Senior UX Designer

NATS is the UK’s leading air navigation service provider, handling over 2.4 million flights each year. We provide air traffic control services from two control centres and at airports around the UK. We also provide a wide range of commercial products and solutions internationally. Our people are at the heart of our purpose to advance aviation and keep the skies safe.

Purpose Of The Role

Reporting to the Head of User Experience within the Human Factors team, this role will predominantly work on providing UX research and design to projects. The post holder will work closely with project stakeholders, cross‑functional project teams and end users (e.g. air traffic controllers, assistants and planners, sim staff) to define user needs, ideate creative solutions, design prototypes and evaluate against appropriate metrics, positively impacting UX, increasing user acceptance, efficiency and safety.

Accountabilities

• Lead UX research and design projects as part of cross‑functional teams including Air Traffic Control (ATC) leads, human factors, business analysts, data & analytics, engineers, validation and project management.
• Plan and conduct robust user research via qualitative and quantitative methods in complex, technical ATC environments to understand users, define needs and measure improvements.
• Turn research into actionable insights and define project outcomes and metrics for UX to deliver.
• Facilitate creative ideation to generate solutions, that are aligned to business and project objectives, and prioritise which to take into prototyping.
• Design detailed prototypes in differing levels of fidelity (e.g. sketches, wireframes, Figma) and test iteratively with end users to assess effectiveness.
• Deliver final solutions to internal and external development teams to standards set by the Head of UX and regulatory requirements.
• Ensure accessibility and usability standards are met across all solutions, promoting inclusive design principles.
• Create and maintain design systems across a range of digital platforms, ensuring consistency for users.
• Plan and manage UX engagement within projects, managing time and priorities effectively, reporting progress to team members and the Head of UX.
• Engage and influence stakeholders, clearly communicating UX progress, outcomes, and business value delivered.
• Identify opportunities for UX engagement, growth and process improvements across the business, contributing to the development and delivery of the UX strategy.
• Champion UX best practices and design thinking across the organisation, supporting the Head of UX in embedding user‑centred methodologies into processes and culture.

Qualifications, Professional Knowledge & Skills

• A strong portfolio demonstrating significant work experience in UX (research and UI design/prototyping), ideally in complex, technical, safety‑critical environments. Air traffic control / aviation experience is desirable, but not essential.
• Preferably educated to a relevant degree level (UX, Design, HCI etc).
• An excellent understanding of UX / Design Thinking processes and their practical application.
• Proven ability to work autonomously and influence change with stakeholders and cross‑discipline teams.
• Proven ability to lead UX projects and design measurably effective solutions to demanding time scales and user/stakeholder satisfaction.
• An awareness and understanding of commercial considerations in projects and the benefits that UX delivers.
• Experienced in running research and design workshops with diverse project teams.
• A passion for staying abreast of the latest UX trends, tools and technologies and establishing how they can improve our work.
• Experience of Human Factors is desirable, but not essential.
• Excellent time management, planning, organisational and facilitation skills leading to demonstrable ability to produce clear, concise and accurate information.
• Good networking skills, establishing key contacts around the organisation quickly, valuing them and using them effectively.
• Good communication skills, both written and oral and the ability to communicate effectively with middle to senior management adapting communication style as required.
• Good interpersonal, influencing, persuading and communication skills with attention to detail/accuracy.
• Ability to formulate and develop documentation quickly and effectively and present to Management in a clear and concise manner.
• Self‑motivator, self‑reliant and proactive, with the ability to make swift decisions.
• A team player, who is prepared to address problems proactively and to contribute to the development of a high‑performance delivery organisation.
• Proactive approach to identifying and addressing business needs.

If you share our passion to advance aviation and keep the skies safe – we would like to hear from you whatever your age, sex, race, faith, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, visible or invisible disability. Individuals that bring different perspectives, skills, life experiences and backgrounds help us be at the forefront of our industry.