Skills & Competencies for UX Design Director

UX Design Director job profile

JOB SUMMARY for UX Design Director

Directs a department of UI designers who apply user-centered design principles to improve the workflow, expand the functionality, and enhance the visual appeal of websites and mobile apps.

JOB RESPONSIBILITIES for UX Design Director

Oversees the development of the overall design philosophy for improving the workflow, functionality, and visual appeal of the organization's online presence. Establishes new projects and initiatives, ensures requirements are gathered from users and stakeholders, and oversees projects at a high level. Ensures UI design projects align with and support broader organizational initiatives and direction.

UX Design Director SALARY RANGE

BASE 50%
$218,627
TOTAL 50%
$252,983
Job Level
M04
Job Code
IT10000721
Education/Degree
Bachelor's Degree
Reports To
Top Management

UX Design Director Skills and Competencies List

Proficiency Levels and Behavioural Indicators
Salary.com identifies five increasing levels of proficiency for each skill/competency. Some jobs require only a relatively low level of proficiency in each skill/competency, while other jobs will require a more advanced level of proficiency in the same skill/competency. These levels rate the degree of proficiency (skill level, expertise) we expect the incumbent to perform in the given skill/competency for the given job. Note that we intentionally do not associate timeframes or years of experience in performing the skill/competency because that can be misleading. Proficiency levels identify what the incumbent knows and can do rather than how long they have been doing it. Also, note that the proficiency levels are cumulative, e.g., a level 4 proficiency implies the ability to perform all the behaviors at the lower levels.
Check each UX Design Director skill and competencie below to view definitions.

3 hard skills or competencies (industry competencies) for UX Design Director

1 Industry Competency – User Experience Design
Proficiency Level -3
Skill definition-Creating and enhancing user-centered designs to establish branding, optimize usability, and improve user experience throughout product development.
Level 1 Behaviors
(General Familiarity)
Names the technical tools and systems used in creating usable products.
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Level 2 Behaviors
(Light Experience)
Uses different tools and software to track and log bugs on user experience design.
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Level 3 Behaviors
(Moderate Experience)
Reviews and enhances UX research and testing methodologies to analyze and predict user behavior.
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Level 4 Behaviors
(Extensive Experience)
Manages the planning of practical and usable designs to gain positive user impression.
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Level 5 Behaviors
(Mastery)
Leads the creation and delivery of high-quality UX design solutions to maximize customer lifecycle value.
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2 Industry Competency – User Interface Design
Proficiency Level -4
Skill definition-Anticipating user needs and preferences to create interface and interaction designs to build a user interface that is intuitive, easy, and aesthetic.
Level 1 Behaviors
(General Familiarity)
Identifies the design elements that influence the usability and likeability of the user interface.
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Level 2 Behaviors
(Light Experience)
Gathers functional specifications and user requirements for the development of interface designs.
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Level 3 Behaviors
(Moderate Experience)
Utilizes visual guidance systems to create graphical user interface representation for on-brand contents.
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Level 4 Behaviors
(Extensive Experience)
Sets technical specifications for user interface designs that interpret brand values and reinforce users' trust.
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Level 5 Behaviors
(Mastery)
Leads the development of a user-centered designs process to drive highly usable and accessible designs.
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3 UX Design Director - Skill and Competency
Proficiency Level - 3
4 Skill and Competency - UX Design Director
Proficiency Level - 4
5 Competency for - UX Design Director
Proficiency Level - 5

4 general skills or competencies (Job family competencies) for UX Design Director

1 Job Family Competencies – Design Thinking
Proficiency Level -3
Skill definition-Developing software solutions to understand and target customer needs in a repetitive process.
Level 1 Behaviors
(General Familiarity)
Lists importance of having strategic design thinking to achieve business goals.
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Level 2 Behaviors
(Light Experience)
Documents information from user needs and observations to define problem statements.
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Level 3 Behaviors
(Moderate Experience)
Implements experimental design and data analysis that informs technical and business-relevant recommendations.
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Level 4 Behaviors
(Extensive Experience)
Evaluates design thinking solutions to determine effectiveness and impact on user needs and challenges.
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Level 5 Behaviors
(Mastery)
Creates best practices in design thinking processes to drive our organization towards creative solutions to complex problems.
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2 Job Family Competencies – HTML
Proficiency Level -4
Skill definition-Ability to use this computer language for creating, updating and maintaining text, graphics and links in a website.
Level 1 Behaviors
(General Familiarity)
Describes the HTML functions in creating various solutions for open-source eCommerce platforms.
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Level 2 Behaviors
(Light Experience)
Collects and assembles data to secure website protocols using HTML.
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Level 3 Behaviors
(Moderate Experience)
Executes HTML optimizations and content updates to client websites using HTML editor.
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Level 4 Behaviors
(Extensive Experience)
Directs the implementation of advanced HTML features and functionalities in creating custom websites.
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Level 5 Behaviors
(Mastery)
Develops UX/UI solutions using HTML to improve usability and accessibility of the website's user experience.
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3 UX Design Director - Skill and Competency
Proficiency Level - 3
4 Skill and Competency - UX Design Director
Proficiency Level - 4
5 Competency for - UX Design Director
Proficiency Level - 5

13 soft skills or competencies (core competencies) for UX Design Director

1 Core Competencies – Budgeting
Proficiency Level -3
Skill definition-Applying specific policies, tools and practices to plan and prepare projected revenues, expenses, cash flows, and capital expenditures.
Level 1 Behaviors
(General Familiarity)
Describes the concepts and principles of budgeting operations.
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Level 2 Behaviors
(Light Experience)
Assists in developing and improving budgeting models, plans, and strategies.
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Level 3 Behaviors
(Moderate Experience)
Compares planned budgets vs. actual expenditures, identifies, reports, and explains variances.
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Level 4 Behaviors
(Extensive Experience)
Determines system capabilities and needs to improve the process for financial budgeting.
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Level 5 Behaviors
(Mastery)
Develops financial models to support the strategic improvement of our budgeting processes.
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2 Core Competencies – Planning and Organizing
Proficiency Level -4
Skill definition-Managing and prioritizing resources and workloads by creating well-organized plans to attain organizational goals and objectives.
Level 1 Behaviors
(General Familiarity)
Compiles a list of all the traits of effective planning to help finish the assigned tasks.
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Level 2 Behaviors
(Light Experience)
Classifies assigned tasks based on the level of importance to ensure organized workload completion.
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Level 3 Behaviors
(Moderate Experience)
Defines and translates objectives into specific plans to ensure understanding of organizational goals.
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Level 4 Behaviors
(Extensive Experience)
Delivers training sessions to foster and maximize solid planning and organization capabilities.
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Level 5 Behaviors
(Mastery)
Champions the adoption of business intelligence systems to achieve planning and organization goals.
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3 UX Design Director - Skill and Competency
Proficiency Level - 3
4 Skill and Competency - UX Design Director
Proficiency Level - 4
5 Competency for - UX Design Director
Proficiency Level - 5

Summary of UX Design Director skills and competencies

There are 3 hard skills for UX Design Director, User Experience Design, User Interface Design, WebSite Mapping.
4 general skills for UX Design Director, Design Thinking, HTML, JavaScript, etc.
13 soft skills for UX Design Director, Budgeting, Planning and Organizing, Coordination, etc.
While the list totals 20 distinct skills, it's important to note that not all are required to be mastered to the same degree. Some skills may only need a basic understanding, whereas others demand a higher level of expertise.
For instance, as a UX Design Director, he or she needs to be skilled in Budgeting, be skilled in Planning and Organizing, and be skilled in Coordination.

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