UX Lead Designer

📍 Job Overview

Job Title: UX Lead Designer

Company: Focus Financial Partners

Location: St. Louis, MO

Job Type: Full-Time

Category: User Experience (UX) Design / Product Design

Date Posted: 2026-05-04

Experience Level: 5-10 Years

Remote Status: Hybrid (3 days onsite)

🚀 Role Summary

• Lead the strategic vision and execution for User Experience (UX) design across financial service tools and the advisor platform, ensuring best-in-class user journeys and client success.

• Drive the entire product design lifecycle, from foundational user research and journey mapping to detailed wireframing, rapid prototyping, and rigorous usability testing.

• Foster a collaborative environment by partnering closely with product managers, developers, and key stakeholders to translate complex business objectives into intuitive and effective digital solutions.

• Spearhead the design and implementation of user-centric solutions that integrate seamlessly with Salesforce and other critical financial systems, optimizing workflows and data management.

• Champion user-centered design principles and advocate for the adoption of UX best practices throughout the organization, influencing product development and strategic decision-making.

📝 Enhancement Note: The role of UX Lead Designer at Focus Financial Partners is positioned as a strategic leadership opportunity within the financial services sector. It requires a blend of hands-on design execution and team leadership, with a strong emphasis on driving innovation in wealth management tools and advisor platforms. The integration with Salesforce and other financial systems suggests a need for a candidate who understands complex enterprise environments and can design for regulated industries.

📈 Primary Responsibilities

• Define and champion the UX strategy and design vision for critical financial service tools, including the core advisor platform, ensuring alignment with business goals and user needs.

• Conduct comprehensive user research, including interviews, surveys, and competitive analysis, to deeply understand user behaviors, pain points, and motivations within the financial advisory space.

• Develop user personas, journey maps, and information architecture to guide the design process and communicate user flows effectively to cross-functional teams.

• Create detailed wireframes, interactive prototypes (using tools like Figma), and high-fidelity mockups to visualize and iterate on design concepts, ensuring clarity and functionality.

• Plan and execute usability testing sessions, gathering feedback from target users and stakeholders to validate design decisions and identify areas for improvement.

• Collaborate with product management to define product roadmaps and feature sets, ensuring that UX considerations are integrated from the initial concept phase.

• Work closely with engineering teams during the development phase to ensure accurate implementation of designs and to address any technical constraints or opportunities.

• Mentor junior designers, provide constructive feedback, and foster a culture of design excellence, with the potential to build and scale a UX team.

• Stay current with evolving UX trends, design patterns, and emerging technologies relevant to financial services, wealth management, and enterprise software.

• Ensure designs adhere to financial services regulations and compliance requirements, making complex information accessible and actionable for users.

📝 Enhancement Note: The responsibilities highlight a lead role that involves not only direct design work but also strategic planning, team development, and cross-functional advocacy. The emphasis on financial services and Salesforce integration indicates a need for domain-specific expertise and a pragmatic approach to design within a regulated environment.

🎓 Skills & Qualifications

Education:

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), Design, Psychology, Computer Science, or a closely related field.

Experience:

• A minimum of 7 years of progressive experience in User Experience (UX) design, with a significant focus on the financial services industry.

• Proven track record of leading UX initiatives from conception to launch, demonstrating end-to-end project ownership and successful outcomes.

Required Skills:

• UX Strategy & Vision: Ability to define and articulate a compelling UX strategy that aligns with business objectives and user needs.

• User Research & Analysis: Proficiency in conducting various user research methodologies (interviews, surveys, contextual inquiry) and synthesizing findings into actionable insights.

• Information Architecture & Wireframing: Strong skills in structuring complex information and creating clear, functional wireframes.

• Prototyping & UI Design: Advanced proficiency with design and prototyping tools, with a strong preference for Figma; experience with Sketch, InVision, or Adobe XD is also valuable.

• Usability Testing: Experience planning, executing, and analyzing usability tests to validate design concepts and identify improvements.

• Salesforce Integration Design: Hands-on experience designing user interfaces and workflows for Salesforce environments, understanding its capabilities and limitations.

• User-Centered Design Principles: Deep understanding and practical application of user-centered design methodologies and best practices.

• Stakeholder Management: Excellent ability to collaborate with and influence product managers, engineers, business leaders, and other stakeholders.

Preferred Skills:

• Experience in building, mentoring, and scaling UX teams.

• Familiarity with financial services regulations, compliance requirements, and their impact on user interface design.

