Senior Design Strategist

The role

You will lead and execute design strategies, collaborate with executive-level clients, and drive visual storytelling. You will work to reframe client challenges, prototype ideas, and develop narratives that align with mission and brand identity.

What you will do

• Serve as a trusted advisor to clients by framing complex challenges and applying design thinking.
• Partner with client stakeholders to understand priorities, user needs, and constraints.
• Lead the development of design strategy approaches.
• Lead teams through the full design thinking arc from framing to iteration.
• Guide cross-functional teams through ambiguity to build alignment.
• Lead mixed-method discovery efforts including interviews and mapping.
• Synthesize findings into actionable insights and strategic recommendations.
• Develop visual frameworks, prototypes, and strategic narratives.
• Design and facilitate design thinking workshops and design sprints.
• Mentor teammates through coaching and knowledge sharing.

Required qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Design, Communication, Business, Architecture, Engineering, Innovation, Sociology, Psychology, or a related field.
• 10+ years of experience in design strategy, innovation, strategic consulting, facilitation, service design, communications, or a related field.
• Ability to obtain and maintain a security clearance.
• Deep fluency in design thinking, including problem framing, divergent and convergent thinking, rapid prototyping, and iterative testing.
• Strong expertise in systems thinking, facilitation, and strategic storytelling.
• Well-versed in a variety of design strategy disciplines.
• Experience designing and facilitating workshops, design sprints, ideation sessions, stakeholder engagements, and collaborative working sessions.
• Demonstrated ability to lead complex discovery and research efforts.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Demonstrated ability to navigate ambiguity and guide stakeholders.
• Demonstrated ability to balance multiple priorities and deadlines.
• Portfolio that shows how you frame problems, make strategic decisions, and iterate toward solutions.

Nice to have

• Familiarity with human-centered design

Benefits

• $100 monthly internet/cell phone stipend
• $150 monthly commuter stipend for eligible participants
• LINK sponsored healthcare benefits including medical, dental, vision
• Company-paid Short Term Disability Insurance
• 401K with employer contribution of up to 4%
• 11 Federal Holidays per year
• 15 days of Paid Time Off (PTO) per year
• Paid Holiday Time Off (Christmas Eve through the New Year)
• Annual bonus plan participation
• Annual profit sharing participation
• $2,000 Learning and Development program reimbursement
• Technology package that includes a LINK-owned MacBook Pro, monitor, mouse and keyboard

About the company

LINK is a fast-growing Woman Owned Small Business (WOSB) that leverages human-centered design to support strategy, innovation, communication, change, and branding within the federal government and adjacent industry partners.