UI/UX Designer

Photon offers medical, vision, and dental benefits, a 401k retirement plan, variable pay incentives, paid time off, and paid holidays. This onsite Chicago contract UI/UX Designer role centers on leading end-to-end design, user research, and the development of design systems across product teams to deliver accessible, responsive interfaces. Responsibilities Lead the end-to-end design process, from user research and ideation to wireframing, prototyping, visual design, testing, and implementation. Gather and evaluate user requirements in collaboration with product managers, business stakeholders, and development teams. Create user flows, information architecture, journey maps, wireframes, mockups, and interactive prototypes for web and mobile applications. Design intuitive, accessible, and visually appealing user interfaces aligned with business goals and user expectations. Develop and maintain design systems, style guides, component libraries, and UI standards to ensure consistency across products. Conduct user research, usability testing, customer interviews, and heuristic evaluations to identify usability improvements. Translate complex business and technical requirements into simple, user-friendly experiences. Collaborate closely with UI developers, product owners, business analysts, and QA teams throughout the product lifecycle. Create high-fidelity designs using tools such as Figma, Sketch, Adobe XD, or similar design platforms. Ensure designs adhere to accessibility standards, responsive design principles, and platform-specific guidelines. Review implemented designs and work with development teams to ensure pixel-perfect execution. Analyze user feedback, analytics, and behavioral data to continuously improve user experience and engagement. Present and communicate design concepts, rationale, and recommendations to stakeholders and leadership teams. Stay current with emerging UX trends, design methodologies, technologies, and industry best practices. Support branding initiatives and ensure visual consistency across all digital touchpoints. Requirements Bachelor's degree in Design, Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), Graphic Design, Computer Science, or a related field. 4+ years of experience in UI/UX design for web and mobile applications. Strong portfolio demonstrating expertise in user-centered design and visual design principles. Proficiency in Figma, Adobe XD, Sketch, Photoshop, Illustrator, or similar tools. Strong understanding of UX methodologies including user research, journey mapping, wireframing, prototyping, and usability testing. Experience designing responsive and mobile-first applications. Knowledge of accessibility standards and usability best practices. Strong communication, collaboration, and presentation skills. Ability to work effectively in Agile/Scrum environments. Technologies Figma Sketch Adobe XD Photoshop Illustrator HTML CSS JavaScript Google Analytics Hotjar Mixpanel Benefits Medical, vision, and dental benefits 401k retirement plan Variable pay/incentives Paid time off Paid holidays Key Skills User Experience (UX) Design User Interface (UI) Design Wireframing & Prototyping Design Systems User Research & Usability Testing Information Architecture Interaction Design Responsive & Mobile Design Figma / Adobe XD / Sketch Visual Design & Branding Accessibility & Inclusive Design Agile Methodologies Preferred Qualifications Experience designing enterprise applications, eCommerce platforms, or customer-facing digital products. Familiarity with HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and front-end development concepts. Experience with design systems and component-based design approaches. Knowledge of analytics tools such as Google Analytics, Hotjar, Mixpanel, or similar platforms. Experience working closely with cross-functional and distributed teams. Compensation, benefits and duration Minimum Compensation: USD 33,000 Maximum Compensation: USD 117,000 Compensation is based on actual experience and qualifications of the candidate. The above is a reasonable and good faith estimate for the role. Medical, vision, and dental benefits, 401k retirement plan, variable pay/incentives, paid time off, and paid holidays are available for full-time employees. This position is available for independent contractors. No applications will be considered if received more than 120 days after the date of this post. #J-18808-Ljbffr