Senior User Interface Design Engineer

Description

We are seeking a Senior User Interface Design Engineer who will be responsible for planning and creating high-quality, efficient user interfaces across the library’s web presence. The person in this position would help establish best practices and work closely with user experience and accessibility specialists, designers, developers, stakeholders, and partners to create interfaces that support the library’s websites and applications. The ideal candidate is a methodical and deliberate problem solver, enjoys rigorous analysis of business needs, has a passion for understanding users in the context of higher education, possesses a desire to discuss why we develop what we develop, and is dedicated to incorporating user feedback into the design and development lifecycle.  

The Senior User Interface Design Engineer reports to the Web Applications Team Leader within the Design & Discovery department.

Design & Discovery is part of the Library Information Technology (LIT) Division and its portfolio includes program and project management, user experience research and design, web development, and digital accessibility. The department manages the library’s primary web interfaces, including multiple websites, access and discovery systems, interfaces for digital repositories, and consults on user research and content strategy. These applications provide access to over 10 million physical and digital resources and are visited by over 2 million users a month. 

The University of Michigan Library is one of the world’s largest academic research libraries and serves a vibrant university community that is home to 19 schools and colleges, 100 top ten graduate programs, and annual research expenditures approaching $1.5 billion. To enable the university’s world-changing work and to serve the public good, the library collects, preserves, and shares the scholarly and cultural record in all existing and emerging forms, and leads the reinvention of the academic research library in the digital age.

The library is committed to recruiting and retaining a diverse workforce and encourages all employees to fully incorporate their diverse backgrounds, skills, and life experiences into their work. We champion diversity, equity, and inclusion. Our work engages a broad and diverse community with wide-ranging needs and concerns, and we empower all employees to actively participate in the ongoing process of learning about and responding to these needs. We value the synergy that results from sharing and leveraging our different experiences, backgrounds, skills, talents, and interests to build an environment in which all our community members can flourish. Learn more in the Library’s Diversity Strategic Plan.

Responsibilities

• Participate in the needs assessment, requirements gathering, design, and development of systems that support scalable adaptable business workflows
• Coordinate with user interface designers and programmers to implement front-ends for web applications
• Establish front-end web development best practices and universal design standards for multiple applications across the division and encourage their use
• Share knowledge and expertise with peers across the division in mentorship roles
• Participate actively in the open source communities with which we are engaged
• Review system and software designs and prepare and conduct functional tests
• Actively engage in professional development activities to expand skills and competencies
• Document and model end-user needs and behavior to create systems that are simple, efficient, and consistent
• Assess and optimize system performance with data from user testing and analytics
• Apply established patterns and principles to build stable and effective user interfaces at the enterprise scale 
• Follow industry best practices to ensure that interfaces are reusable across the library’s web presence

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science or a related field, or experience in front-end development or web design, or equivalent combination of relevant degree and experience
• Ability to develop front-end interfaces to web applications
• Modern web development experience with HTML5, JavaScript, SCSS, or React
• Strong analytical and troubleshooting skills
• Understands and values diversity and the importance of inclusion as demonstrated through a commitment to apply and incorporate the differences, complexities, and opportunities that diversity brings to an organization

Desired Qualifications

• Experience with MVC (model/view/controller) framework-based web development tools
• Experience with accessibility standards, responsive web design and device-agnostic design principles and practices
• Familiarity with agile development methodologies
• Experience with web application automated testing
• Familiarity with cloud services and the types of connections between interface, application, and infrastructure layers of a complex web architecture
• Additional Information

Minimum salary for this position is $85,000. Classification will either be at the Intermediate or Senior level. Final salary and classification will be determined by experience and qualifications.

The University of Michigan offers excellent benefits and wellness opportunities.

This position receives 24 days of vacation a year, paid sick leave with provisions for extended benefits, as well as opportunities for professional development and travel. TIAA-CREF and Fidelity Investments retirement options available.

Application Deadline

Job openings are posted for a minimum of seven calendar days.  This job may be removed from posting boards and filled anytime after the minimum posting period has ended. Applications will be reviewed as received throughout the posting period and continue until the position is filled.

U-M EEO/AA Statement

The University of Michigan is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer.