Lead Designer, Operating System

Job Description

END DATE Friday 16 January 2026

SALARY RANGE £76,194 - £89,640

We support flexible working –  for more information on flexible working options

Flexible Working Options Hybrid Working, Job Share

JOB TITLE: Senior Designer, Experience Operating System

SALARY: The salary banding is £76,194 - £89,640

LOCATION: Manchester, Bristol, Leeds, Halifax or Edinburgh

HOURS: 35 hours, full time

WORKING PATTERN: Our work style is hybrid, involving at least two days per week or 40% of our time at one of our office sites.

Step into a career-defining role as Lead Designer for our Experience Operating System, where you’ll shape the future of how design systems, language, content, tooling and AI come together to deliver seamless experiences at scale.

Your mission is to lead the development of Cancara

OS, our experience operating system, powering quality, consistency, efficiency and innovation across every experience we build.

This role sits within the Design Delivery Practice and combines strategic leadership with hands‑on expertise. You’ll drive technical excellence, integration and adoption of enterprise‑grade design systems, while influencing strategy and connecting with customers across design, engineering, brand and beyond. This includes being our key leader with vision on design tooling strategy and the use of AI in design as well as championing inclusive design, helping to embed standard process.

• Bringing a product attitude: shape the roadmap and backlog priorities for design systems, language and content initiatives, ensuring alignment with strategic goals
• Defining strategy and value: define objectives, articulate commercial value and measure impact to visibly demonstrate return on investment
• Bringing technical expertise: lead the evolution of our enterprise‑grade design systems, ensuring robustness and scalability
• Integrating cross‑functionally: shape and steer Cancara
  
  OS as a technical platform, aligning design, brand, engineering, personalisation and colleague experiences into a cohesive operating model
• Developing people: manage and develop the Design Systems, Design Language and Content Design Leads, ensuring clarity of roles and collaboration across teams
• Driving performance: foster a high‑performing, inclusive team culture that champions craft excellence and delivery impact
• Getting hands‑on: act as a lead systems designer, contributing directly to component design, Figma libraries and technical documentation to set standards and exemplify procedure
• Engaging customers: connect with the Design Leadership Team and non‑design collaborators to influence strategy and secure consensus, establishing contribution processes for product teams and external partners
• Innovating and integrating AI: embed new technologies, including AI capabilities, into design workflows to enhance efficiency and scalability

We’re on an exciting journey and there couldn’t be a better time to join us. The investments we’re making in our people, data, and technology are leading to innovative projects, fresh possibilities, and countless new ways for our people to work, learn, and thrive.

• Strategic problem solver with deep expertise in design systems and brand experience
• Delivery‑focused, with experience in scaling systems and driving adoption
• Proven experience in line management and leadership of senior design specialists
• Hands‑on craft leadership in design systems, tooling and AI
• Skilled in team member engagement and influencing at senior levels
• Collaborative and visionary, able to unite teams behind shared goals
• Data‑driven, able to measure and communicate impact and value

This role is pivotal in fostering a culture of accessibility and equity in design, ensuring that our products and service offerings are usable and enjoyable for people of all abilities, backgrounds and experiences.

For Internal colleagues, please contact Vishal Kapoor for more information.

Our focus is to ensure we're inclusive every day, building an organisation that reflects modern society and celebrates diversity in all its forms.

We want our people to feel that they belong and can be their…