R1961 - Principal/Senior User Experience Designer

This is an exciting time to join Portland General Electric. As Oregon’s largest electric utility, Portland General Electric is leading an energy transformation that will harness the power of clean and renewable resources. Our vision for a clean energy future relies on three interrelated and overarching strategies: de-carbonize through investing in clean and reliable energy; modernize through a smarter more resilient grid; and empower our customers in their energy technology choices.

We’re searching for innovative, customer and results-obsessed leaders to help power our mission and lead the way in championing the world’s clean energy future!

Our vision at PGE is that together, with our customers, stakeholders and communities, we will lead the energy transformation by decarbonizing, electrifying and performing. This vision is embedded across all business units and across all roles at the company.

With these ambitious goals in mind and our customers’ needs at our core we are actively seeking a Principal/Senior User Experience Designer to join our Customer Experience team and we are open to exploring candidates with varied levels of experience. This opening is posted at two levels: Principal and Senior.

Key Responsibilities at the Principal level

• Designs and implements customer-facing larger and more complex digital interfaces to ensure a seamless customer experience.

• Ensures customer-facing digital interfaces align with customer experience strategy and brand and business requirements; reconciles system programming constraints with customer needs and directs programmers and developers to ensure a customer-centric design; reconciles competing stakeholder needs to ensure customer centricity; prioritizes features and functionality to align to customer preferences.

• Reviews and analyzes data and trends on customer jobs and needs; ensures knowledge of customer segmentation permeates throughout all digital products. Leads and develops customer, market and product research to maintain and investigate design, usability and customer experience.

• Serves as a subject matter expert for overall digital user experience; provides guidance and expertise in system selection or implementation; advocates for customer centricity in all digital products and services PGE provides.

• Manages customer-facing digital projects, including large cross-functional projects; defines project scope and success criteria; plans approach; engages stakeholders; directs others in creating and implementing the design; leads and monitors implementation and develops and implements lessons learned.

• May select and manage vendors for digital facing products; defines scope of work and oversees vendor performance; defines and communicates statement of work; holds vendors accountable and resolves issues.

Education/Experience/Certifications at the Principal level

• Requires a bachelor’s degree in graphic design, marketing, computer science or other related field or equivalent experience.

• Typically eight or more years in digital user experience or a combination of software development and graphic design or marketing. Software development experience strongly preferred.

• User experience certification from a regionally accredited college or university preferred. Professional in Project Management (PMP) certification a plus.

Competencies (Knowledge, Skills, Abilities) at a Principal level

• Intermediate knowledge of and skill in applying design principles, standards, techniques and methodologies to digital interfaces
• Intermediate knowledge of user interface design and digital graphics
• Advanced knowledge of design software
• Expert customer focus skills
• Advanced skills in systems and software with customer-facing elements
• Advanced skills in creating a seamless customer experience
• Advanced skills in analyzing customer data and determining trends
• Expert knowledge of user experience principles and techniques
• Intermediate analytical thinking skills
• Advanced conflict management skills
• Advanced influence skills
• Intermediate negotiation skills
• Intermediate organization and prioritization skills
• Advanced problem-solving skills
• Advanced project management skills
• Advanced written and oral communication skills

Key Responsibilities at the Senior level

• Designs and implements customer-facing digital interfaces to ensure a seamless customer experience.

• Ensures customer-facing digital interfaces align with customer experience strategy and brand and business requirements; reconciles system programming constraints with customer needs and provides feedback to others about designing a customer-centric design; prioritizes features and functionality to align to customer preferences.

• Reviews and shares data and trends on customer preferences and needs as they relate to digital platforms; provides information to others about best practices. Participate in customer, market and product research to validate design, usability and customer experience.

• Shares information and guiding principles of user design with others; provides input and expertise to others on system section or implementation; advocates for customer centricity in all digital products and services PGE provides.

• Manages less complex customer-facing digital projects; manages to defined project scope and success criteria; plans approach; engages stakeholders; directs others in creating and implementing the design; leads and monitors implementation and develops and implements lessons learned.

• May select and manage vendors for digital facing products or help with selection and management of vendors; ensures work adheres to defined statement of work.

Education/Experience/Certifications at the Senior level

• Requires a bachelor’s degree in graphic design, marketing, computer science or other related field or equivalent experience.

• Typically eight or more years in digital user experience or a combination of software development and graphic design or marketing. Software development experience strongly preferred.

• User experience certification from a regionally accredited college or university a plus. Professional in Project Management (PMP) certification a plus.

Competencies (Knowledge, Skills, Abilities) at a Senior level:

• Intermediate knowledge of and skill in applying design principles, standards, techniques and methodologies to digital interfaces
• Intermediate knowledge of user interface design and digital graphics
• Intermediate knowledge of design software
• Advanced customer focus skills
• Advanced skills in systems and software with customer-facing elements
• Advanced skills in creating a seamless customer experience
• Intermediate skills in analyzing customer data and determining trends
• Advanced knowledge of user experience principles and techniques
• Intermediate analytical thinking skills
• Intermediate conflict management skills
• Intermediate influence skills
• Intermediate negotiation skills
• Intermediate organization and prioritization skills
• Advanced problem-solving skills
• Intermediate project management skills
• Advanced written and oral communication skills

Environment: Hybrid/Office/WTC

Open until filled