• Ability to balance strategic thinking with hands-on, detailed design execution.

• Experience with agile development methodologies.

📝 Enhancement Note: The qualifications emphasize a senior-level candidate with deep experience in financial services UX and specific technical skills like Figma and Salesforce integration. The preference for team-building experience suggests potential for future leadership growth within the organization.

📊 Process & Systems Portfolio Requirements

Portfolio Essentials:

• Demonstration of End-to-End UX Process: Showcase a minimum of 3-5 detailed case studies illustrating your involvement in the complete UX lifecycle, from initial problem definition and user research to final design implementation and post-launch analysis.

• Financial Services Focus: Prioritize projects within the financial services sector (wealth management, banking, investment platforms, fintech) to demonstrate domain expertise and understanding of industry-specific challenges.

• Salesforce Integration Examples: Include examples of UX work for Salesforce-integrated solutions or platforms that highlight your ability to design within this ecosystem, showing an understanding of its typical workflows and data structures.

• Impact and Metrics: Clearly articulate the business impact and user outcomes achieved through your designs. Quantify results where possible (e.g., increased conversion rates, reduced task completion time, improved user satisfaction scores).

• Problem-Solving & Innovation: Highlight instances where you identified complex user problems and designed innovative solutions that significantly improved the user experience or met critical business needs.

Process Documentation:

• Research & Discovery: Provide documentation or examples of user research plans, interview guides, persona development, and journey mapping artifacts.

• Design & Iteration: Showcase wireframes, user flows, interactive prototypes (linking to live prototypes or providing short video walkthroughs), and rationale behind key design decisions.

• Testing & Validation: Include evidence of usability testing plans, participant recruitment strategies, test scripts, and reports summarizing findings and proposed design revisions.

• Collaboration & Handoff: Demonstrate how you effectively collaborated with cross-functional teams (product, engineering) and the process for design handoff to development.

📝 Enhancement Note: The portfolio requirements are rigorous, demanding a comprehensive showcase of the candidate's UX process and tangible results, especially within the financial services and Salesforce contexts. This indicates that the hiring team will be looking for evidence of structured problem-solving and measurable impact.

💵 Compensation & Benefits

Salary Range:

• The annualized base pay range for this role is expected to be between $170,000 - $190,000 USD per year.

• Methodology: This estimate is based on industry benchmarks for a UX Lead Designer with 7+ years of experience in a major metropolitan area like St. Louis, MO, considering the financial services sector's compensation trends and the specified salary band provided by the employer. Factors such as specific expertise, interview performance, and precise geographic cost of living adjustments can influence the final offer.

Benefits:

• Annual Cash Bonus: Opportunity for performance-based bonuses.

• Comprehensive Health Coverage: Includes medical, dental, and vision insurance plans.

• Life Insurance: Provided to offer financial security.

• Retirement Savings: 401(k) plan available for long-term financial planning.

• Professional Development: Potential for support in attending industry conferences and training.

Working Hours:

• Standard full-time work week, typically around 40 hours.

• The role is hybrid, requiring 3 days per week onsite in St. Louis, MO, offering a balance between in-office collaboration and remote flexibility.

📝 Enhancement Note: The salary range provided is specific. The benefits package is standard for a role at this level, with the inclusion of an annual bonus and comprehensive health coverage being key attractors. The hybrid work arrangement is clearly defined.

🎯 Team & Company Context

🏢 Company Culture

Industry: Financial Services (Wealth Management, Family Office, Business Management). Focus Financial Partners operates as a leading firm that integrates wealth management, family office, and business management services, aiming to provide comprehensive, client-first fiduciary solutions.

Company Size: Focus Financial Partners is a significant player in its industry. While the exact number of employees isn't provided in the raw data, its description as a "leading financial services firm" suggests a mid-to-large enterprise structure, likely with hundreds or thousands of employees across its network. This implies a structured environment with established processes but also opportunities for impact within specialized teams.

Founded: The founding date is not specified, but the company's description as a "leading firm" suggests a well-established presence in the market. This history likely imbues the company with a degree of stability and expertise.

Team Structure:

• UX Team: The role is to lead the UX initiative, with the potential to "mentor and eventually build a high-performing UX team." This indicates that while a dedicated UX team may be nascent or small, there's a clear strategic intent to grow it.

• Reporting: The UX Lead will likely report to a senior leader in Product, Technology, or a dedicated Design function. The exact reporting structure will depend on the organizational chart for the specific product or platform team they are joining.

