, the "Principal" title implies that the role offers substantial strategic responsibility and the opportunity to make a significant impact. For candidates seeking to build their portfolio with high-impact projects and demonstrate leadership in transformation initiatives, this role is valuable.

🌐 Work Environment

Office Type: Hybrid working model, with a requirement to be in the Manchester office 3 days per week and 2 days remote. This suggests a modern office environment designed for collaboration.

Office Location(s): Manchester, England, United Kingdom. Specific office address details would typically be provided during the application process.

Workspace Context:

• Collaborative Hub: The office environment likely facilitates team collaboration, workshops, and in-person meetings with Product, Engineering, and other UX team members.

• Technology & Tools: Access to standard office technology and design software/hardware will be provided. The role involves working with Design Systems and potentially AI-powered tools, indicating a tech-forward environment.

• Team Interaction: The hybrid model allows for dedicated in-office time for focused team interaction, knowledge sharing, and fostering a strong team culture, balanced with the flexibility of remote work.

Work Schedule: The standard working hours appear to be around 40 hours per week, with the flexibility to work remotely for two days. This schedule supports focused design work and allows for effective collaboration across different time zones or working styles within UK working hours.

📝 Enhancement Note: The hybrid nature of the role is a key aspect, balancing in-office collaboration with remote flexibility. This is standard for many senior roles in the UK tech and financial sectors, offering a good work-life blend whilst ensuring team cohesion.

📄 Application & Portfolio Review Process

Interview Process:

• Initial Screening: A review of your CV and portfolio to assess experience, skills, and alignment with the role requirements.

• Hiring Manager/UX Design Manager Interview: Discussion focused on your experience, strategic thinking, design philosophy, and leadership capabilities. Expect questions about your approach to complex problems and driving UX maturity.

• Design Challenge/Workshop: You may be asked to complete a design exercise or participate in a collaborative workshop (potentially remotely or in-person) to assess your practical design skills, problem-solving approach, and collaboration style. This could involve critiquing an existing experience or solving a hypothetical user problem.

• Cross-Functional Stakeholder Interviews: Interviews with representatives from Product, Engineering, or other key departments to evaluate your ability to collaborate, communicate, and influence across disciplines.

• Final Interview: Potentially with a senior leader (e.g., Head of Product, Director of Design) to assess overall fit, strategic alignment, and cultural contribution.

Portfolio Review Tips:

• Curate Strategically: Select 3-4 of your most impactful projects that best showcase your experience with complex digital products, strategic leadership, and measurable results.

• Tell a Story: For each project, clearly articulate the problem, your role, your process (discovery, strategy, design, testing, iteration), the solutions you devised, and the quantifiable outcomes achieved. Use visuals to support your narrative.

• Highlight Leadership: Emphasize instances where you've led initiatives, influenced stakeholders, mentored others, or driven improvements in design processes or maturity.

• Showcase Strategy: Clearly articulate the strategic thinking behind your design decisions. How did you understand business goals and user needs to arrive at your solutions?

• Demonstrate Process: Walk through your design methodology, showing how you leverage research, prototyping, and testing to inform your work.

• Accessibility Focus: Specifically call out how you incorporated accessibility and inclusive design principles.

• Be Prepared for Questions: Anticipate questions about your design choices, challenges faced, how you handled conflicting feedback, and how you measure success.

Challenge Preparation:

• Understand the Business: Research interactive investor, its products, target audience, and recent company news. Understand the financial services landscape.

• Focus on UX Principles: Be ready to discuss core UX principles, design thinking, user-centered design, and accessibility standards.

• Practice Articulation: Rehearse explaining your portfolio projects and design rationale clearly and concisely. Practice presenting your thought process for problem-solving.

• Consider Stakeholder Perspectives: Think about how to communicate design decisions to different audiences (technical, business, user-focused).

📝 Enhancement Note: The portfolio is paramount for a Principal UX role. Candidates should prepare to deeply discuss their past work, focusing on strategic impact, leadership, and process. The interview process will likely assess not only design skills but also strategic thinking and collaboration abilities.

🛠 Tools & Technology Stack

Primary Tools:

• Design & Prototyping Software: Expertise in industry-standard tools such as Figma, Sketch, Adobe XD, or similar for wireframing, prototyping, and high-fidelity design. Figma is increasingly becoming the industry standard for collaborative design.

• User Research Platforms: Familiarity with tools for conducting user interviews, usability testing, and surveys (e.g., UserTesting.com, Maze, Lookback, Dovetail).

• Collaboration Tools: Proficiency with tools like Jira, Confluence, Slack, or Microsoft Teams for project management, communication, and documentation within agile teams.

Analytics & Reporting:

• Web Analytics: Understanding of tools like Google Analytics, Adobe Analytics, or similar to interpret user behaviour data and measure the impact of design changes.

• Product Analytics: Experience with platforms like Mixpanel, Amplitude, or Pendo for in-depth product usage analysis and funnel tracking.

• Data Visualization: Ability to interpret data presented in dashboards (e.g., Tableau, Power BI) or reports to inform design decisions.

CRM & Automation:

Emerging Technologies:

• AI-Powered Tools: Experience using AI tools for research synthesis, content generation, ideation, or design assistance, as mentioned in the desirable criteria.

📝 Enhancement Note: While the job description doesn't explicitly list tools, Figma is the de facto standard for collaborative UX design. Proficiency in a comprehensive design suite, alongside project management and analytics tools, is expected for a Principal role. The mention of "AI-powered tools" is a forward-looking indicator.

