David Crow

ux+jobs

RIM – Senior Interaction Designer (0900834)

by

Ottawa, ON

Research In Motion Limited® (RIM)® is a world leader in the mobile communications market and has a history of developing breakthrough wireless solutions. RIM’s portfolio of award-winning products, services and embedded technologies is used by thousands of organizations around the world and includes the BlackBerry® wireless platform, the RIM Wireless HandheldT product line, software development tools and software/hardware licensing agreements. RIM is seeking driven individuals who can take our wireless data products to the next level in the global wireless market. Are you ready to make a difference in the world of mobile communications with RIM?

Position Summary

We are looking for Senior Interaction Designers to create compelling design solutions that cross both the mobile and desktop user experience, with a focus on media and content management for Mac/PC and Web applications.

You are passionate about design and prolific in creating engaging visual content and design interactions with a meticulous focus on simplicity and elegance. You are well versed in the tools of graphic design and animation and communicate your ideas and concepts effortlessly using storyboards, simulations, prototypes or videos.

Responsibilities

As a member of the IxD team you will help to further understand and define user behaviors and interactions, exploring and proposing innovative features, developing and refining concepts and playing a key role in their implementation. You will work in a cross-functional team that includes usability analysts, engineers, marketing, product managers, as well as other interface/visual designers. The ability to quickly grasp and distill highly complex matters are essential skills. You must be fluent in user centered design methodologies and information architecture and be able to apply this knowledge across a wide range of platforms. You will be responsible for presenting and documenting your user interfaces designs. You will be responsible for developing user interfaces designs specifications and guidelines.

As an advocate for the consumer, you strive for innovation and simplicity by leveraging research, strategic thinking and your experience, building relationships within a technology centric organization. Leading by example you will contribute directly to projects as well as through design direction, project reviews and leading brainstorming sessions. You will guide and mentor others on the team, sharing your personal strengths and experience.

Qualifications

  • Ability to formulate simple, elegant interaction design solutions
  • Ability to formulate and distill design rationale and guidelines for your work.
  • Attention to detail both functional and aesthetic
  • Demonstrate design solutions using interactive prototypes on handheld and PC
  • Ability to work on your own or as part of a team
  • Strong organizational skills and ability to prioritize work in a fast paced environment
  • A skilled communicator comfortable with meetings and presentations
  • Exceptional understanding of user centered design methods and principles
  • Experience with contextual and lab-based research methods
  • An understanding of underlying technical requirements and constraints
  • Practical knowledge of graphic design tools, such as Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, Flash
  • BA in either Human Factors/HCI, Industrial Design, Multimedia Design or related field
  • A minimum of 7 years creating user experiences for commercial software
  • 1-2 years experience in a senior design role

If you’re driven to take wireless technologies to the next level, it’s time you join the team at RIM. We offer a challenging environment that fosters creativity and rewards excellence. Employees also have use of our award winning BlackBerry!

Apply Online

BeSocial.com – Visual/Interaction Designer

by

Mid-town Toronto, ON

Summary

besocial Own the visual design that defines BeSocial.com as well as art direction and brand identity for the company.

About Us

Interested in working for a startup technology company with lots of energy and excitement? BeSocial.com is looking for the brightest and most talented candidates to join our team. We’re a small company based in Toronto with a great opportunity for anyone who joins to make a big impact.

At BeSocial, we value efficiency, working smart, and exceeding the status quo. We place great emphasis on maintaining a transparent and autonomous environment where everyone’s opinion is respected and where people’s contributions are acknowledged and rewarded. BeSocial is also proud to be an equal opportunity employer; we’re not influenced by race, colour, gender, sexual orientation, age, disability, religion, or any other factor irrelevant to doing a great job.

If you feel you’re up to the task, we’d love to meet you. If this is not a fit for you, please feel free to forward this message along to others who may be interested in learning about this opportunity.

The Ideal Profile

  • You’re an experienced user-centered designer focused on both visual and interaction design for the web.
  • You think strategically, deliver pixel-level detail, and have a passion for visually defining a brand. You also have a talent for understanding users and identifying their needs so that you can design and document solutions to real-life problems.

Responsibilities

  • Design various aspects of our online presence, such as web user interface design, page layouts, promotional landing pages, email newsletters/campaigns, and Flash banners.
  • Design (occasionally) graphic print pieces for marketing, developer communications, presentations at conferences and high profile meetings.
  • Maintain working knowledge of CSS and HTML (although another team member will be responsible for production code).
  • Quickly understand the constraints of a design challenge and identify the tradeoffs.
  • Monitor visual design consistency across all projects and mediums: layouts, color palettes, typography, iconography, etc.
  • Communicate your design thinking via thorough specifications and reviews. Produce design deliverables that are easily accessible by anyone in the company.
  • Provide feedback to the product development process and contribute to prioritizing work.
  • Work under the pressures of deadlines, handling multiple responsibilities simultaneously.
  • Contribute to a culture of innovation and teamwork.

