Job Description

Please note this role will begin remotely and will be based in one of our US studio locations of San Francisco, CA, Chicago IL, or Cambridge, MA by the start of 2022.

Come create impact with us.

IDEO is a global design company committed to creating positive impact. As early leaders of human-centered design, we keep people at the center of our work. It's a key tenet of design thinking, and even as our methods evolve in response to new, complex challenges, we’re always designing solutions for people first. We’re building to learn, and learning as we build, through inspiration, ideation, and implementation.

What does IDEO offer you?

IDEO is a place unlike any other. It’s a place where you can solve diverse, complex challenges for our clients or the organization, alongside thoughtful, intelligent individuals who lead with curiosity, empathy, and optimism. We work hard, but we also intentionally craft moments that allow our community to pause, create, and connect. We are a community of people who thrive together in navigating the unknown with creativity and imagination and we encourage everyone to bring their whole selves to work, respect the need for work-life balance, and allow for autonomy in the design process and your career.

Who we’re looking for

IDEO is looking to hire a creative storytelling leader to help shape and grow our Health Portfolio. Our goal is to be an indispensable partner to our clients in designing human-centered solutions within health. To do that, we are looking for an individual who can help us deliver on our purpose of “using design to solve some of the most complex challenges in health and well-being and bring equity, dignity and joy to all” through the medium of creative storytelling.

You will have the shared responsibility, with a team of other leaders around the firm, of guiding world-class talent and collaborating with top-tier local, regional, and international clients on complex challenges in healthcare.

You are a creator of stories who can shape a narrative that makes people laugh, cry, think, and act...

• You are an expert in one or more of these mediums: filmmaking, journalism, photography, creative direction, videography, creative marketing, design research, or communication design.
• You have the desire to create significant and lasting change within healthcare, through design.
• You are curious about people and inspired to solve problems by deep empathy for their needs. You have some experience with design research and bridging human insights into narrative expressions.
• You value and practice centering equity in your work, including building diverse teams and ensuring equity in process and outcomes.
• You are excited by collaborative work and have experience convening groups of individuals from diverse backgrounds to engage in creative problem-solving.

You are a strategic, entrepreneurial leader...

• You have experience creating a compelling vision for the direction of an organization, developing a strategic roadmap, and bringing others along. You expertly guide creative teams and invest in supporting the learning and development of individuals at different stages of their careers.
• You develop and nurture client relationships. You lead client conversations with confidence, communicating an organization’s unique value proposition, and activate client networks.
• You like to take the mic. You have experience representing an organization or offering to external audiences through speaking engagements and other media opportunities.
• Bonus: You have a depth of expertise in healthcare or a strong network within the healthcare industry through lived experience.

Why is this role important for IDEO’s work?

As a Director, you will work with IDEO’s Health leadership team and provide critical guidance to the domain through a variety of capacities, including business development, mentoring, brand building, and craft excellence. You will make the biggest impact by using your craft of storytelling and passion for health in developing, managing, and executing a business development strategy that capitalizes on the range of opportunities in the market and ensures that IDEO’s design capabilities are properly represented to meet and exceed the client’s needs and expectations. Your skillset is critical to our work because you have the ability to cultivate client relationships and support the development of world-class designers.

Our commitments to diversity, equity, and inclusion

At IDEO, we are committed to the work of advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion within our organization and in the world. Our purpose of having disproportionate, world-changing impact through design is directly connected to our ability to bring many different perspectives to the table. This applies to our candidates, the people we hire, the clients and customers we serve, and the communities we learn from in our research.

As a human-centered organization, we are committed to working with and designing for people of every race, ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, socio-economic status, physical ability or attribute, religion, national origin, or political belief. We recognize that this commitment requires ongoing work and sustained attention, as well as adaptation to new insights and best practices. These commitments will also be part of your journey at IDEO, so please feel free to read more about them here .

Some previous projects to check out:

First Mile Health

Bedsider

Planned Parenthood

Ascencia

uMotif

Application instructions

We recognize that candidates will have various degrees of expertise for this role. As such, we would like to hear from senior candidates with a proven track record of leadership in creative organizations, in and out of the design industry.

If you are interested in applying, please provide your resume along with a portfolio or link to your work and a cover letter that touches on why you’re excited to be a creative leader at IDEO?

We will be closing this position on Tuesday, July 27th , 2021 at 9am PT / 11am CT / 12pm ET

Equal Opportunity Employer

IDEO is an equal opportunity employer; applicants are considered for all roles without regard to race, color, religious creed, sex, national origin, citizenship status, age, physical or mental disability, sexual orientation, marital, parental, veteran or military status, unfavorable military discharge, or any other status protected by applicable federal, state or local law.

Apply now