Head of UX & Service Design

Biglight is an experience design agency that combines customer insight, UX and design with constant innovation and experimentation to help leading brands create remarkable customer experiences.

We believe your career should be a journey of growth, impact, and creativity. As our Head of UX & Service Design, you’ll refine and uphold the standards for how we deliver research, experience and service design projects across the business. 

This role would suit a current Head of UX/Service Design or a Lead UX/Service Designer looking for their next step up.

You’ll work with some of the world’s most recognisable brands — including The North Face, Vans, Tesco and Marks & Spencer — leading high-profile engagements that combine research, customer experience, service design, and business strategy. You’ll build strong client relationships, map complex ecosystems, and guide teams to deliver joined-up, end-to-end experiences that work across different channels and touch points. 

We’re a people business that depends on the expertise and creativity of exceptional individuals. We hire the best, regardless of background, and create an environment where they can grow while delivering outstanding work for our clients.

We don’t expect you to tick every box on day one — we’re looking for the right leader who can grow into parts of the role over time. 

Requirements

  What’s in it for you 

Help refine and continuously enhance the direction of experience and service design. You’ll evolve and guide the growth of our Experience Design practice — ensuring our work not only meets but sets industry benchmarks.

You’ll refine frameworks for research (qualitative and quantitative) and service design thinking, (from journey mapping to service blueprints), creating the conditions for high-impact, cross-channel experience design. 

You will be customer-centric, whilst remaining business-minded and commercially savvy. 

Lead with influence 

You’ll inspire and empower your team, fostering a culture of collaboration, innovation, and continuous improvement. You’ll help foster the business’s leadership culture, mentoring team members and creating an environment where great ideas thrive. 

Build trusted relationships 

You’ll work closely with senior client stakeholders, earning their trust by delivering work that combines creative ambition with strategic clarity. You will help strengthen Biglight’s reputation as a partner who designs services and experiences that transform how businesses operate. 

Skills we admire 

Structured and strategic 

You think big picture — connecting research, service design, and UX to deliver integrated, end-to-end experiences that align with business goals.

A leader who elevates others 

You bring out the best in those around you — delegating effectively, coaching with empathy, and empowering team leads to take ownership. 

Decisive and adaptable 

You’re comfortable making tough calls, weighing trade-offs, and adapting plans to keep projects and teams moving forward. 

Collaborative and influential 

You know how to unite teams, align stakeholders, and create shared ownership of outcomes. 

Commercially driven 

You apply your strategic insight and design thinking to identifying opportunities to help grow accounts in the context of your engagements. 

What you’ll be doing day-to-day 

STRATEGIC LEADERSHIP: 

• Refine the approach for research and experience and service design across the business, ensuring alignment with client and business objectives. 

• Contribute to the agency’s leadership culture, inspiring trust and empowering team members to deliver at the highest level. 

• Establish and evolve standards, processes, and frameworks — from research frameworks to UX playbooks and service design toolkits — that enable consistent, high-quality delivery. 

• Identify and address systemic blockers, building habits and structures that sustain progress. 

CLIENT LEADERSHIP AND RELATIONSHIPS: 

• Own strategic client relationships, acting as a trusted partner and advisor in both experience and service transformation. 

• Build trust through education, insight and clear communication. 

• Be a team player. 

RESEARCH AND INSIGHT: 

• Shape research agendas that drive client outcomes and business strategy. 

• Ensure the quality, rigour and relevance of qualitative and quantitative research across projects. 

• Translate insight into service and experience design artefacts such as journey maps, service blueprints, and ecosystem maps. 

DESIGN EXCELLENCE AND DELIVERY: 

• Oversee high-impact deliverables, from journey maps to strategic recommendations, ensuring they meet Biglight standards and client business goals. 

• Champion accessibility, inclusivity and user-centred thinking across all projects. 

• Coach the team in facilitation and workshop delivery, ensuring engaging and productive sessions that surface both user needs and operational realities. 

OPERATIONAL LEADERSHIP:

• Delegate effectively across multiple workstreams, empowering team leads to own delivery. 

• Oversee resourcing, budget and project scope across the Experience Design team. 

• Align prioritisation with strategic business outcomes. 

BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT:

• Lead pitches for high-value opportunities, securing and expanding client partnerships. 

• Actively lead and/or contribute towards engagement proposal development 

• Pro-actively identify opportunities for further account growth in the context of ongoing engagements

EXPERIENCE, SKILLS, EDUCATION AND PERSONAL ATTRIBUTES:

• 10+ years of experience in UX, with a proven track record of successful client projects that showcase both design and strategic leadership. 

• Strong portfolio of work that demonstrates both design leadership and measurable business impact. 

• Proven ability to influence senior stakeholders and navigate complex client relationships. 

• Has pitched and won work at a senior level. 

• Experience mapping complex ecosystems and delivering joined-up customer journeys across multiple channels and touch points. 

• Expertise in shaping and applying research to strategic design decisions. 

• Experience in shaping engagement commercials 

• Highly organised, adaptable and decisive, with strong critical thinking skills. 

• Skilled communicator, able to set the tone and quality for all forms of communication across a team or function. 

Benefits

• Competitive salary
• Private health insurance
• Enhanced maternity/paternity pay
• Access to Perkbox employee benefits platform
• Hybrid office/home working
• Regular business updates and company socials
• Opportunities for professional growth and career development
• 25 days annual leave
• Being part of a dynamic, fast-paced agency environment
• Working with a team of incredibly talented professional colleagues

We are committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive workplace where everyone feels respected, valued, and empowered to contribute their authentic selves.