Human-Centered Design (HCD) Lead, UI/UX Researcher

The Digital Sector at Leidos currently has an opening for a Human-Centered Design (HCD) Lead, UI/UX Researcher to work in our Baltimore, Maryland office. This is an exciting opportunity to use your experience helping the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) modernize its legacy Contact Center CRM platform through user-centered research, design, and usability practices. Primary ResponsibilitiesThe HCD Lead, UI/UX Researcher shall lead human-centered design activities for the CRM modernization effort, ensuring the modernized CRM reflects the real needs of CSRs, supervisors, and CMS stakeholders.Responsibilities shall include, but are not limited to:Lead Human-Centered Design (HCD) activities across the CRM modernization lifecycle, including requirements, design, and iterative sprint cycles.Gather input from CCOG SMEs, CSRs, supervisors, and other system users through interviews, workshops, surveys, focus groups, and side-by-side observations.Derive business processes, analyze user needs and pain points, and assist in defining detailed requirements for the modernized CRM.Elicit business goals and user needs from CMS stakeholders and facilitate customer discovery sessions.Create Conceptual Models, Journey Maps, Personas, and Scenarios of Use representing CSR, supervisor, and beneficiary/consumer interactions.Develop and refine screen prototypes and mock-ups for stakeholder validation prior to development, in alignment with the Unified CSR Workspace vision.Design and conduct formative user research, including user interviews, contextual inquiry, card sorting, and usability testing, in both formal and informal settings.Document user requirements, screen designs, and design recommendations with clear, testable acceptance criteria to support Agile user stories.Prepare and present research findings, usability results, and design recommendations to CMS stakeholders and Leidos leadership in small and large group settings.Partner with the Product Manager, Solution Architect, and Agile delivery teams to translate HCD findings into prioritized backlog items and sprint deliverables.Support Proof of Concept (PoC) demonstrations, ensuring the CSR workspace, case management, and AI-assisted workflows reflect validated design decisions.Ensure all designs and prototypes comply with Section 508 accessibility standards and CMS/HHS accessibility policies.Facilitate usability testing and design reviews throughout PI planning, sprint reviews, and User Acceptance Testing (UAT) to validate business function continuity.Support design of AI-enabled guided workflows, knowledge recommendation surfacing, and CSR coaching interfaces to ensure intuitive, low-burden user experiences.Collaborate with the Training and Content team to ensure design decisions align with CSR onboarding, training materials, and change management activities.Maintain a repository of research artifacts, personas, journey maps, and design decisions to support requirements traceability and design consistency across releases.Analyze usability metrics and CSR feedback to inform continuous improvement of the CRM workspace, knowledge management, and AI-assisted features.Build a strong human-centered design culture across the program, coaching Agile teams and CMS stakeholders on user-centered design methods and best practices.Contribute to executive-level briefings, design walkthroughs, and stakeholder demonstrations that communicate the modernization vision and user experience strategy.Coordinate with Quality Assurance and Independent Quality Assurance (IQA) stakeholders to ensure designs support consistent, high-quality CSR interactions.Support change management and adoption activities, including training content and communication of design changes to end users.Actively participate in planning sessions, requirements gathering activities, design sessions, Agile modeling sessions, and other events supporting the CRM modernization effort.Required Qualifications:Bachelor’s degree and a minimum of 6-8 years of relevant experience in UX research and design, or an equivalent combination of education and experienceMinimum of 4 years of direct Interaction/Interface design experience using User-Centered Design (UCD) methods and user analysisMinimum of 3 years of experience designing and conducting formative usability tests and user research in both formal and informal settingsStrong oral and written communication skills, with demonstrated experience presenting research findings and design recommendations to technical and non-technical stakeholders; must provide a digital portfolio of design work for reviewAbility to obtain Public TrustPreferred Qualifications:Experience using prototyping softwareExperience with Pega and/or Salesforce CRM platformsExperience with Agile/Scrum or SAFe delivery methodologiesUnderstanding of responsive design and omnichannel (voice, chat, web) user experienceUnderstanding of Section 508 accessibility requirements as they relate to designPrior experience supporting CMS or other federal health/human services agenciesUX certificationsIf you're looking for comfort, keep scrolling. At Leidos, we outthink, outbuild, and outpace the status quo — because the mission demands it. We're not hiring followers. We're recruiting the ones who disrupt, provoke, and refuse to fail. Step 10 is ancient history. We're already at step 30 — and moving faster than anyone else dares.Original Posting:September 24, 2026For U.S. Positions: While subject to change based on business needs, Leidos reasonably anticipates that this job requisition will remain open for at least 3 days with an anticipated close date of no earlier than 3 days after the original posting date as listed above.Pay Range:Pay Range $107,900.00 - $195,050.00The Leidos pay range for this job level is a general guideline only and not a guarantee of compensation or salary. Additional factors considered in extending an offer include (but are not limited to) responsibilities of the job, education, experience, knowledge, skills, and abilities, as well as internal equity, alignment with market data, applicable bargaining agreement (if any), or other law.SummaryLocation: Baltimore, MDType: Full time