UX Research & Service Design Specialist
- Pay rate: $60.00 – $68.00/hour, depending on experience
- Contract Length: 3.5 months, with the possibility of extension
- Location: Edmonton, Hybrid
Raise is currently hiring a Service Designer team member on behalf of our client, an esteemed financial institution. They’re expanding their team to meet growing needs, making this a unique opportunity to work with an industry leader.
Job Overview
Seeking a creative and experienced Service Designer to join our team and focus specifically on enhancing the services supporting our vibrant research community. The Service Designer will play a pivotal role in understanding, reimagining, and improving the end-to-end experiences of researchers, faculty, students, administrators, and external partners as they interact with research administrative processes. This includes, but is not limited to, grant application and management, ethics review, research finance, reporting, compliance, and knowledge mobilization support.
You will employ human-centered design methodologies to uncover user needs, identify pain points, map complex service ecosystems, and co-design intuitive, efficient, and effective service solutions. Success in this role requires a deep understanding of service design principles combined with specific experience navigating the complexities of research administration within a post-secondary environment.
The ideal candidate will have experience in service design that doesn't involve the implementation of any new product or system, fulfillment of each service by existing departmental staff is the end result.
Responsibilities:
User Research & Insight Generation:
- Conduct qualitative and quantitative research (interviews, workshops, surveys, observation, data analysis) with diverse stakeholders across the research lifecycle to deeply understand their needs, behaviours, motivations, and challenges related to administrative services and associated digital channels and tools.
Service Mapping & Analysis:
- Create and analyze service blueprints, user journey and empathy maps, ecosystem maps, and process flows to visualize current state experiences, identify breakdowns, and pinpoint opportunities for improvement within research administration services.
Co-Design & Ideation:
- Plan, facilitate, and lead collaborative design workshops and activities with researchers, administrative staff, technical teams, and leadership to generate innovative ideas and co-create future-state service concepts.
Prototyping & Testing:
- Develop low- and high-fidelity service prototypes (e.g., storyboards, mock-ups, role-playing scenarios, pilot programs) to test usability and refine potential solutions with users.
Solution Design & Implementation Support:
- Translate user insights and co-designed concepts into actionable service requirements and design specifications. Collaborate with operational teams, IT, policy analysts, and other relevant units to support the implementation of new or redesigned services.
Measurement & Evaluation:
- Define key performance indicators (KPIs) and metrics to evaluate the effectiveness and impact of service design interventions. Iterate on designs based on feedback and performance data.
Advocacy & Communication:
- Champion human-centered design principles and the value of service design across the organization.. Clearly communicate research findings, insights, and design recommendations to various audiences through compelling presentations, reports, and visualizations.
Collaboration:
- Work closely with business consultants, project managers, business analysts, communications specialists, IT developers, and research administrators to ensure a holistic and integrated approach to service improvement.
Key Deliverables:
- End-to-end service journey depictions, current and future-state process maps, and associated metrics.
- Prototypes and concept testing outputs to inform management consultant recommendations.
- Documentation of co-design workshop findings and suggested service improvements.
- Support materials for integrating new service solutions into operational processes.
Qualifications:
- Bachelor's degree in Design (Service Design, Interaction Design, UX Design), Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), Anthropology, Psychology, Business Administration, Public Administration, or a related field, OR equivalent professional experience.
- 3+ years of professional experience as a Service Designer, UX Designer, or similar role focused on designing complex services.
- Demonstrated experience applying a range of service design methodologies and tools (e.g., user research techniques, persona development, journey mapping, service blueprinting, workshop facilitation, prototyping).
- Specific, demonstrable experience designing or improving administrative or operational services within a research institution, or similarly complex organizational environment.
- Proven ability to understand and map complex systems and processes involving multiple stakeholders and touchpoints.
- Excellent communication, presentation, and interpersonal skills, with the ability to engage effectively with diverse audiences (from senior leadership to front-line staff and researchers).
- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
- Experience facilitating collaborative workshops and design sessions.
- Portfolio showcasing service design projects, demonstrating your process, methodologies, and impact.
Nice to have Qualifications:
- Direct experience designing services related to research administration (e.g., grant proposal development, pre-award/post-award support, ethics review processes, research finance, compliance, reporting).
- Master's degree in a relevant field.
- Experience working directly within an educational Research Office or similar unit.
- Familiarity with the Canadian research funding or advancement landscape (e.g., Tri-Agency – CIHR, NSERC, SSHRC) and related policies/procedures.
- Experience with change management principles and practices.
- Experience designing digital and non-digital service touchpoints.
- Familiarity with relevant educational systems (e.g., grants management software, ethics portals, financial systems).
Soft Skills:
- Empathy & User-Centricity
- Systems Thinking
- Collaboration & Teamwork
- Facilitation & Co-creation
- Visual Communication
- Problem Solving & Critical Thinking
- Adaptability & Resilience
- Storytelling
Looking for meaningful work? We can help
Raise is an established hiring firm with over 65 years of experience. We believe strongly in making the world a better place through work, which is why we’re a certified B Corporation and donate 10% of our profits to charity.
We strive to build teams that reflect the diversity of the communities we work in. We encourage all qualified applicants to apply, including people from traditionally underrepresented groups such as women, visible minorities, Indigenous peoples, people identifying as LGBTQ2SI, veterans, and people with visible/nonvisible disabilities.
We have a dedicated webpage for accommodations where you can learn more about what we offer, and request accommodation: https://raise.jobs/accommodations/
In order to submit candidates for roles, our clients will sometimes require personal information to confirm the identity of applicants and their legal status to work. Raise will never ask you for personal or banking information unless you have been selected for a job. If you are ever unsure about the legitimacy of this or another job posting by Raise (or have any other questions), please contact us at +1 800-567-9675 or hello@raiserecruiting.com
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