Lead Specialist - Service Design
Maximus is currently seeking a Lead Specialist – Service Design to shape and deliver next-Generation human services experiences across complex public sector programs. Reporting to the Director – Service Design within Maximus’ Digital Design and Experience organization, this role is a T-Shaped end-to-end Service Design Lead (Broad across research, service design and delivery translation). You will lead mixed-method discovery (quantitative + qualitative), translate insights into service blueprints and operating model improvements, and partner with product owners, business analysts and solution architects to convert target-state designs into implementable requirements and Agile backlogs.
You will support two primary lanes of work: service design solutioning as part of pre-award pursuits (capture / proposals) and post-award optimization and innovation for existing operations (continuous improvement / use case development) while partnering closely with UX, research, analytics, technical SMEs, product owners, and operations and delivery teams to drive measurable improvements in customer and employee experience.
This role leads end-to-end service design outcomes while leveraging specialist expertise.
This position is ideal for a candidate who… * Operates as a generalist across research, synthesis, service design, and delivery translation, and is deeply specialized in one of the following areas: Quantitative service performance analysis and business case development to justify service improvements. Current and future state mapping and service blueprinting against standardized service journeys, processes and workflows, validated and proven through deep customer and employee insight gathering. Prototyping and design validation (service concepts, workflows, user interface / voice interface changes, interaction patterns) * Can articulate experience outcomes and metrics as the “why” behind the data, tying operational drivers (demand, transfers, repeat contacts, handle time, quality) to human outcomes (trust, ease, transparency, effectiveness). * Is comfortable working with solution architects and business analysts, product owners and delivery team members to ensure designs are feasible, secure, and implementable, and can translate service intent into clear requirements and acceptance criteria. * Can produce client-ready, executive-grade (PowerPoint, Lucid, Figma, Excel) analysis and/or deliverables with minimal oversight and drive decision-grade alignment across senior leadership and stakeholder groups. This is a hybrid role based out of our McLean, VA office location and is expected to be in the office 3 days a week to collaborate in-person with the team.
Essential Duties and Responsibilities:
- Contribute to the development of service design solutions and services that solve for today's government service problems in innovative, feasible and desirable ways to bring transformative change to the citizens we serve and enable them to thrive and live better lives. - Guide service design user engagements and research including observations, interviews, surveys, diaries, and other research methods. - Champion a strategic, human-centered service design approach to create disruptive innovation and competitive differentiation. - Support the business in moving ideas from high-level product vision and strategy through road mapping, planning, and execution - Lead the design and facilitation of co-creation sessions, including immersion workshops, journey mapping and service blueprinting. - Leverage a human-centered service design approach to rapidly gain deep understanding of citizen and organizational attitudes, behaviors, needs, pain points, opportunities, and aspirations to create innovative human service experiences. - Frame design challenges, facilitate ideation, envision new concepts (challenge old ones), and rapidly prototype and evaluate designs. - Use divergent design thinking techniques for the conceptual development of new experiences, products, services, processes and/or ecosystems, and converge innovative ideas to a set of digital and tangible solutions in partnership with team members, project stakeholders and business partners. - Communicate insights, benefits, value propositions and design rationales to internal and external audiences in an intentional effort to move towards becoming a design-driven, people-centered organization. - Create powerful narratives that communicate value propositions for the citizen and government using service models, customer journeys, storyboards, system maps, wireframes, interactive prototypes, and final design concepts.