• Cross-functional Collaboration: The UX Lead will work closely with Product Managers, Developers, Business Analysts, Marketing, and potentially Compliance and Legal teams to ensure user needs are met and business objectives are achieved within regulatory frameworks.

Methodology:

• Data-Driven Design: The emphasis on user research, usability testing, and metrics suggests a commitment to data-informed decision-making in the design process.

• Agile Development: While not explicitly stated, the collaboration with developers implies an agile or iterative product development process.

• User-Centricity: The core philosophy revolves around making complex financial tools simple and engaging for clients, highlighting a strong user-centric approach.

Company Website: www.focusfinancialpartners.com

📝 Enhancement Note: Focus Financial Partners presents itself as a reputable and established entity in the financial services space. The UX Lead role is designed to be influential, with the mandate to shape and grow the design function, particularly in areas critical to client success and advisor efficiency. The hybrid model and St. Louis location are key practical details.

📈 Career & Growth Analysis

Operations Career Level: This role is classified as a Lead Designer, signifying a senior-level position. It involves not only individual contribution and expert-level design skills but also strategic leadership, mentorship, and the potential to build and manage a team. It sits above individual contributor UX Designers and potentially below a Director of Design or Head of Product.

Reporting Structure: The UX Lead Designer will likely report to a Director of Product Management, VP of Technology, or a similar senior leadership role overseeing product development and digital strategy. They will collaborate extensively with Product Managers and Engineering Leads.

Operations Impact: The UX Lead's impact is directly tied to enhancing the usability and effectiveness of critical financial tools and the advisor platform. By improving client experience and advisor efficiency, this role contributes significantly to client retention, acquisition, and overall business growth within Focus Financial Partners. This includes streamlining complex financial processes and making sophisticated tools more accessible and actionable.

Growth Opportunities:

• Team Leadership & Expansion: The explicit mention of mentoring and building a UX team offers a clear path towards formal management responsibilities and the opportunity to shape the future design culture at Focus.

• Strategic Influence: As a lead, there's an opportunity to influence product strategy, design standards, and technology adoption across the organization, becoming a key voice in digital transformation initiatives.

• Domain Expertise Deepening: Continued work within the financial services sector will deepen expertise in areas like wealth management, compliance, and complex financial product design, making the candidate highly valuable in the fintech space.

• Cross-Functional Skill Development: Collaboration with various departments will enhance skills in stakeholder management, project management, and business acumen.

📝 Enhancement Note: This role offers a significant career advancement opportunity for an experienced UX professional looking to move into a leadership position with strategic impact in the specialized financial services industry. The potential to build a team is a key growth driver.

🌐 Work Environment

Office Type: The role is hybrid, requiring 3 days per week onsite in St. Louis, MO. This suggests a modern office environment designed for collaboration, with shared workspaces, meeting rooms, and potentially dedicated areas for design teams.

Office Location(s): St. Louis, MO. This location provides access to a significant talent pool and business infrastructure within the Midwest.

Workspace Context:

• Collaborative Spaces: The hybrid model emphasizes the need for an office environment conducive to team collaboration, brainstorming sessions, and in-person meetings with stakeholders and development teams.

• Tools & Technology: Expect access to standard office technology, high-speed internet, and potentially specialized hardware for design work. The company likely provides access to necessary software licenses (e.g., Figma, collaboration tools).

• Team Interaction: Onsite days will be crucial for fostering team cohesion, engaging in spontaneous discussions, and participating in team rituals like stand-ups or design critiques.

Work Schedule: The standard working hours are approximately 40 hours per week. The hybrid nature allows for flexibility in structuring the work week, balancing in-office presence with remote work.

📝 Enhancement Note: The hybrid work arrangement is a key aspect of the work environment, requiring candidates to be comfortable with a blend of in-office and remote work, with specific days designated for office presence.

📄 Application & Portfolio Review Process

Interview Process:

• Initial Screening: A review of your resume and portfolio to assess qualifications and alignment with the role.

• Hiring Manager Interview: A discussion with the hiring manager to delve into your experience, leadership style, UX philosophy, and fit with the team.

• Portfolio Presentation: A dedicated session where you present 2-3 key case studies from your portfolio, focusing on your process, problem-solving approach, and impact. Be prepared to discuss your role, challenges, and outcomes in detail.

• Cross-Functional Interviews: Meetings with Product Managers, Engineering Leads, and potentially other stakeholders to evaluate collaboration skills, technical understanding, and ability to integrate design into the product development lifecycle.

