The Director of User Experience and Web Design leads the implementation of user-centered digital experiences for Case Western Reserve University's web presence. This leadership role is pivotal in shaping a cohesive, accessible, and engaging user journey across all university websites, with a primary focus on ensuring that digital touchpoints reflect the institution's brand, support enrollment efforts, and enhance institutional storytelling. Reporting to the Assistant Vice President Web and Enrollment Marketing, the director will oversee a team of approximately four UX and website marketing professionals. The incumbent will foster a collaborative and data-informed culture that prioritizes audience needs, continuous improvement, and innovation. By mentoring team members and aligning UX efforts with broader institutional goals, the director will ensure that the university's digital platforms evolve in step with user expectations and advancements. In this cross-functional role, the director will work closely with internal stakeholders to define project goals, gather input, and translate user needs into compelling digital solutions. The director will also partner with development teams to execute projects that require specialized expertise or advanced functionality within the university's content management system. Working closely with the assistant vice president, the director will define, create, and oversee the university's comprehensive web design system, ensuring visual consistency, brand alignment, and the integration of user behavior insights. This role leads the creation of visually compelling, accessible, and responsive designs that advance the university's top strategic priorities and engage key audiences across digital platforms. As part of this work, the director will implement a website measurement plan to track performance, evaluate user engagement, and inform ongoing design and content improvements.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

Lead the execution of cohesive, intuitive, and accessible digital experiences that reflect Case Western Reserve University's brand and strategic priorities. Champion a user-centered approach to the university's digital presence, ensuring all websites effectively support the needs of prospective and current students, faculty, staff, alumni, and other key audiences. Collaborate with campus partners and vendors to align user experience goals with institutional messaging, enrollment strategies, and academic communications. (25%)
Lead a program of ongoing user research and usability testing to inform design decisions and digital strategy such as task analysis, surveys, stakeholder interviews, user journey mapping, card sorting, and A/B testing. Analyze behavioral data, heatmaps, and analytics to evaluate design effectiveness and guide continuous improvement. Collaborate with web development and content strategy teams to iterate based on insights. (15%)
Under the direction of the assistant vice president, define, create and oversee the university's web design system, including components and design tokens ensuring visual consistency and integrating user behavior insights. Lead the creation of visually compelling designs that support the university's top strategic priorities ensuring digital experiences are accessible, responsive, and aligned with university brand standards. Develop targeted designs for top-tier strategic initiatives, such as the top-level of the university's website, that drive measurable engagement across key audiences. Oversee the production of wireframes, mockups, prototypes, and final UI designs. Oversee the university's web design system with reusable components, ensuring visual consistency and integrating user behavior insights. (25%)
Work with directors and leaders to execute a website measurement plan, ensuring it aligns with institutional priorities and user needs identifying meaningful metrics, establish benchmarks, and implement processes for ongoing performance monitoring across the Case Western Reserve website. Track, analyze, and report on key performance indicators (KPIs) related to user engagement, accessibility compliance and user satisfaction. (10%)
Supervise and mentor three to four UX/web team members and provide leadership that promotes staff development, innovation, and a collaborative, user-first culture. Align SEO efforts with broader UX and content goals, and ensure timely, high-quality deliverables. (15%)
Lead governance efforts to ensure consistency, accessibility and usability across university websites. Oversee training programs and documentation for the Drupal content management system (CMS), and digital accessibility tools like Siteimprove. Develop scalable support models to empower campus web editors and maintain high-quality, user-focused websites. (10%)

QUALIFICATIONS

Experience: 7 to 10 years in user experience (UX), web design, or digital strategy, with at least 5 years in a leadership or supervisory role. Demonstrated success leading UX research and implementing accessible, user-centered digital solutions across large websites.

Education: Bachelor's degree in user experience, design or digital marketing required. Master's degree preferred.

REQUIRED SKILLS

Deep knowledge and expertise of UX/UI best practices, information architecture.
Expert proficiency with tools such as Figma, Adobe Creative Suite, usability testing platforms and prototyping software.
Experience designing for accessibility standards (WCAG 2.1 or higher) and integrating accessibility into UX workflows.
Expertise with web analytics tools (e.g., Google Analytics, Hotjar), SEO best practices, and their intersection with UX strategy.
Expertise working with content management systems (CMS), preferably Drupal.
Expertise in component-based design and front-end development principles (HTML/CSS, design tokens, responsive grids).
Excellent interpersonal, collaboration, and communication skills; ability to present complex ideas clearly to technical and non-technical stakeholders.
Strong leadership and people management skills with a focus on team development and goal setting.
Ability to balance strategic vision with hands-on project execution and attention to detail.
Strong project management and organizational skills, with the ability to manage multiple priorities in a deadline-driven environment.
A commitment to continuous improvement and audience-centered design.
Demonstrated history of successful support, education, and advocacy for all students, aligned with the values, mission, and messaging of the university, while adhering to the staff policy on conflict of commitment and interest.
Ability to meet consistent attendance.
Ability to interact with colleagues, supervisors, and customers face to face.
Willingness to learn and work with artificial intelligence (AI) tools and technologies.

Case Western Reserve University

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Director of User Experience and Web Design