Job-Specific Essential Duties and Responsibilities: - Contribute to the development of service design solutions and services that solve for today's government service problems in innovative, feasible and desirable ways to bring transformative change to the citizens we serve and enable them to thrive and live better lives. - Guide service design user engagements and research including observations, interviews, surveys, diaries, and other research methods. - Champion a strategic, human-centered service design approach to create disruptive innovation and competitive differentiation. - Support the business in moving ideas from high-level product vision and strategy through road mapping, planning, and execution. - Lead the design and facilitation of co-creation sessions, including immersion workshops, journey mapping and service blueprinting. - Leverage a human-centered service design approach to rapidly gain deep understanding of citizen and organizational attitudes, behaviors, needs, pain points, opportunities, and aspirations to create innovative human service experiences. - Frame design challenges, facilitate ideation, envision new concepts (challenge old ones), and rapidly prototype and evaluate designs. - Use divergent design thinking techniques for the conceptual development of new experiences, products, services, processes and/or ecosystems, and converge innovative ideas to a set of digital and tangible solutions in partnership with team members, project stakeholders and business partners. - Communicate insights, benefits, value propositions and design rationales to internal and external audiences in an intentional effort to move towards becoming a design-driven, people-centered organization. - Create powerful narratives that communicate value propositions for the citizen and government using service models, customer journeys, storyboards, system maps, wireframes, interactive prototypes, and final design concepts. - Contribute to the development of service design solutions that address government service problems in innovative, feasible, and desirable ways, improving outcomes for the people we serve. - Develop a deep understanding of what the client is trying to accomplish and create strategies to solve multiple dimensions of a business problem across experience and operations; develop evidence-backed service problem definitions using mix-method quantitative and qualitative data analysis. - Build trust with clients by seeing assigned tasks in the context of broader strategic goals, framing tradeoffs by anticipating risks and needs, supporting data-driven decisions and collaborating effectively across teams. - Contribute to technology modernization and automation initiatives across state and federal programs (e.g. contact center modernization, digital service enablement, workflow / case automation, knowledge modernization, analytics / AI-assisted support), ensuring solutions are measurable, human-centered and implementable. - Lead and/or guide service design engagements, partnering with other members of Digital Design and Experience to generate deep understanding of the problem to be solved, including through the use of observations, interviews, workshops, VoC and VoE analysis, interviews, workshops, surveys, and analysis of operational and experience data. - Frame design hypotheses and challenges, facilitate ideation, and rapidly prototype and evaluate service concepts (e.g. service walkthroughs, scripts, call and interaction flows, employee workflows, knowledge patterns, correspondence patterns, interaction prototypes). - In partnership with technical and delivery SMEs, translate service blueprints into delivery-ready outputs, supporting the creation of epics, user stories, acceptance criteria, and instrumentation / measurement requirements in collaboration with business analysts, technical SMEs and delivery teams, maintaining traceability from journey intent, to backlog, to release outcomes. -Partner with solution architects and technical SMEs to align feasibility, dependencies, and sequencing; support decision forums as needed -Support two lanes of work (as needed by program priorities): Pre-award solutioning / pursuits: create compelling and feasible service narratives and artifacts (reference journeys, target blueprints, prototype packs, implementation approach, evaluator-facing narrative). On-contract innovation / operations improvement: develop quantified business cases and implementation roadmaps for service improvements; support measurement planning and value realization approaches. - Create powerful narratives and client-ready deliverables with minimal oversight, including presentations, blueprints, journeys, research synthesis, business cases, reports and project-related documentation.
Minimum Requirements
- Bachelor's degree in related field required. - 7-10 years of relevant professional experience required. - Human-Centered Design Certification, such as Service Design, Design Thinking, UX, etc. - Experience leading and facilitating workshops, sometimes multiple engagements simultaneously.
Job-Specific Minimum Requirements: - Bachelor's degree in related field required. Additional years of relevant experience will be considered in lieu of degree. - 7-10 years of relevant professional experience required. - Per customer requirements, this position requires United States Citizenship. - Must be eligible to obtain and maintain a U.S. Government security clearance (level dependent on program requirements). - Commitment to work onsite at corporate office at least 3 days per week. - Experience leading and facilitating workshops, sometimes multiple engagements simultaneously. - Demonstrated experience delivering service or transformation changes that had measurable impact from a service and customer experience perspective. - Demonstrated experience producing core service design artifacts (journey maps, service blueprints, operating model implications) and leading stakeholder workshops, co-creation sessions, and leadership reviews. - Demonstrated ability to translate service design artifacts into implementable delivery artifacts (requirements, epics, user stories, acceptance criteria) and work effectively in Agile delivery environments, as well as part of team-based award pursuits. - Experienced in driving technology modernization, automation, and AI‑supported service enhancements, and skilled in producing case studies that clearly communicate the value and results achieved.
Preferred Skills and Qualifications: - Human-Centered Design Certification, such as Service Design, Design Thinking, UX, etc. preferred. - Public sector experience with Federal Government and Department of Defense strongly preferred.
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EEO Statement
Maximus is an equal opportunity employer. We evaluate qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, disability, veteran status, genetic information and other legally protected characteristics.
Pay Transparency
Maximus compensation is based on various factors including but not limited to job location, a candidate's education, training, experience, expected quality and quantity of work, required travel (if any), external market and internal value analysis including seniority and merit systems, as well as internal pay alignment. Annual salary is just one component of Maximus's total compensation package. Other rewards may include short- and long-term incentives as well as program-specific awards. Additionally, Maximus provides a variety of benefits to employees, including health insurance coverage, life and disability insurance, a retirement savings plan, paid holidays and paid time off. Compensation ranges may differ based on contract value but will be commensurate with job duties and relevant work experience. An applicant's salary history will not be used in determining compensation. Maximus will comply with regulatory minimum wage rates and exempt salary thresholds in all instances.
Accommodations Maximus provides reasonable accommodations to individuals requiring assistance during any phase of the employment process due to a disability, medical condition, or physical or mental impairment. If you require assistance at any stage of the employment process—including accessing job postings, completing assessments, or participating in interviews,—please contact People Operations at applicantaccom@maximus.com.
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