About the position
We are excited to lay the foundation for Ford's push towards a new automotive future. We aim to create digital products that improve over time, amplify mobility for all, and create a thrilling driving experience for our customers. Our organization, Digital Product Design, is re-founding Ford's digital experience, evolving to experience-based product development that embraces vehicle exterior/interior, software, and service design and implementation. As a leader on Ford Model e's Digital Product Design Team, you'll be at the heart of designing products that drive this revolution - inspiring your peers and pushing the industry. You'll also be creating/working at scale. Every day, Ford's vehicles and services support millions of people worldwide. So, at Ford, we're not just inventing the future; we're operationalizing it to help everyone improve their lives.
Responsibilities
- Lead and Mentor the Team: Directly manage, mentor, and coach a team of product designers at various levels. Help them grow their skills, navigate challenges, and achieve their career goals. Foster a culture of feedback, learning, and psychological safety.
- Set Design Vision & Strategy: Partner with product leadership to define the long-term vision and strategy for the product design function. Align design efforts with overall business objectives and product roadmaps.
- Elevate Design Craft & Quality: Establish and maintain high standards for design quality, usability, and consistency across all products and platforms. Oversee the design process from concept to execution, ensuring thoughtful solutions that meet user needs and business goals.
- Drive User-Centered Practices: Champion user research and testing throughout the product development lifecycle. Ensure the team deeply understands our users, their needs, and pain points, and that these insights inform design decisions.
- Cross-Functional Collaboration: Build strong, collaborative relationships with partners in Product Management, Engineering, User Research, Marketing, Data Science, and other departments. Be a strong advocate for design and user experience within the company.
- Resource Planning & Allocation: Plan and allocate design resources effectively across multiple projects and initiatives. Anticipate hiring needs and actively participate in recruiting to build a diverse and high-performing team.
- Define & Optimize Processes: Continuously evaluate and improve design processes, tools, and workflows to increase efficiency, collaboration, and the overall impact of the design team.
- Champion Design Systems: Oversee the development and evolution of our design system to ensure consistency, efficiency, and scalability across our products.
- Contribute to Product Strategy: Actively participate in high-level product strategy discussions, bringing a strong design perspective and advocating for innovative solutions that solve real user problems.
