Lloyds Banking Group
Design Lead - Research & Experience Strategy (12 Month FTC)

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JOB TITLE: Design Lead (Research & Experience Strategy) - 12 Month FTC
SALARY: £92,701-£109,060
LOCATION(S): London
HOURS: Full Time
WORKING PATTERN: Our work style is hybrid, which involves spending at least two days per week, or 40% of our time, at one of our office sites. Colleagues with disabilities can be supported with workplace adjustments including hybrid working expectations in line with our Flexibility Works policy.
About this Opportunity
We're looking for an experienced Design Lead to help shape the future of intelligent customer experiences within Intelligent Customer Products.
This is a design leadership role with design research as a core specialism. You'll use customer insight, behavioural understanding and critical thinking to help define the experiences, products and services we build, while leading design direction across a multidisciplinary squad.
We're looking for someone who is curious, comfortable with ambiguity and excited by the opportunity to help define new interaction models, products and services in a rapidly evolving space. This is a role for someone who can combine deep customer understanding with strategic leadership, helping teams decide not just how to build things, but what should be built in the first place.
What you'll be doing
Design Leadership & Experience Strategy
- Lead design direction for a strategic product area, aligning customer needs, business priorities and technology opportunities.
- Shape experience strategy and future vision for intelligent, AI-enabled customer experiences.
- Use customer insight and research to influence product strategy, roadmap decisions and investment priorities.
Reasons to use Rodeo
I’m in my final year doing Economics and I don’t know whether to apply for grad schemes now or do a masters first. What do you think?
Honest answer — it depends on where you want to end up. A lot of top grad schemes (Big 4, civil service, banking) don’t need a masters. Let’s look at the ones you’d be competitive for now, and we can decide if a masters actually adds anything.
Also worth knowing: most autumn 2026 applications are open now. Timing matters more than you think.
Start with a chat, not a search bar
Grad scheme, placement, apprenticeship? Not sure what you want yet — that's fine. Your agent talks it through with you and turns "I have no idea" into a shortlist.
Graduate Consultant — 2026 Scheme
Why you're a good match
StrongYour economics background and your summer at a regional bank line up with what PwC looks for on the consulting scheme. Applications close in four weeks.
See breakdownIt searches the market for you
Every day your agent scans the market matching roles against what actually matters to you, not just keywords on a CV.
Why you're a good match
You’ve got the grades and the economics background, and your bank internship is exactly the experience this scheme looks for. Apply soon — deadlines close within the month.
Experience fit
Your summer at the bank plus your econometrics coursework map directly to the day-one responsibilities on this scheme — client modelling, market briefings, and deal support.
Only hits
No noise. No "maybe this fits." Just roles with a clear explanation of why they're right — and where to focus when applying.
Research Leadership & Capability
- Lead and guide research activity across the lab, ensuring teams have the evidence needed to make confident decisions.
- Build and evolve research capability within Intelligent Customer Products, helping establish standards, practices and ways of working that increase the impact of customer insight.
- Ensure customer understanding is embedded throughout the product lifecycle, from opportunity identification through to delivery and optimisation.
People Leadership
- Line manage and develop designers and researchers, supporting career growth, capability development and high performance.
- Create an inclusive, supportive environment where individuals can thrive and deliver their best work.
- Coach and mentor designers, helping raise capability across the team.
Delivery, Impact & Ways of Working
- Work with Product, Engineering and Design leaders to define and track Objectives and Key Results.
- Establish clear success measures and ensure customer, business and design outcomes remain aligned.
Why join us?
We're transforming at pace. Investing billions in our people, data and tech to change the way we meet the needs of our 28 million customers. We're growing, and we'd love you to be part of the journey.
What we're looking for?
- 8+ years experience leading design for complex digital products, platforms or services.
- Experience working on AI-enabled customer products, conversational experiences, virtual assistants, chat experiences or agentic systems.
- Strong understanding of the opportunities, limitations and design considerations associated with AI-powered customer experiences.
- Strong expertise in design research and using customer evidence to shape decisions, strategy and product direction.
- Experience leading and developing designers and researchers, including coaching, performance management and capability building.
- Experience influencing senior partners and building alignment across multidisciplinary teams.
- Ability to connect customer insight, business goals and technology opportunities into a clear design direction.
- Strong facilitation, communication and storytelling skills.


Get help with your application
Your very own career expert that helps elevate your application to the next level.
We know that great talent comes from many backgrounds. Whilst this job advert may reference specific years of experience, we recognise that skills are developed in many ways, so if you have relevant, transferable experience, we encourage you to apply.
This is a place for you
Our ambition is to be the leading UK business for diversity, equity and inclusion supporting our customers, colleagues and communities and we're committed to creating an environment in which everyone can thrive, learn and develop.
We also offer a wide-ranging benefits package, which includes:
- A generous pension contribution of up to 15%
- An annual performance-related bonus
- Share schemes including free shares
- Benefits you can adapt to your lifestyle, such as discounted shopping
- 30 days' holiday, with bank holidays on top
- A range of wellbeing initiatives and generous parental leave policies
Ready to make an impact? Apply today.
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