Senior Product Designer and UX Researcher

Guild Mortgage Company, closing loans and opening doors since 1960. As a mortgage banking firm, we are dedicated to serving the homeowner/buyer. Our goal is to provide affordable home financing for our customers, utilizing the best terms available while providing a level of professionalism and service unsurpassed in the lending industry.

Position Summary

The Sr. Product Designer and UX Researcher is a pivotal role that provides problem solving through collaboration, understanding personas, evaluating user and business needs and innovates on solutions though documentation such as user flows, gap analysis, user research, wireframes, mockups, and Figma prototyping. This position spearheads the experience of the company's proprietary end-to-end digital lending platform and its supporting processes.

Key Responsibilities Include:

• Providing visionary leadership for the continuous improvement of user experiences across Guild's digital ecosystem
• Developing and implementing cutting-edge UX research methodologies
• Championing user-centric design principles throughout the organization
• Cultivating a culture of research-driven decision-making among product team leadership
• Balancing user needs with business objectives to create intuitive, efficient, and delightful digital experiences
• Collaborating with cross-functional teams to ensure seamless integration of UX insights into product development

This role is critical in shaping Guild Mortgage's digital product strategy through visualization and research, resulting in enhancing customer satisfaction, and maintaining the company's competitive edge in the rapidly evolving mortgage industry.

Essential Functions

• Research and Analysis
  1. Conduct comprehensive user research, employing both quantitative and qualitative methodologies to gather insights on customer behaviors, motivations, and preferences
  2. Synthesize research findings to propose data-driven product enhancements and innovations.
  3. Coordinate and execute research projects to validate and refine product roadmaps and future specifications.
• Design and Prototyping
  1. Translate business requirements and technical constraints into actionable design artifacts, including use cases, sitemaps, user flows, and customer journey maps
  2. Create high-fidelity wireframes, mockups, and interactive prototypes optimized for various devices and interfaces.
  3. Utilize and contribute to Guild's design systems, proposing updates when gaps are identified.
• User Experience Strategy
  1. Develop and implement a robust user experience program that integrates client knowledge, industry trends, and business objectives.
  2. Champion a user-centered design approach, emphasizing rapid testing and iteration of designs and concepts.
  3. Cultivate a deep understanding of mortgage business requirements and maintain expertise in client types, behaviors, and financial concerns.
• Collaboration and Leadership
  1. Foster cross-functional collaboration with IT teams, business stakeholders, and product leadership.
  2. Strengthen the research capabilities and UX knowledge of the Experience Design and Product teams.
  3. Set and pursue SMART Goals, embracing calculated risks and advocating for research opportunities.
• Continuous Improvement
  1. Stay abreast of UX industry trends and best practices in mortgage and financial services.
  2. Implement and refine methodologies for measuring and improving user experience.
  3. Adapt to evolving project needs and take on additional responsibilities.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree directly related to the position or equivalent, required such as degree in psychology, research, design or related discipline.

• Minimum of 10 years' experience in UX research and design experience.

• Minimum of 2 years supervisory or leadership experience in a cross-functional environment.
• UX and UXR certifications are a plus.

• Strong analytical skills to interpret user data, conduct market research, and translate insights into actionable design solutions that enhance product usability and user satisfaction.

• Portfolio Achievements
  1. Comprehensive research portfolio showcasing ability to drive impactful product changes.
  2. Demonstrated experience with large-scale consumer-facing and internal web and mobile applications.
  3. Track record of successful projects that significantly improved user experiences metrics.
• Industry Knowledge
  1. Deep understanding of best practices in UX design and research within the financial services sector.
  2. Familiarity with regulatory requirements and compliance issues in digital product design.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills required.
• Highly detail oriented, strong ability to document intricate systems
• Outstanding organizational skills with the ability to handle multiple projects in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment.
• Strong interpersonal and team building skills.
• Self-starter with the demonstrated ability to learn/adapt to new technologies and techniques.
• Highly organized and detail-oriented; ability to work in a fast-paced, metrics-driven environment required.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite, Word, Excel, Wiki, collaborative cloud-based programs, and third-party software applications required.
• Commitment to company values.
• Customer Service - Proactive attention to each person
• Integrity - Do and say what's right
• Respect - Treat others with dignity
• Collaboration - Listen and work together
• Learning - Seek knowledge and strive for improvement
• Excellence – Deliver the unexpected

Supervision

• Job Scope: Responsible for understanding the department/functional area objectives and goals and how own job contributes to achievement of these goals; may recommend changes and enhancements based on analysis and evaluation of circumstances.

• Complexity: Problems encountered are often complex and may involve significant resource coordination and availability, evaluating and resolving discrepancies with data, analyses, processes, etc. using own expertise and judgment.

• Impact: Decisions and actions impact primarily workflow, processes and timeframes.

• Interaction/Supervision: Acts as a mentor/guide to less experienced professional contributor staff in a similar role; works independently and only under general direction; guided by professional standards, desired outcomes, and project plan specifications.

Requirements

Physical: Work is primarily sedentary; mobility in an office setting.

Manual Dexterity: Ability to operate standard office equipment and keyboards. Frequent use of computer keyboard and mouse.

Audio/Visual: Ability to accurately interpret sounds and associated meanings at a volume consistent with interpersonal conversation. Regularly required to accurately perceive, distinguish and interpret information received visually and through audio, e.g., words, numbers and other data broadcasted aloud/viewed on a screen, as well as print and other media.

Environmental: Office environment – moderate noise, no substantial exposure to adverse environmental conditions.

Mental: This role requires effective adaptation to workplace stressors, including customer service complaints, security responsibilities, and competing priorities. Learn new tasks, remember processes, maintain focus, complete tasks independently, and make timely decisions in the context of a workflow. Must be able to adhere to process protocol. Must be able to apply established protocols in a timely manner.

Schedules: Work is primarily performed during the business week, Monday - Friday.

Travel: 5% or less

Guild offers a pleasant work environment, competitive compensation and excellent benefits package; including medical, dental, vision, life insurance, AD&D, LTD and 401(k) with employer match.

Guild Mortgage Company is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Targeted Salary Range: $117,000 - $159,000 annually

Compensation at Guild is influenced by a wide array of factors including but not limited to local and federal minimum wage requirements, education, level of experience, and applicant’s geographical location.

REQ#: SENIO016981