• Final Interview: Potentially with a senior leader (e.g., VP of Product/Technology) to assess strategic thinking and overall cultural fit.

Portfolio Review Tips:

• Curate Strategically: Select 2-3 diverse case studies that best represent your expertise in financial services UX, Salesforce integration, and end-to-end design leadership.

• Tell a Story: Structure each case study with a clear narrative: the problem, your role and process, the solutions you designed, the challenges you faced, and the measurable results achieved.

• Highlight Process: Emphasize your thought process, research methodologies, and iterative design approach. Show how you arrived at the final solution.

• Quantify Impact: Use data and metrics whenever possible to demonstrate the tangible value your designs delivered. If exact numbers aren't available, use well-reasoned estimations or qualitative outcomes.

• Be Ready for Deep Dives: Prepare to answer in-depth questions about your design choices, trade-offs made, and how you handled feedback or disagreements.

• Showcase Figma Proficiency: If Figma is a primary tool, be ready to discuss your workflow, component libraries, and collaboration techniques within the tool.

Challenge Preparation:

• Design Problem: You might be given a hypothetical design challenge related to financial services or advisor platforms. Focus on outlining your approach, research methods, and initial design concepts.

• Process Presentation: Practice articulating your UX process concisely and persuasively, adapting your explanation to different audiences.

• Stakeholder Scenarios: Be prepared to discuss how you would handle common stakeholder disagreements or conflicting requirements, emphasizing negotiation and user advocacy.

📝 Enhancement Note: The application process emphasizes a strong portfolio presentation and the ability to articulate one's UX process and impact, particularly within the context of financial services and Salesforce. Candidates should prepare to discuss their leadership potential and strategic thinking.

🛠 Tools & Technology Stack

Primary Tools:

• Figma: This is explicitly listed as a preferred prototyping tool and is likely the primary tool for UI design, wireframing, and prototyping. Proficiency is crucial.

• Salesforce: Deep hands-on experience with Salesforce platforms and workflows is a requirement, indicating the need to design within its ecosystem.

• Prototyping Tools (Secondary): While Figma is preferred, familiarity with other industry-standard tools like Sketch, InVision, or Adobe XD is considered a good substitute, suggesting the team may use a mix or be open to candidates from various backgrounds.

Analytics & Reporting:

• User Analytics Platforms: While not named, expect to work with tools that track user behavior on digital platforms (e.g., Google Analytics, Adobe Analytics, Mixpanel, Amplitude) to inform design decisions and measure impact.

• Business Intelligence Tools: Potential exposure to BI tools (e.g., Tableau, Power BI) for understanding broader business metrics and how UX contributes to them.

CRM & Automation:

• Salesforce CRM: As mentioned, Salesforce is central to the tech stack, acting as the primary CRM and likely a core component of the advisor and client management systems.

• Integration Tools: Understanding how different systems connect and exchange data will be beneficial, though specific integration platforms aren't listed.

📝 Enhancement Note: The technology stack heavily features Figma and Salesforce, indicating these are critical skills. Candidates should be prepared to demonstrate proficiency and understanding of how UX design integrates within these specific platforms and workflows.

👥 Team Culture & Values

Operations Values:

• Client-First Fiduciary Philosophy: A core value of Focus Financial Partners is prioritizing the client's best interests, which should translate into a UX approach that emphasizes trust, transparency, and genuine value.

• Excellence in User Experience: The company is actively seeking to build a culture of excellence around UX, meaning a strong emphasis on user-centered design, continuous improvement, and advocating for the user.

• Innovation: The role is about shaping the future of wealth management through innovative design, suggesting a culture that encourages creative problem-solving and exploring new approaches.

• Collaboration & Partnership: The emphasis on working closely with stakeholders, product managers, and developers highlights a value placed on teamwork and cross-functional alignment.

• Data-Driven Decision Making: The integration of user research and testing points to a culture that values evidence-based decisions.

Collaboration Style:

• Cross-functional Integration: Expect a highly collaborative environment where UX designers work hand-in-hand with product, engineering, and business teams. Open communication and shared ownership are likely key.

• Iterative Design Process: The culture likely supports an iterative approach to design, where feedback is regularly sought, incorporated, and used to refine solutions.

• Knowledge Sharing: Mentoring and team building suggest a culture that values sharing expertise and supporting the growth of colleagues.

📝 Enhancement Note: The company culture appears to be client-focused, quality-driven, and collaborative, with a growing emphasis on UX as a strategic differentiator. Candidates should align with these values and demonstrate strong teamwork and user advocacy.

⚡ Challenges & Growth Opportunities

Challenges:

• Complexity of Financial Services: Designing intuitive experiences for complex financial products and regulatory environments requires deep understanding and careful consideration of user needs and compliance.

• Salesforce Integration Nuances: Effectively designing within the constraints and capabilities of Salesforce while still delivering exceptional UX can be a significant challenge.

• Building and Scaling a UX Function: As a lead, one of the primary challenges will be establishing and growing the UX team and processes to meet the company's increasing needs.

• Balancing Stakeholder Needs: Navigating the diverse priorities and perspectives of various stakeholders (product, sales, compliance, clients) to arrive at optimal design solutions.

• Driving Adoption: Ensuring that new UX designs and features are effectively adopted by users and integrated into their workflows.

Learning & Development Opportunities:

• Leadership Development: The opportunity to lead and build a team provides direct experience in people management, strategy development, and team scaling.

• Financial Services Domain Expertise: Deepening knowledge of wealth management, financial planning tools, and regulatory landscapes.

• Advanced UX Methodologies: Applying and refining advanced UX techniques in a real-world enterprise setting.

• Strategic Product Influence: Gaining experience in shaping product roadmaps and long-term digital strategy for a significant financial services firm.

• Mentorship: Opportunities to be mentored by senior leaders and to mentor junior designers, fostering personal and professional growth.

📝 Enhancement Note: The challenges presented are typical for a lead role in a specialized industry like financial services, offering significant opportunities for professional growth and skill development in leadership, domain expertise, and strategic influence.

💡 Interview Preparation

Strategy Questions:

• "How would you approach defining the UX strategy for a new advisor platform designed to integrate with Salesforce?" (Prepare to discuss research, user segmentation, key features, and success metrics.)

• "Describe a time you had to balance conflicting stakeholder requirements. How did you navigate the situation and what was the outcome?" (Focus on your communication, negotiation, and user advocacy skills.)

Company & Culture Questions:

• "What interests you about Focus Financial Partners and our position in the wealth management industry?" (Research the company's mission, values, recent news, and competitors.)

• "How do you see the UX team evolving under your leadership, and what are your initial priorities for building and mentoring the team?" (Demonstrate your leadership vision and understanding of team dynamics.)

Portfolio Presentation Strategy:

• Narrative Arc: For each case study, start with the business problem and user need, clearly outline your role and the UX process you followed, detail the design solutions with visual aids, explain the rationale behind key decisions, and conclude with the quantifiable results and lessons learned.

• Visual Storytelling: Use high-quality visuals (wireframes, mockups, prototypes, user flows) to illustrate your points. Annotate them to explain context and design choices.

• Focus on Impact: Clearly articulate the "so what?" for each project. How did your design solve the problem? What was the measurable benefit to the user and the business?

• Be Prepared for Questions: Anticipate questions about your design decisions, trade-offs, challenges encountered, and how you collaborated with others.

• Showcase Figma Skills: If presenting Figma work, be ready to discuss your approach to design systems, component libraries, and collaborative workflows.

📝 Enhancement Note: Interview preparation should focus on demonstrating strategic thinking, leadership potential, deep understanding of the UX process, and the ability to apply these skills within the financial services and Salesforce context. Strong portfolio presentation is critical.

📌 Application Steps

To apply for this UX Lead Designer position:

• Submit Your Resume and Portfolio: Apply through the provided link. Ensure your resume highlights relevant experience, and your portfolio is submitted in the cover letter slot as instructed.

• Tailor Your Portfolio: Curate 2-3 of your strongest case studies, prioritizing those in financial services and showcasing your end-to-end UX process, leadership experience, and impact. Ensure they highlight your proficiency with Figma and understanding of Salesforce integrations.

• Prepare Your Presentation: Practice articulating your portfolio case studies clearly and concisely, focusing on problem-solving, design rationale, and measurable results. Be ready to discuss your leadership approach and vision for a UX team.

• Research Focus Financial Partners: Understand the company's mission, values, services, and recent activities. Familiarize yourself with their market position and any known digital initiatives.

• Anticipate Interview Questions: Prepare thoughtful answers to common UX leadership, strategy, and behavioral questions, as well as scenario-based questions related to financial services design and Salesforce integration.

⚠️ 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.