Innovation and Design Manager

It is a Full-time Contract position for 10 months. The Innovation and Design Manager will be responsible for building and supporting the Innovation Incubator that will serve as an enterprise capability and area of expertise that helps tap into new markets and stimulates the development of new value propositions. Human Centered Design and Design Thinking prioritizes the voice of our customers to uncover what truly matters to them, identify their unmet needs, quickly ideate concepts, and test ideas with end users to validate that they are desirable. The Innovation Incubator will help inform and execute strategic initiatives across each customer segment and all operating companies.

The role requires you to have a strong background in Human Centered Design (HCD), Design Thinking, workshop facilitation, CX, UX and strategy. If you enjoy working on leading edge health and wellness solutions and driving strategies to bring these offerings to Canadians, this may be the role for you.

Your every day with us:

You will be a key member of the Innovation Incubator team; help create a new enterprise capability and help grow the organization understanding of the value of Human Centered Design and Design Thinking as a new way of working. You will be a strategically focused lead of Design Thinking engagements, facilitate workshops, generate concepts, and manage prototype testing, UX strategy, track KPIs, analyze research, data and insights and maintain a community of practice to help grow the knowledge and share insights across Medavie. Actively engage our employees in the innovation process through cross-functional collaboration. Strengthen the culture of innovation and problem solving through a nimble and agile mentality of experimentation and focusing on the end user.
Key responsibilities:

• Leads design projects focused on reimagining products, services, strategies, and experiences
• Manages cross-functional project teams – facilitating effective collaboration through Human Centred Design process
• Facilitates workshops, quantitative and qualitative research, prototyping, user, and concept testing, analytics, and insights
• Maintains Playbook and uses consistent framework and taxonomy to educate organization on HCD and Design Thinking practices
• Manages community of practice to increase knowledge and share insights
• Tracks KPIs for Innovation Incubator and collaborates on measures of success for each engagement
• Consult with stakeholders on their innovation projects and strategic initiatives
• Lead a small team of practitioners in the future as we build out the support and resources required for the new enterprise capability
• Supports the management of the Innovation Incubator pipeline and prioritization discussions
• Prepare and socialize Innovation Incubator reports and presentations derived from the workshops. Play back activities and key results with stakeholders while providing guidance on potential next steps
• Demonstrate end user centricity; persistently advocate for the end user
• Support a culture of iterative thinking, continuous learning, and innovation

Qualifications:

• Education: Minimum of Bachelor’s degree
• Work experience: 5+ years in a Human Centered Design and/or Design Thinking focused role and practice or closely associated field
• Ability to communicate with and lead a group of individuals through the process of HCD/Design Thinking and collaborative ideation
• Relevant experience with public speaking, facilitation and workshop development and delivery
• Understand HCD/Design Thinking methodology and practical application. A demonstrated record of driving business results and organizational change through HCD/Design Thinking
• Effectively communicate to stakeholders and participants with all levels of knowledge and backgrounds; ability to steer the group around obstacles
• Exhibit a strong ability to influence in a matrixed environment
• Embrace uncertainty and ambiguity; be self-motivated and dedicated to continuous improvement
• Strong reasoning, analytical and research skills
• Ability to build trusting relationships across the organization
• Health care experience would be beneficial
• French/English bilingualism would be beneficial

Leadership Accountabilities:

• Values and Ethics: Reflects a commitment to employees, customers, and key corporate stakeholders in own and unit activities. Fosters a climate of transparency, trust and respect and encourages learning and growth.
• Engagement: Shares information vertically and horizontally and promotes collaboration among cross-functional teams. Encourages open, constructive communication of diverse perspectives.
• People Management: Optimizes diversity among team members to build strong teams with complementary strengths. Develops and supports career plans and learning opportunities. Fulfills obligations of human resource management.
• Strategic Thinking: Provides input into the creation of functional strategy for department and develops annual business plans.
• Action Management: Assigns work, manages resources, and sets realistic timeframes while identifying financial and human resource requirements. Makes timely decisions and manages risk.
• Financial Management: Manages and monitors budgets.
• Customer Focus: Dedicated to meeting the expectations of customers and stakeholders. Establishes and maintains effective relationships.
• Business Acumen: Knowledgeable in applying technology trends to corporate strategy and business requirements.