User Experience Architect (UXA) - Findability

Job description

  Salary
XXX
·  Role area
Technology
·  Contract type
Permanent
·  Job reference
HRGJQ284344
·  Location
London
SW1V 1DT
· 
We at Argos are looking for User Experience Architects.

Did you know Argos is the leading UK-based online retailer? In terms of size, only Ebay and Amazon are bigger. As an Argos user experience specialist, your designs will empower millions of customers to get what they want, when they want it. We may be big on the outside but on the inside we've worked hard to create a fast-paced, truly agile culture that feels just like a start-up. So working for us, you'll get the best of both worlds.

The role will be primarily based at London Victoria. There might also be the occasional possibility of meetings with business stakeholders in Milton Keynes, Holborn or Coventry depending on your assignments. You'll be supporting the Lead User Experience Architect.

Why you should work for us

We're on a mission. We're customer focussed, tech driven and believe in shaping our own destiny.
We have a wide influence. Uniquely our major experience touchpoints include in-store digital - with interactive screens and large display screens - in addition to web and apps. Customer journeys often cross over between touchpoints and new kinds of touchpoint are on the horizon.
We make a difference. There is great potential for significant simplification and improvement of customer journeys in innovative new ways.
We control the end-to-end journey. We can take our customers on a joined-up end-to-end journey, from discovery of product items to collection in one of our stores or delivery with one of our vehicles.
We pride ourselves on our inclusivity and humility. Inclusion and Diversity are fundamental to our culture and values. Everyone is respected, can be themselves and strive to be the best they can be.

How you will do it

As a UX Architect, you are:

Responsible for user experience in your area

You'll be the chief advocate of the user and User Centred Design on your team(s), responsible for the user experience of its work and proactively driving the highest level of simple support for your customers in their journeys.

Driven by insights

With the in-house UX Research team you'll plan and conduct user research, usability testing, and competitive research and analysis. You will also reach out to other groups who are sources of insight.
You'll identify from the research customer needs and problems which need to be solved. Where you might be dealing with large sets of complex data you're able to take a step back to allow significant patterns to emerge and to clarify core issues.
You'll report the research findings to stakeholders and work with your team to translate the findings into design solutions and actions to be implemented.

A collaborative team-player

You understand that the best work happens when individuals work as part of a team.
You'll be great at simply and clearly communicating insights, user experience approaches and design decisions at a level that resonates with and inspires those with whom you are talking.
You can back up your proposals and ideas with a solid rationale, understand the importance of listening as part of communication, and you believe that lively debate moves us towards building the best product.
You'll facilitate workshops & learning sessions, and conceptualise & innovate new solutions with your working team (UI designer, product managers and developers), business/operational stakeholders and your UX peers, taking on-board valuable feedback & perspectives and bringing them along with you to get their full support.
You'll keep collaborating through development and then launch to ensure the integrity of the experience.

Pushing for the best solutions

You'll nurture your knowledge of customer needs and objectives, product functionality requirements and best practises in user experience.
You'll be skilled in the application of information architecture, wireframing, usability and interaction design.
You'll use your knowledge and skills to advance the customer experience as far as possible through innovative, timely (within an agile development environment) and appropriate designs for navigation, flow, interaction and information/content organisation across all appropriate channels.
The artefacts that you'll create and oversee may include personas, journey maps, user workflows, information architecture, wireframes, flowcharts and interactive prototypes for communication and testing.
You'll assist in creating and evolving design systems and best practices that account for user needs and context, while reinforcing brand values and industry standards. You'll also follow UI best practice and industry/company design guidelines in your projects.
You'll manage the allocation of the UX resources you depend on during ideation, prioritisation, development, and quality assurance phases of projects and programs.

What you bring with you

We need you to provide a portfolio of work that demonstrates your ability to deliver a first-class User Experience.

Minimum:

Experience creating interfaces, large scale responsive websites and/or applications for mobile platforms such as iOS and Android.
Degree in design, architecture, HCI or related discipline.
Demonstrable portfolio of designing for complex digital interfaces, with experience in creating and delivering site maps, wireframes, interaction specifications and other information architecture assets of first class products and services.
Strong analytical skills and capacity to think holistically.
Ability to synthesize data into coherent information design.
Desire to produce the best-in-class omni-channel customer experiences, regardless of complexity.
Full understanding of how to apply the methodologies of interaction design and research to software, web and mobile development.
Engaging presentation style as well as solid writing and visual communication skills.
Ability to effectively collaborate and communicate with other team members.
Experience with wireframing and/or prototyping tools to demonstrate your design approach and vision.
An appreciation of all other UX roles and their contribution to the final product.
Experience in working in truly agile environments facilitated by tools such as JIRA and Confluence.

It's an advantage if you also have:

Retail customer experience
Agency experience