👥 Team Culture & Values

Operations Values:

• Customer Focus: A deep commitment to understanding and serving customer needs, driving a user-centered transformation.

• Collaboration & Partnership: Emphasis on working effectively with UX Research, Product, Engineering, and other departments to achieve shared goals.

• Continuous Learning: A culture that encourages ongoing skill development, knowledge sharing, and staying abreast of UX trends and best practices.

• Design Excellence: A dedication to high-quality craft, accessible design, and creating intuitive, effective digital experiences.

• Data-Informed Decisions: Leveraging analytics and user insights to guide design strategy and measure impact.

• Efficiency & Scalability: Supporting the adoption of Design Systems and efficient design processes to ensure consistency and scalability across the platform.

Collaboration Style:

• Cross-Functional Integration: The role requires seamless collaboration with Product Managers, Engineers, UX Researchers, and UX Writers, working within cross-functional squads.

• Open Communication: An environment where ideas are shared openly, feedback is constructive, and design rationale is clearly communicated to all stakeholders.

• Shared Ownership: A culture where design success is a collective achievement, fostering a sense of shared responsibility for product outcomes.

• Process Improvement: Encouraging the evolution of design practices, standards, and ways of working to enhance team effectiveness and output quality.

📝 Enhancement Note: The emphasis on collaboration, continuous learning, and design excellence aligns with mature UX teams. The company's focus on user-centered transformation suggests that these values are actively promoted and integrated into daily work.

⚡ Challenges & Growth Opportunities

Challenges:

• Navigating a Large Organization: Adapting to the processes, stakeholders, and potentially established ways of working within a large financial services company.

• Balancing Strategic vs. Tactical: Effectively managing time between high-level strategic design leadership and hands-on design execution for complex initiatives.

• Driving Organizational Change: Influencing stakeholders and embedding user-centered design principles across different departments and levels.

• Contract Duration: Delivering significant impact and value within a defined 10-month contract period.

• Technical Constraints: Working within the specific technical architecture and constraints of a financial platform, while pushing for innovative UX solutions.

Learning & Development Opportunities:

• Financial Services UX: Deepen expertise in designing for regulated industries and complex financial products, understanding user needs and trust in this sector.

• Large-Scale Transformation: Gain hands-on experience contributing to a significant user-centered transformation initiative.

• Strategic Design Leadership: Hone skills in shaping UX strategy, influencing product direction, and mentoring senior designers.

• Cross-Functional Influence: Enhance abilities in stakeholder management, communication, and driving consensus across diverse teams.

• AI in Design: Explore and implement AI-powered tools to enhance the design process, as per the desirable criteria.

📝 Enhancement Note: This role presents a significant opportunity to tackle complex design challenges within a highly regulated and impactful industry, offering substantial professional growth and portfolio enhancement within a fixed-term contract.

💡 Interview Preparation

Strategy Questions:

• "Describe a time you led the design of a complex digital product or customer journey. What was the challenge, your approach, and the outcome?" (Focus on strategic thinking, problem-solving, and measurable impact).

• "How do you define and drive UX strategy within a product organization? Provide an example of how you've influenced product direction." (Assess strategic capability and influence).

• "How do you champion accessibility and inclusive design in your work? Can you share an example of a challenge you faced and how you addressed it?" (Evaluate commitment to standards and practical application).

Company & Culture Questions:

• "What interests you about interactive investor and our mission?" (Show you've researched the company and its market position).

• "How do you contribute to elevating UX maturity within an organization?" (Align your experience with the role's objective).

• "How would you approach mentoring or coaching other designers on the team?" (Demonstrate leadership and team-building potential).

Portfolio Presentation Strategy:

• Structure Your Case Studies: For each project, follow a clear narrative: Problem -> Your Role & Process -> Solution -> Impact (Quantifiable Results).

• Highlight Strategic Decisions: Clearly articulate why you made certain design choices, linking them to user needs and business goals.

• Showcase Complexity: Use visual aids (wireframes, prototypes, user flows) to illustrate the complexity of the problems you solved.

• Quantify Impact: Whenever possible, provide data points (e.g., conversion rates, task success, user satisfaction scores) to demonstrate the value of your work.

• Be Ready for Deep Dives: Anticipate detailed questions about your process, tools, and decision-making for each project in your portfolio.

• Emphasize Leadership & Mentorship: Point out instances where you took a leadership role, mentored others, or influenced team practices.

📝 Enhancement Note: Preparation should focus on demonstrating strategic thinking, leadership in complex design scenarios, and the ability to articulate impact through a well-structured portfolio and clear communication.

📌 Application Steps

To apply for this UX Design Principal position:

• Submit your application through the provided link on Workable.

• Tailor your CV: Highlight your experience with complex digital products, UX strategy, leadership, accessibility, and financial services (if applicable). Use keywords from the job description, such as "Principal UX," "UX Strategy," "complex digital products," "accessibility," and "stakeholder management."

• Prepare your Portfolio: Ensure your portfolio is up-to-date, showcases your most impactful work related to complex design challenges, and clearly articulates your strategic thinking, process, and measurable outcomes. Be ready to present 2-3 key projects in detail.

• Research interactive investor: Understand their business model, customer base, recent news, and their stated commitment to user-centered design.

• Practice your narrative: Be ready to clearly and concisely explain your experience, design philosophy, and how you can contribute to interactive investor's user-centered transformation during interviews.

⚠️ 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.

---