About the Role
Jack Porter is seeking a Digital Experience Design Director to create interactive digital experiences that live inside memorable physical environments. Our work brings together strategy, storytelling, environmental design, media and technology for sports venues, museums, visitor centers, branded environments and other public spaces.
This is not a traditional website or SaaS product-design role. You will design experiences for touchscreens, kiosks, media walls, interactive galleries, large-format displays and other technology-enabled installations. You will be a hands-on designer responsible for carrying work from early concept through UX, UI, prototyping, development and installation.
You will serve as the digital design lead for assigned projects, partnering with the VP of Design, Design Directors and multidisciplinary project teams to establish, direct and execute the digital experience from concept through implementation. While Design Directors own the physical environment, you will own the creative vision, quality and execution of the digital experience, ensuring both disciplines come together as one cohesive story.
Unlike many director-level positions, this is a player-coach role. The Digital Experience Design Director is expected to remain deeply involved in the design work while also providing the creative leadership necessary to guide the digital discipline across the project lifecycle.
Leadership Expectations
As the Digital Experience Design Director, you will lead the digital discipline on assigned projects while remaining an active, hands-on designer. You will independently own the digital creative direction from concept through implementation, requiring minimal day-to-day creative oversight while collaborating closely with executive creative leadership to ensure every digital experience aligns with the project's overall vision.
You will establish the digital creative vision, guide concept development, direct digital experience strategy and provide creative leadership throughout the project lifecycle. While you will continue designing interfaces, interactions and prototypes, you will also be responsible for elevating the work of others, making project-level digital creative decisions and ensuring every digital touchpoint contributes to a cohesive guest experience.
What You’ll Do
Lead the Digital Creative Direction
- Establish the creative vision for the digital experience in partnership with the VP of Design and project Design Directors.
- Translate project goals into a cohesive digital strategy spanning interaction, interface, content, motion and technology.
- Lead digital concept development from early ideation through final implementation.
- Serve as the primary creative decision-maker for the digital experience throughout the project lifecycle.
- Ensure every digital touchpoint supports the project's overall creative vision and storytelling objectives.
Design Digital Experiences
- Design intuitive, visually compelling experiences for touchscreens, kiosks, interactive exhibits, media walls and other technology-enabled installations.
- Translate project goals, audience needs and content into user journeys, information architecture, interaction models, wireframes, prototypes and polished interfaces.
- Create visual and interaction systems that connect multiple digital touchpoints into a cohesive experience.
Develop Concepts and Interactions
- Participate in early project concepting and help determine how digital experiences can support the project’s larger creative and storytelling goals.
- Explore ideas through sketches, storyboards, user flows, prototypes, motion studies and other design artifacts.
- Recommend purposeful approaches across touch, gesture, sensors, RFID/NFC, projection, mobile extensions, large-format media and emerging technologies.
Design for Real-World Visitors
- Apply user-centered design principles to public environments serving diverse audiences, including families, fans, students, alumni, donors and first-time visitors.
- Consider accessibility, dwell time, group interaction, physical reach, viewing distance, environmental conditions and the limited instruction available in public spaces.
- Design interfaces that are understandable at a glance, inviting to approach and easy for the next visitor to begin using.
Connect Content and Storytelling
- Work with content and creative teams to transform complex stories, archives, data and media into meaningful digital interactions.
- Establish content hierarchy, navigation, pacing and progressive disclosure.
- Consider how interactive content, motion, sound, video and physical elements work together as one experience.
Prototype, Test and Refine
- Create prototypes that allow teams, clients and users to understand and evaluate proposed experiences.
- Participate in usability testing, prototype reviews and field observation.
- Use feedback and observation to improve clarity, accessibility and engagement.
Carry Design Through Production
- Prepare organized, developer-ready design files, component systems, interaction specifications and supporting documentation.
- Collaborate with software developers and technology partners throughout implementation.
- Review in-progress builds, participate in content integration and on-device testing, and resolve design issues through installation and final QA.
Collaborate and Communicate
- Partner with Design Directors as the peer responsible for the digital discipline, ensuring physical and digital experiences are conceived and executed as one cohesive environment.
- Lead the digital portion of internal design reviews, client presentations and creative workshops.
- Provide constructive creative direction and feedback to developers, motion designers, freelancers and other digital contributors throughout the project.
- Represent the digital discipline during project planning, scope discussions and implementation decisions.
- Present and defend design decisions while balancing user needs, storytelling, technical feasibility and project constraints.
What You Bring
- A strong portfolio demonstrating hands-on UX, UI, interaction design and visual craft. We want to see the thinking and process behind the finished work.
- Approximately eight or more years of professional experience in UX, UI, interaction design, digital experience design or a related discipline.
- Experience integrating digital experiences with the built environment including with large-format touchscreens, kiosks, interactive exhibits, media walls or multiuser interfaces.
- Demonstrated ability to take digital experiences from early concept through detailed design and implementation.
- Advanced proficiency in Figma and Adobe Creative Cloud or comparable interface-design and prototyping tools.
- Strong typography, composition, hierarchy, color and design-system skills.
- Experience developing user flows, information architecture, wireframes, prototypes and interaction specifications.
- Understanding of accessibility and user-centered design practices.
- Ability to communicate effectively with designers, content teams, developers, project managers, clients and technical partners.
- Ability to manage multiple projects in a fast-moving, multidisciplinary environment.
- A relevant degree or equivalent professional experience.
Especially Helpful
- Experience designing for museums, sports venues, visitor centers, branded environments, attractions or other public spaces.
- After Effects proficiency and experience with Cinema 4D, Blender, or similar 3D tools
- Familiarity with HTML/CSS/JavaScript, TouchDesigner, Unity, Unreal Engine and other interactive-development technology workflows
- Understanding of AV systems, sensors, RFID/NFC, projection, cameras, gesture interaction or related installation technologies.
- Experience conducting usability testing or reviewing work during development and installation.
- Interest in emerging technologies and the judgment to use them purposefully.
Portfolio Guidance
For each relevant project, help us understand the problem, audience, environment, constraints, process, your individual contribution and the resulting experience. Work involving interactive installations, public-space technology, museums, sports environments, branded experiences or other physical settings is especially valuable. Strong candidates from adjacent digital-design backgrounds are encouraged to apply when their work demonstrates exceptional interaction thinking, visual craft and an ability to design beyond conventional websites.
Remote and Travel
This is a U.S.-based remote position. The role requires periodic travel to Jack Porter’s Greenville, South Carolina headquarters, client locations, project sites, installations and team working sessions. Travel frequency will vary based on project needs.