UX Lead

📍 Job Overview

Job Title: UX Lead

Company: IBMC

Location: Dubai, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Job Type: CONTRACTOR

Category: UX/Product Design Operations

Date Posted: 2026-09-23

Experience Level: 5-10+ years

Remote Status: Remote Solely

🚀 Role Summary

• Lead critical UX research and prototyping initiatives for a complex risk and fraud management platform, focusing on evidence-based design.

• Conduct in-depth qualitative research with specialist professional users (Risk Managers) to understand intricate workflows and decision-making processes.

• Develop high-fidelity interactive prototypes using tools like Figma, translating complex user journeys into actionable designs.

• Act as a key thought partner and bridge between domain experts, product managers, and software engineers, ensuring alignment and data-driven product direction.

• Drive iterative validation through rigorous testing with representative users to refine concepts and document rationale for implementation.

📝 Enhancement Note: This role is explicitly defined as a senior, hands-on individual contributor, distinct from a typical UI/UX Designer or visual production role. The emphasis is on deep research, complex systems thinking, and evidence-based prototyping within a high-stakes domain. The operations aspect lies in establishing robust processes for user research, prototype validation, and cross-functional handoffs that directly influence product development efficiency and accuracy.

📈 Primary Responsibilities

• Personally plan, recruit, and conduct in-depth qualitative UX research, including interviews, contextual inquiry, and usability testing with specialist Risk Managers.

• Map complex user workflows, identify workarounds, critical decision points, and potential failure points within the risk and fraud management domain.

• Synthesize research findings into documented user segments, contexts of use, and prioritized user journeys to inform product strategy.

• Create high-fidelity information architecture, interaction models, and realistic interactive prototypes, meticulously detailing edge cases and complex states using Figma or equivalent tools.

• Execute multi-iteration testing cycles with representative risk professionals to validate design concepts, refine workflows, and meticulously document the rationale behind implementation decisions.

• Serve as an autonomous thought partner to product, engineering, and domain experts, challenging existing assumptions and proposing data-backed structural improvements.

• Collaborate directly with Product Managers and software engineers throughout the build phase, ensuring thorough documentation for seamless technical execution and efficient product development cycles.

📝 Enhancement Note: The core responsibilities emphasize a proactive and self-directed approach to research and design. The "operations" component is embedded in the systematic execution of research plans, the rigorous synthesis of complex data, and the structured handoff of validated designs to engineering, all of which are critical for efficient product development in complex B2B SaaS environments.

🎓 Skills & Qualifications

Education: While no specific degree is mandated, a strong academic foundation in Human-Computer Interaction, Psychology, Design, or a related field is highly beneficial.

Experience: 5 to 10+ years of relevant hands-on experience in UX research and interactive product design, with a target range of typically 7–12 years for candidates demonstrating deep expertise.

Required Skills:

• Proven track record of personally planning, executing, and synthesizing qualitative research with specialist or professional users performing complex tasks.

• Strong systems-thinking capability with demonstrated experience designing for dense data environments, multi-step decisions, and high-consequence workflows.

• Demonstrated expertise in building complex, data-heavy interactive prototypes from scratch using tools like Figma.

• Clear portfolio evidence showcasing how user research directly transformed a design iteration and led to a successfully implemented product outcome.

• Experience working side-by-side with Product Managers and software engineers through to production build, ensuring seamless collaboration and efficient handoffs.

• Fluent, professional spoken and written English skills for interviewing international users and presenting clear findings to a distributed team. Preferred Skills:

• Experience in risk management, fraud detection, financial crime, AML/KYC, cybersecurity, compliance, or expert-user B2B SaaS environments.

• Background in trading platforms, banking, payments, or complex data analytics tools.

• Familiarity with various UX research methodologies beyond interviews and usability testing, such as diary studies or ethnographic research.

• Experience with A/B testing and other quantitative validation methods to complement qualitative findings.

📝 Enhancement Note: The qualifications highlight a specialized skill set beyond typical UX roles, emphasizing deep research ownership, complex system design, and a strong portfolio demonstrating tangible impact. The preference for domain-specific experience in risk, fraud, or finance further refines the ideal candidate profile for this niche operations-critical role.

📊 Process & Systems Portfolio Requirements

Portfolio Essentials:

• Case studies must clearly demonstrate a systematic approach to UX research, from planning and execution to synthesis and validation.

• Evidence of transforming complex user needs and workflows into actionable design solutions, with a focus on information architecture and interaction design.

• High-fidelity interactive prototypes that effectively communicate complex user journeys, decision points, and edge cases, showcasing proficiency in tools like Figma.

• Demonstrations of iterative design processes, including user testing feedback and subsequent design refinements, leading to implemented product outcomes.

• Documentation of the rationale behind design decisions, directly linking them to user research findings and business objectives for clear ROI justification. Process Documentation:

• Detailed documentation of research methodologies employed, including participant recruitment strategies and data collection protocols.

• Clear articulation of the synthesis process, detailing how qualitative data was analyzed to derive user segments, journeys, and prioritized insights.

• Comprehensive records of prototype iterations, including version control and rationale for changes based on testing feedback.

• Structured handoff documents or design specifications for engineering teams, ensuring clear communication of interaction models, states, and functionality.

• Post-implementation analysis or feedback loops to assess the real-world impact of design decisions, contributing to continuous process improvement.

📝 Enhancement Note: The portfolio requirements are central to this role, demanding concrete evidence of a structured, research-driven design process. This emphasis on documented processes and demonstrable outcomes is a hallmark of effective operations roles, ensuring accountability and measurable impact in product development.

💵 Compensation & Benefits

Salary Range: As this is a contract role with varying locations for contractors, a specific range is not provided. However, for a UX Lead with 5-10+