User experience operations lead

In the role of UX Operations Lead at Workiva, you will serve as the central bridge connecting our UX disciplines, UX Design, Design Systems, Content, and UX Research, with the broader Product organization. Your primary focus will be establishing unified decision routines and shared operating models to ensure the UX organization operates as a cohesive unit. You will drive continuous operational improvements by streamlining workflows, standardizing practices, and leveraging automation and AI for repetitive tasks. While the Head of UX and UX Directors maintain ultimate responsibility for people leadership, UX strategy, and priorities, you will support them directly and collaborate closely with Product Operations on joint operating models and cross-functional initiatives.

What You'll Do

• Rituals and Routines: Design and run recurring rituals, design critique routines, and decision-making checkpoints across all UX functions.
• Product Partnership: Prepare the Head of UX for Product Strategy & Operations sessions, drive follow-through, and serve as the day-to-day UX counterpart to Product Operations.
• Vendor Management: Own the UX tooling and vendor budget, manage renewals and procurement with IT, Procurement, Finance, and Legal.
• Tooling & Ways of Working: Consolidate communication channels and documentation, audit the tooling ecosystem including Figma and AI tools, pilot new tools with measurable outcomes, and build reusable templates.
• Hiring & Onboarding: Build the onboarding system and reusable job description, interview loop, and evaluation templates that Directors populate with discipline-specific content.
• Research Ops & Leveling: Connect Research Ops to shared rhythms and facilitate a cross-discipline competency and leveling framework.
• Communications & Reporting: Run the executive reporting cadence, communicate UX strategy to the team, and coordinate UX participation in annual cross-functional efforts.
• AI & Automation: Identify repeatable workflows for AI or automation, pilot with guardrails, and use operational health measures to scale what works.
• Team Culture: Create rituals and engagement moments that build connectivity and psychological safety across the distributed team.

What You'll Need

Minimum Qualifications

• 10+ years in UX operations, design/research program management, or a comparable operations role across multiple director-led teams
• Experience owning a budget and managing vendor relationships end to end
• Track record of building an operating model, cadence, or process from a low-maturity starting point
• Experience preparing an executive for high-stakes cross-org conversations and driving follow-through

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience building operating processes, planning cadences, or shared systems where structure was limited or still evolving.
• Ability to influence without formal authority, facilitate decisions, and build strong relationships across disciplines.
• Experience preparing leaders for cross-functional discussions and translating decisions into clear actions and follow-through.
• Strong written and verbal communication, with the ability to adapt information for executives, team leaders, and individual contributors.
• Ability to prioritize a broad portfolio and deliver improvements in practical, manageable stages.
• Experience supporting a multidisciplinary UX organization spanning design, research, content, and design systems.
• Experience partnering with Product Operations on shared planning processes, workflows, or organizational standards.
• Experience developing hiring and onboarding systems, supporting competency frameworks, or coordinating research operations.
• Working proficiency with Figma, Jira, collaboration and documentation platforms, and budget-tracking tools.
• Experience applying AI or automation to operational workflows, with clear guardrails and measurable outcomes.
• Experience defining operational metrics and using data to improve processes, understand capacity, and evaluate adoption.

Travel Requirements & Working Conditions

Up to 10% travel to meet geographically distributed team members, depending on proximity to company offices. Reliable internet access for remote work periods.

How You’ll Be Rewarded

• Salary range in the US: $177,000.00 - $290,000.00
• A discretionary bonus typically paid annually
• Restricted Stock Units granted at time of hire
• 401(k) match and comprehensive employee benefits package

The salary range represents the low and high end of the salary range for this job in the US. Minimums and maximums may vary based on location. The actual salary offer will carefully consider a wide range of factors, including your skills, qualifications, experience and other relevant factors.

Why Join Workiva

Workiva is the platform designed to bring confidence, control, and a competitive edge to the world’s most complex organizations. Our AI-powered platform unifies finance, risk, and sustainability on a single, secure foundation—ensuring data is trusted, traceable, and ready to act on. With an unbroken path from source to output, leaders gain confidence in their numbers, visibility into current and emerging risks, and the ability to move with speed and precision in a constantly changing world.

At Workiva, you’ll bring technology to market that executives, boards, and regulators depend on. The work you do here helps organizations navigate uncertainty, maintain trust, and make decisions that stand up to scrutiny. If you’re energized by meaningful challenges, inspired by collaborative teams, and motivated to help organizations turn uncertainty into advantage, we’d love to meet you.

Employment decisions are made without regard to age, race, creed, color, religion, sex, national origin, ancestry, disability status, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, genetic information, marital status, citizenship status or any other protected characteristic.

Workiva is committed to working with and providing reasonable accommodations to applicants with disabilities. To request assistance with the application process, please email talentacquisition@workiva.com.

Workiva employees are required to undergo comprehensive security and privacy training tailored to their roles, ensuring adherence to company policies and regulatory standards.

Workiva supports employees in working where they work best - either from an office or remotely from any location within their country of employment.