Qualifications

  • 3+ years visual design experience at an agency, studio or contractual work.
  • Extensive knowledge of visual design, information design, and interaction design.
  • BFA or MFA in Graphic Design, Digital Media Design or Visual Arts.
  • Required software and technical knowledge: Photoshop, Illustrator, and Fireworks.
  • Strong portfolio featuring design samples.
  • Experience with a version control system such as Subversion.
  • Proven ability to define problems and solutions independently and with teams.

Assets (not required)

  • Experience creating or maintaining visual interface guidelines.
  • Extensive knowledge of (X)HTML, CSS, JavaScript, AJAX and DOM. Also knowledgeable about degrading functionality and presentation gracefully when needed.
  • Full understanding of W3C standards, specifications, and best practices with respect to security, scalability, maintainability, reliability and usability, as well as cross-browser compatibility issues.
  • Desired software and technical knowledge: Flash.
  • Academic background in human factors/ergonomics, cognitive science, psychology or HCI.
  • Experience conducting user testing.
  • You love food and dining out, otherwise known as a Foodie.

Availability

Part-time, with the opportunity (and willingness) to join our growing team full-time.

Location

You’re preferably located near central/downtown Toronto and will work remotely from your home/office.

Compenstation

A competitive compensation and equity package will be negotiated based on experience and performance. Comprehensive health and dental benefits are available for full-timers.

Join Us…Apply Today!

Want to join us? Please send your resume and a cover letter with the subject "Your Name – Visual Designer – via BeSocial.com" to jobs@besocial.com. You must include a portfolio that shows deliverables you directly worked on. All communication and correspondence is held in the strictest confidence to ensure that you can connect and learn more without exposure.

Only those candidates who are considered for an interview will be contacted.

Avid Life Media – Designer

by

Toronto, ON

avidlifemedia

Want to make a huge difference? Want to work with fun people on a fun product?

Then you want to be at Avid Life Media.

Avid Life Media has some of the world’s top dating sites:

  • Millions of people date through Avid Life Media.
  • Thousands of people find matches every day.
  • We make money and AREN’T advertising supported.
  • Avid Life Media is a fast-paced company that measures releases in days not weeks and rewards individual initiative and gumption.

This is key member of the team, and a growth position. You will have your fingers in the entire breadth of Avid Life Media’s offerings: our website, social networking apps (Facebook, MySpace, Bebo, etc) and iPhone and other mobile apps.

You will:

  • Design and develop a world class user experience
  • Create detailed specifications, wireframes and visual mockups
  • Execute your designs’ HTML, CSS and JavaScript (as your skills allow) in collaboration with the engineering team
  • Create graphics, logos, and icons
  • Be responsible for all brand-related creative at the company for both print and web
  • Finally, you will likely manage a team of designers as the company’s needs grow
  • The ideal candidate is an experienced hands-on designer who is excited about new concepts and can think in terms of both wireframes and visual designs. You have worked in a product development group for leading brands, websites, and mobile devices. The position requires a strong design background in visual and interaction design and a portfolio of work demonstrating the range of experience.

You need:

  • At least four years experience in web design
  • Strong information architecture skills. We would like to see specifications: wireframes, site maps, etc
  • Strong visual design skills with demonstrated ability to create graphics and icons with attention to detail
  • Good understanding of current web technologies (HTML, CSS, JavaScript)
  • Demonstrated ability to design simple and engaging user interfaces
  • Located in mid-town Toronto.

No agencies or contractors please.

Applicants must live in the Greater Toronto Area or be willing to relocate.

To apply:

Send resumes to jobs at almlabs.com

Make sure to tell us why you think you are a fit and any relevant url’s to your portfolio, blog, work, resume, etc.

StickerYou – User Experience Architect – Short-Term Contract

by

Toronto, ON

stickeryou

Company Background

StickerYou is an upcoming web platform for consumers to create, customize and order high quality stickers. It is a new exciting start-up company with a website launch in Spring 2009. It will be one of the most stimulating places on the Internet for users who want to access, create and customize images, according to their own lifestyle, that can be ordered. We are looking for a highly talented User Experience Architect to work with our development team (downtown Toronto).

Skills Necessary

A highly skilled User Experience Architect with 8+ years experience in software and/or a web based interactive applications. The ability to translate business objectives and technical development into a user centered, intuitive, functional, and aesthetically appealing design. The deliverables would be detailed documents for Interaction Flows, User Interface blueprints, and a Wireframe schema.

  • Ability to conceptualize and navigate website designs
  • Experience with user-centered design techniques, and creating organizational concepts and project processes for web sites both large and small
  • Proven track in information architecture industry standards and best practices
  • Use design recommendations to articulate user interfaces via mockups and prototypes
  • Courses in Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), Human Factors, Cognitive Psychology, Behavioral Science is a plus

You will be supported with detailed business case documentation, functional specs, and a preliminary User Interface design. You will compliment and work closely with our small software development and design team to create the most inspiring and user-friendly on-line creation experience.

