Head of Idea Couture

Description

Head of Idea Couture

Though we sometimes use words like consumer , customer , patient , employee , and user , our work at Idea Couture ("IC") is all ultimately about-and for- humans.

As the Head of Idea Couture, you will lead a team that focuses on humans - and how best to identify, engage and activate them in a way that delivers brand and financial value for our clients.

You will be part of the leadership team for our Digital Experience (DX) Practice, which includes Experience Strategy from IC, Design, Content, Marketing, Commerce, and Learning. More importantly, you'll be at the forefront of Cognizant as it partners with Global 2000 clients in their digital transformation.

You'll operate where design meets business, insight meets foresight, and empathy meets economics and help organizations navigate and innovate in complex and uncertain environments. We use design thinking methodologies to solve problems and exploit business opportunities-generating new growth, meaningful differentiation, sustainable solutions and economic value. You'll lead a team of human-centered design specialists that mimics the energy of start-ups, the analytical rigor of strategy consultants, and the creativity of design agencies. The IC team is focused on identifying and articulating industry-specific transformational opportunities for our clients.

Idea Couture is a well-known brand, and in many ways the work we do is in and of itself an offer. You will be accountable for the evolution of our reputation as IC, including fine tuning it within the broader vision of the organization. You'll be responsible for skill development of the team, the quality of the client work, the success of capturing new opportunities / business development, and the operations of the team. You'll nurture culture of empowerment, collaboration, and inclusion while holding people accountable to the standards of the brand and the measures of success.

Your role

• Develop and bring together world-class HCD practitioners who are as passionate about their craft as they are for realizing experiences - from research, strategy, and ideas through user stories, journey mapping, user testing, and clickable prototypes.
• Thread teams of Experience Strategists (Foresight, Business and Experience/Service Designers, Product Realization Specialists), Insight Practitioners (Ethnographers, Design Researchers, Data Analyzers and Behavioral Scientists), and Designers (UX, UI, and Graphic Designers) together to collaborate effectively, identify transformative opportunities, and enable the realization of product and service experience innovation.
• Work closely with our Consulting practice and other teams across Cognizant in support of the industries we serve.
• Develop and grow client relationships by participating in sales conversations - partnering with client partners and sales teams across Cognizant to identify and capture human-centered challenges.

• Guide the team in creating industry-specific thought leadership and publish POVs that build credibility internally and externally.
• Engage in cross-functional client work to support quality of outputs/delivery excellence, drive client satisfaction, ensure actionable recommendations and create "outsized impact" for Cognizant and clients.
• Establish best practices and repeatable processes that can scale for efficiency.
• Evolve the GTM offerings, delivery models, and deliverables as needed - for Idea Couture, DX, and adjacent service lines including Digital Engineering
• Lead by example, inspire confidence, take calculated risks, and make the work we do matter.
• Evolve the team as the market changes, most immediately to bring more customer data insights capability into our methodology.

Role Requirements

• 20+ years of relevant functional experience - digital agencies, experience consultancies, innovation firms, and research companies are ideal.
• 10+ years managing multidisciplinary teams in complex environments (P&L management is a plus)
• Bachelor's degree or higher in related fields - business, social sciences, design, or technology
• Proven track record of success working within large matrix organizations to deliver real-world results.
• Live in a focused physical studio region (e.g., Atlanta, Philadelphia, New York or Toronto)
• Successful experience driving new business and maximizing revenue (via utilization)
• Deep understanding of one or more industries (Health Sciences is a plus)
• Equally adept at structuring a detailed approach to client asks when risks are high and problem statement is unclear and rapidly developing a hypothesis driven point of view when risks are low and problem statement is straight forward.

Measuring Success

A successful candidate will be able to lead the IC team to impact the following dimensions:

• Reputation
  • extend a "trusted advisor" status across elite accounts through high quality delivery, thought leadership, and executive relationships
  • serve as a strategic voice in the evolution of customer and employee experience to analysts and the market overall
  • expert on "moments that matter" specific to various industries
  • be easy to work with, balancing the nimbleness needed for a quick point of view with the rigor required for a durable insight that has demonstrated business value
• Work Environment - create and maintain a unique work environment that fosters collaboration, inclusiveness and creativity while balancing productive and profitable work
• Financial
  • achieve specific competency targets for revenue, utilization, and productivity
  • contribute to practice revenue targets and focus on the exponential impact of IC via downstream contract values (serve as a catalyst)

Aspirations for 2023

Idea Couture is currently operating well. The new leader will ensure operations will continue in a similar manner and look to extend IC in the following areas:

More industry aligned perspective. In 2023, our biggest growth industry is Health Sciences.

More data-informed insights. We need to build out our skills in using insights from data to inform our recommendations.

Qualifications

Technical Skills

SNo Primary Skill Proficiency Level * Rqrd./Dsrd. 1 UI/UX Concepts PL4 Required 2 Portfolio & Project mgmt (PPM) PL4 Required 3 UX Assessment PL4 Required 4 Design Review PL4 Required

* Proficiency Legends

Proficiency Level Generic Reference PL1 The associate has basic awareness and comprehension of the skill and is in the process of acquiring this skill through various channels. PL2 The associate possesses working knowledge of the skill, and can actively and independently apply this skill in engagements and projects. PL3 The associate has comprehensive, in-depth and specialized knowledge of the skill. She / he has extensively demonstrated successful application of the skill in engagements or projects. PL4 The associate can function as a subject matter expert for this skill. The associate is capable of analyzing, evaluating and synthesizing solutions using the skill.