UI/UX Designer

Guidehouse is offering an on-site UI/UX Designer role in McLean, VA, with a salary range of $98,000 to $163,000 per year. The focus is on Grants.gov web applications and forms, delivering accessible, user-centered experiences for federal grants workflows. The position centers on Section 508 compliance and close collaboration with federal stakeholders. This role supports professional growth in a mission-driven environment that prioritizes usability, accessibility, and cross-team collaboration.

Benefits

• Medical, prescription, dental, and vision insurance
• Personal and family sick time plus company paid holidays
• Parental leave
• 401(k) retirement plan
• Group term life insurance with travel assistance
• Voluntary life and accidental death & disability coverage
• Health Savings Account and flexible spending accounts for health care and dependent care
• Transit and parking commuter benefits
• Short-term and long-term disability coverage
• Tuition reimbursement and opportunities for personal development, certifications, and learning
• Employee referral program
• Corporate sponsored events and community outreach
• Care.com annual membership
• Employee assistance program
• Supplemental benefits through Corestream (critical care, hospital indemnity, accident insurance, legal assistance, ID theft protection, and more)
• Eligible for a discretionary variable incentive bonus

Responsibilities

• Design intuitive, accessible experiences for Grants.gov web applications, online forms, applicant and grantor workflows, public website content, and related digital services
• Produce wireframes, prototypes, user flows, journey maps, form layouts, interaction patterns, and design specifications to support usability, accessibility, and development handoff
• Shape and improve web forms to be platform and browser independent, minimize duplicate data entry, support validation and simple calculations, and align with Grants.gov form requirements
• Ensure designs and content meet Section 508 and accessibility best practices, including keyboard navigation, screen reader support, color contrast, focus order, labels, instructions, and error handling
• Conduct usability reviews, accessibility reviews, heuristic evaluations, stakeholder interviews, and technical requirements discussions to identify pain points and opportunities for improvement
• Collaborate with developers and testers to verify that implemented designs satisfy usability, accessibility, browser compatibility, responsive design, and Section 508 expectations
• Support ongoing maintenance for website and form related user experience issues, including broken links, confusing content, layout inconsistencies, inaccessible interactions, and helpdesk trends
• Partner with content, communications, outreach, and helpdesk teams to improve user documentation, online help, FAQs, troubleshooting guidance, release notes, and status updates
• Assist with Grants.gov chatbot and AI-enabled support touchpoints by reviewing conversation flows, feedback patterns, content gaps, missed intents, and user experience opportunities
• Prepare design artifacts, accessibility findings, usability recommendations, wireframes, prototypes, and presentations aligned with HHS EPLC, program documentation, and stakeholder needs
• Present design recommendations, usability findings, accessibility risks, tradeoffs, and implementation considerations clearly to executive, federal, technical, and non-technical audiences

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree; or four years of additional related experience in lieu of a degree
• 5+ years of experience in UI/UX design, interaction design, service design, product design, or human-centered design for web applications, enterprise systems, or public-facing digital services
• Proven experience designing web forms, digital workflows, data entry experiences, validation patterns, error messages, help text, and accessible form layouts
• Strong knowledge of Section 508 requirements and accessibility practices for web applications and forms, including screen reader support, keyboard accessibility, focus management, semantic structure, color contrast, labels, instructions, and error prevention
• Experience translating user needs, business requirements, technical constraints, and compliance requirements into wireframes, prototypes, design specifications, and implementation-ready recommendations
• Experience conducting usability reviews, stakeholder interviews, accessibility reviews, heuristic evaluations, and user-centered analyses to improve digital products
• Ability to coordinate effectively with product owners, federal stakeholders, developers, testers, accessibility specialists, content teams, helpdesk partners, IV&V teams, and other contractors
• Focus on human-centered design, usability, information architecture, interaction design, and content clarity
• Design patterns for accessible web and forms aligned with Section 508 expectations
• Responsive design, browser compatibility, design systems, and reusable interface components
• Experience with form validation, error handling, instructional content, data entry efficiency, and user support needs
• Ability to produce design documentation, accessibility findings, usability recommendations, and stakeholder presentations
• Proficiency with design and collaboration tools such as Figma, Sketch, Adobe Creative Cloud, Axure, Mural, Jira, Azure DevOps, Confluence, SharePoint, and Microsoft Teams
• Excellent communication, facilitation, visual storytelling, problem solving, and stakeholder engagement skills with the ability to explain design rationale and accessibility considerations to diverse audiences
• Must be able to obtain and maintain a Federal or DoD Public Trust; candidates must obtain approved adjudication prior to onboarding

Technologies

• Figma
• Sketch
• Adobe Creative Cloud
• Axure
• Mural
• Jira
• Azure DevOps
• Confluence
• SharePoint
• Microsoft Teams

Nice to Have

• Experience supporting federal grants management systems, shared service platforms, or large public-facing government applications
• Familiarity with HHS agencies such as ACF, CMS, HRSA, NIH, or other grant-making offices
• Knowledge of HHS Enterprise Performance Life Cycle, federal IT governance, accessibility documentation, testing evidence, and compliance-driven delivery
• Experience applying Section 508, WCAG, or U.S. Web Design System standards to public websites, forms, workflows, or enterprise apps
• Experience with Grants.gov-like capabilities, including funding opportunity search, applicant registration, submission, and related content
• Experience updating public-facing websites, remediation of broken links, user support content, chatbot feedback loops, and helpdesk escalation analysis
• Participation in modernization or multi-vendor integration initiatives involving multiple applications
• CPACC, WAS, or equivalent accessibility credentials
• Certification in human-centered design, UX design, service design, or product design
• Training in U.S. Web Design System, Section 508, WCAG, or accessibility testing
• SAFe, Agile, or product delivery certification