Head of Digital Design (14m FTC - Maternity Cover) (Hiring Immediately)

Job Title: Head of Digital Design (14m Fixed Term Contract - Maternity Cover)
Salary: £80,000 - £90,000 + Bonus + EV Allowance
Location: Hybrid (1-2 days per week in London office)

Pod are on the lookout for a Head of Digital Design for a 14 month fixed, term contract to cover a maternity leave.

Here's what our very own VP of Product had to say about the role:

This is a fantastic opportunity to step into a well-established design function and make a real impact from day one. You'll lead a talented team, shape the experiences our customers interact with every day, and influence how design contributes to product, commercial and customer outcomes across Pod. We're looking for someone who can balance strategic thinking with hands-on delivery, bring fresh ideas, champion great design practices and help us continue building intuitive, accessible and customer-focused experiences as we scale.

‎What You'll Do:

‎ Own the Digital Design Strategy - You'll define and drive the digital design vision across web, shop, app and email, ensuring every experience aligns with customer needs and business objectives. You'll bring fresh thinking to how we solve customer problems and continuously evolve our design approach

Lead UX and Service Design - You'll guide UX and product design across the entire customer journey, from first visit through installation and ongoing engagement. You'll lead service design initiatives, map customer journeys, identify friction points and create solutions that improve the overall customer experience

Drive Design Excellence Across Every Touchpoint - You'll set and maintain a high bar for design quality across all digital channels, ensuring experiences are intuitive, consistent and aligned to customer needs. Through thoughtful reviews, coaching and hands-on support, you'll help the team deliver work that is both commercially effective and genuinely useful for customers

Champion User Research - You'll drive customer insight activities, including user research and usability testing. You'll translate findings into clear recommendations and ensure customer feedback directly informs design decisions and product development

Develop and Lead a High-Performing Team - You'll support and develop a small team of designers through regular coaching, feedback and mentoring. You'll create an environment where people can do their best work while maintaining high standards of creativity, quality and collaboration

Partner on Product Strategy and Innovation - You'll work closely with Product leaders to identify opportunities, define customer problems and shape future propositions. Using a combination of customer insight, data and design thinking, you'll help influence product strategy and bring new ideas to life that deliver value for both customers and the business

Strengthen Design Operations - You'll oversee and evolve our design system, helping ensure consistency, efficiency and scalability across all digital touchpoints. You'll also lead peer reviews and establish best practices that support design excellence

Champion Accessibility - You'll be a strong advocate for inclusive design, ensuring all experiences meet accessibility standards and align with WCAG best practice

Collaborate Across the Business - You'll work closely with Product, Marketing and Engineering teams to ensure design concepts translate effectively into delivered experiences. You'll represent design within the Home Value Pod and contribute to strategic planning, prioritisation and decision-making discussions

Measure and Improve Impact - You'll use customer, product and commercial performance data to understand the impact of design initiatives. By analysing key metrics and scorecards, you'll identify opportunities to continuously improve the customer experience.

What You'll Bring:

Digital Design Leadership Experience -

• 5+ years' experience across Product Design, UX Design and ServiceDesign
• At least 2 years' experience leading and developing a design team
• Proven experience setting design direction and delivering customer-centred digital experiences.

UX and Service Design Expertise -

• Strong experience in user-centred design methodologies
• Excellent knowledge of service design, customer journey mapping and experience design
• Ability to take complex customer problems and translate them into simple, intuitive solutions.

Research and Design Systems -

• Strong experience conducting user research and applying customer insights to product and design decisions
• Experience building, managing and evolving design systems
• Solid understanding of interaction design and usability principles.

Stakeholder Management and Communication -

• Excellent communication and influencing skills
• Confidence presenting ideas and recommendations to senior stakeholders
• Strong collaboration skills across Product, Engineering and Marketing teams.

Tools and Delivery -

• Advanced proficiency in Figma
• Experience using modern design and prototyping tools
• Comfortable working in fast-paced, agile product environments.

Bonus Skills

• Experience in e-commerce, marketplace or consumer technology businesses
• Worked within a scale-up or high-growth environment
• Experience designing subscription, installation or service-led customer journeys
• Familiarity with experimentation, A/B testing and data-led optimisation
• Experience working within design maturity programmes or leading design transformation initiatives.

What's In It For You?

This is a fantastic opportunity to step into a senior design leadership role where you'll have the autonomy to shape strategy, influence business decisions and make a visible impact on the experience of thousands of customers. You'll lead a talented and passionate team, partner with senior leaders across Product, Engineering and Marketing, and play a key role in helping Pod deliver smarter, more sustainable energy solutions. As a maternity cover role, you'll inherit a strong foundation while having the freedom to bring fresh ideas, evolve our design practice and leave a lasting mark on both the customer experience and the wider organisation. If you're looking for a role that combines strategic influence, hands-on leadership and meaningful purpose, this is an exciting opportunity to do your best work.

• Access for you and up to 5 family/friends to the 'UnMind' wellbeing platform
• Podpoint Charger
• Discounted energy tariff (Pod Power or EDF Employee Programme)
• Flexible hybrid working model
• Work abroad for up to 20 days per year
• Family & friend discount scheme
• 25 days holiday (plus Bank Holidays)
• Very generous parental and family leave
• Pension scheme with a 4.5% matched contribution
• Eyecare scheme
• Life insurance covering up to 4x your annual salary
• Virtual GP provided by HealthHero
• Employee Assistance Program
• Free Mortgage Advice
• Discounted Gym Memberships
• Cycle2Work Scheme

Important Information:

You must have the legal right to work in the UK. We celebrate diversity and encourage applications from all backgrounds. Your privacy is important to us, all information shared will be handled according to our Candidate Privacy Notice.

Good luck and we look forward to speaking with you soon!