Lead UX Designer . Neighborly Software

# Lead UX DesignerNeighborly Software, USAPublic services## Why this work mattersHelps 400+ government agencies and housing authorities efficiently administer HUD-funded housing, community development, and disaster recovery programs, accelerating aid to low- and moderate-income communities.View the full listing and apply →Listed 16 Oct 2026Applications are handled by Neighborly Software, not by Hard Problems.## About Neighborly SoftwareNeighborly Software is an Atlanta-based company that provides a cloud-based platform for government agencies to administer and disburse funds across programs including housing, community development, disaster recovery, home energy rebates, and Housing Choice Vouchers. Its mission is to help communities support low-income families and vulnerable populations.### The roleThis is the first dedicated user experience role at Neighborly Software, making it a founding individual-contributor position with no direct reports. The UX Lead owns how the platform looks, feels, and flows for a diverse user base that includes government agency staff, nonprofit administrators, contractors, and the residents they serve. The role sits within the Product department and leads through influence rather than authority, setting direction that product managers, engineers, and QA follow because the thinking is sound and the work improves theirs.### What you would do* Build and own a design system, including a reusable component library, interaction patterns, and usage guidance for product, engineering, and QA.* Establish and maintain a style guide for consistent branding across the platform.* Set WCAG-based accessibility standards, build accessible patterns into the design system, and define how compliance is validated before release.* Establish responsive design norms so the platform behaves predictably across desktop, tablet, and mobile.* Redesign core workflows to reduce friction, with fewer clicks, clearer paths, and meaningful status and feedback.* Build and document personas and user journeys, keeping them current as a shared reference across product, engineering, marketing, and sales.* Join client calls and discovery sessions with product managers to gather firsthand feedback and translate it into design direction.* Lead workshops including discovery sessions, journey mapping, design reviews, and prioritization exercises with internal teams and customers.* Establish prototyping norms and a shared framework with the product team so concepts are tested visually before reaching engineering.* Guide engineering and QA on implementation fidelity, component reuse, and front-end quality.* Use product analytics (such as Pendo) to understand user behavior, identify friction, and validate whether design changes improved outcomes.* Define and track experience metrics such as task completion, time on task, error rates, and support volume, and report progress to leadership.### What they are looking for* Bachelor's degree in Design, Human-Computer Interaction, or a related field, or equivalent practical experience.* 5+ years of UX and UI design experience, including time as the lead or senior-most designer on a product or platform.* A portfolio showing end-to-end ownership of complex, workflow-heavy applications (not solely marketing sites or consumer apps).* Demonstrated experience building a design system and component library from scratch and driving its adoption.* Hands-on expertise with modern design and prototyping tools such as Figma, including component libraries, design tokens, and interactive prototypes.* Working knowledge of WCAG 2.1 AA or later, and experience designing and validating accessible interfaces.* Experience delivering responsive design across desktop, tablet, and mobile.* Direct experience conducting user research and synthesizing findings into personas, journeys, and design decisions.* Experience facilitating workshops and design reviews with cross-functional and customer audiences.* Demonstrated ability to influence engineering, QA, and product partners without direct authority.* Experience with product analytics tools and using behavioral data to inform design decisions.* Working fluency with AI tools applied to design and research (synthesis, content drafting, rapid concept generation).* Strong communication and presentation skills, including explaining design rationale to executives, engineers, and customers.* Enough familiarity with HTML, CSS, and component-based front-end frameworks to have productive technical conversations with engineers.* Preferred: experience as the first or founding design hire establishing a UX practice from scratch.* Preferred: experience in govtech, public sector, affordable housing, community development, or grant management software.* Preferred: experience designing for multiple distinct personas within a single platform, including external-facing portals.* Preferred: experience with enterprise or B2B SaaS platforms with configuration, permissions, and administrative complexity.* Preferred: familiarity with performance monitoring tools such as New Relic.* Preferred: accessibility certification (such as CPACC or WAS).* Preferred: tech startup experience.### Working arrangementsThis is a fully remote role open to candidates based in the United States.### Pay and benefits* Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision plan options.* Company-paid short-term disability and life insurance.* 401(k) with a generous employer match and immediate vesting.* 5 weeks of PTO, 9 paid holidays, and 3 days of volunteer time off per year. #J-18808-Ljbffr