Apply

Send your resume and hourly rate to:

Andrew Witkin
President, StickerYou Inc.
awitkin –at- stickeryou dot com

CBC – Information Architect (TOR01970)

by

Toronto, ON

Take pride in what you do–and where you work. CBC/Radio Canada is Canada’s national public broadcaster and one of its largest cultural institutions, with over 10,000 employees. CBC/Radio-Canada brings diverse regional and cultural perspectives into the daily lives of Canadians in English, French and eight aboriginal languages.  CBC.ca is one of Canada’s largest, most respected and most used (by both Canadians and audiences outside of Canada) websites.

As the Information Architect you will be part of a team responsible for guiding the design and delivery of architecture and usability of the entire CBC.ca website as well as specific website sections and other CBC digital products and services.  You will work closely with a broad range of internal and external stakeholders to define information architecture and usability requirements for products and services in development and ensure that all of CBC’s digital products and services meet a high level of information architecture and usability standards.  Finally you must maintain a strong awareness of industry trends, competitor developments and changes in the field of information architecture and usability through an ongoing process of research, information gathering and personal development.

The Information Architect is expected to:

  • Research and design the information architecture recommendations as well as detailed wireframes for CBC.ca websites and other digital products in development.
  • Author project documentation including conceptual diagrams, wireframes, site maps, interaction flows, storyboards and content inventories.
  • Collaborate with designers, technical developers, project managers and other teams to deliver outstanding products.
  • Research and document information architecture industry standards and best practices.
  • Contribute to the development, maintenance, and continuous improvement of efficient & effective usability methodology/process, documentation, workflow, ROI, metrics and design standards.
  • Act as the Information Architecture advocate and consultant to project teams – providing expert guidance and leading thinking around regarding principles of information architecture and user-centered design.
  • Analyze audience research data and identify information and functional needs.

Qualifications

  • University or College degree in human factors/usability and/or information architecture.
  • Minimum 2 years related information architecture / human factors / usability working experience.
  • At least 1 year experience in the role of information architect/ user experience lead /interface design lead.
  • Experience applying research and analysis to support information architecture recommendations and design.
  • Proven understanding of user-centered design techniques & demonstrated ability to incorporate UCD principles into the information architecture and design of user interfaces.
  • Extensive knowledge of front-end interactive design solutions and working knowledge of capabilities of different platforms and browsers and their design constraints on the Web. 
  • Expertise in Visio (or other similar application) and all MS Office applications
  • Demonstrated ability in gathering and translating website requirements from stakeholders.
  • A high level of interpersonal and communications skills and the ability to form partnerships and lead towards successful information architecture and usability recommendations both with internal and external stakeholders.
  • Experience with both large and small scale projects
  • Ability to provide creative solutions balancing user, business and technical needs.
  • Strong creative, problem solving and conceptual skills.
  • Logical, analytical and detail oriented.
  • Strong ability to multi-task and meet deadlines.
  • Ability and willingness to travel occasionally.  
  • Ability to occasionally work on evenings, weekends and holidays as required to meet deadlines.

Sound Interesting? Apply now to job number TOR01970, at www.cbc.ca/jobs, by January 21, 2009.

We recognize the importance of a diverse workforce and we therefore encourage applications from Aboriginal Peoples, women, members of a visible minority and persons with a disability.

We thank applicants for their interest, however, only those selected for an interview will be contacted.

Arktyp – UX/Graphic Designer

by

Toronto, ON

Join a killer design team

Arktyp, a small UX design studio in Toronto, Canada is seeking a highly talented UX / Graphic designer to join their growing design team.

Eligible candidates should:

  • posses a minimum of 5 years experience in web design
  • present a portfolio that demonstrates an understanding of how to design for standards compliant web media
  • can translate project goals into a relevant feature-set for a web application
  • can architect information, and define design systems
  • be highly organized and pay close attention to all details
  • understand how to translate brand experience to user experience
  • be highly proficient with required design tools (Adobe PS, AI, ID, FL, DW, FW, Acrobat)
  • be highly aware of the latest web technologies, trends, products and applications
  • approach design as problem solving versus decorating
  • want to evolve, innovate and mature the web from where it stands today
  • understands that Web 2.0 is not a design style
  • be able to develop distinct visual languages and presents a portfolio that demonstrates this
  • can design functionality as well as interface (how things work, not only how they look)
  • does not rely on a signature style, but rather can rationalize why a proposed style is appropriate
  • has an un-quenchable thirst for realizing bigger and better design ideas

Job Description

You’ll be touching every aspect of the design process, from architecture to branding to interface design. We seek individuals that can look at a design problem from top down and bottom up – and understand how to treat every critical element. We don’t have IA’s, AD, CD’s here – we all architect, brand and design as a collaborative team. The designer is the architect and the usability expert and the brand consultant. We don’t segment these aspects of a web project to "groups", and the right designer for this job will excel at realizing, innovating and owning the interplay between these all these critical parts of the project.

Required Skillset

  • Adobe Illustrator
  • Adobe Photoshop
  • Adobe Indesign
  • Adobe Flash (not necessarily AS)

Nice to have’s

  • XHTML / CSS
  • Flash Actionscript
  • Adobe After Effects
  • 3d modeling and animation

Ideal entries should be website portfolios and resumes as PDFs. This is a designer position, so if your primary skill-set is development/code, you need not apply.

Send your best to noticeme@arktyp.ca