Digital Service Expert (Design) Remote From Anywhere In CO

Digital Service Experts are experienced technologists who are part of the Colorado Digital Service (CDS) within the Governor’s Office of Information Technology. This cross-functional team both owns public-facing products and partners with agencies across the state to deliver Coloradan-centered digital services. While all positions will contribute to the entire mission of OIT and CDS, some positions will focus on specific aspects of the mission, such as software engineering, product management, design, etc. As a Digital Service Expert focused on design, you will join short-term, high-impact engagements to tackle complex public service challenges. You will be focused on applying human-centered design for problem-solving and engaging with stakeholders across our partner state agencies to improve technology and services that are essential for Coloradans.

The shape of the role: You are an adaptable, senior generalist who moves easily between zoomed-out service strategy and hands-on UX/UI strategy and craft. In this role, you will:

• Uncover user needs and translate them into actionable insights and solutions.
• Build trust and alignment with stakeholders from our partner state agencies.
• Navigate complex policy, compliance, and technical constraints.
• Collaborate deeply with other technologists including product managers, engineers, solution architects, and other designers.
• Model human-centered design practices with partner agencies, empowering them with frameworks and capabilities they need to sustain design momentum.

What success looks like How we work is just as important as what we deliver. Success in this role means building deep trust with partners and collaborators, navigating constraints with curiosity and empathy, leading through influence, and guiding teams on centering users before and during the software development life cycle. You effectively leverage user research and user-centered design practices, and you are comfortable pivoting as we learn what works best for the state. Your work will directly impact how millions of people in Colorado interact with their government., * Conduct user research, including interviews, usability testing, and participatory design sessions with Colorado residents and their representatives.

• Rapidly prototype and test concepts with users. Translate qualitative feedback into actionable insights or design iterations.
• Deliver compelling end-to-end design artifacts - from high-level service blueprints and journey maps to wireframes, prototypes, and accessible interface designs.
• Measure and communicate service quality using human-centered metrics - such as accessibility, trust, psychological safety, and constituent confidence, alongside traditional metrics like efficiency and completion.
• Facilitate design workshops, journey mapping sessions, and co-design activities with agency stakeholders to align on user needs and service improvement opportunities.
• Give and receive feedback through structured design reviews, asynchronous feedback loops, and active participation in design craft groups.
• Collaborate closely with product managers, engineers, and agency partners to ensure user insights drive technology and policy decisions.
• Champion accessibility compliance (WCAG 2.1 AA) and inclusive design principles throughout all design activities, ensuring services work for users with diverse needs and abilities.
• Advocate for user and community-centered design by creating case studies, training materials, and other artifacts to help build long-term design capacity within state agencies.

Success in this role requires someone who can navigate complex stakeholder environments independently, translate between technical and non-technical audiences, and build sustainable processes that outlast any single project. You must be highly adaptable and comfortable with changing priorities as we learn what works best for Colorado.

This position offers a unique opportunity to fundamentally improve how Colorado delivers digital services while ensuring they are truly accessible and beneficial to all residents. Your work will directly impact how millions of Coloradans interact with their government services while supporting Colorado’s mission of expanding opportunity and reducing poverty., OIT employees must comply with any screening procedures in place at state agency locations where they might perform work.

A pre-employment background check will be conducted as part of the selection process. Post-employment background checks will be required for specific agencies as business needs dictate, which may include a polygraph exam, fingerprint-based criminal history search, reference checks, and a drug test.

This position may require travel within the specified geographic area, and to locations across the state as needed.

This position may require on-call duties as needed by the position.

A wide salary range is posted for this position and any job offer is based upon a salary analysis to comply with the Colorado Equal Pay for Equal Work Act. The salary analysis considers relevant experience, education, certifications, and state seniority as compared to others doing substantially similar work. While most salary offers are made within the posted range, occasionally an offer is made below or above the posted range based upon this salary analysis.

This is a skills-based job announcement. The required minimum qualifications and/or education (if substituting for the proven experience, knowledge, and skills) are as follows, * At least five (5) years of experience in user research and service design in complex environments.

• Documented proficiency in working collaboratively with teams across the software development life cycle.

Substitutions: * Additional appropriate education will substitute for the required experience on a year-for-year basis, but cannot completely substitute for these qualifications.

• Training or Certification related to the work assigned to the position will be assigned credit towards substitution for experience and/or education, but cannot completely substitute for these qualifications.

Preferred Qualifications: * End-to-end design expertise: Strong foundation in user research methods, service design, journey mapping, business process improvement, participatory design, and UX/UI practices.

• Accessibility and inclusive design: Experience designing for accessibility and inclusive design, with knowledge of WCAG standards and assistive technologies, beyond and including state and federal compliance.
• Stakeholder facilitation: Proven ability to facilitate collaborative design activities, co-design workshops, and stakeholder alignment sessions.
• Public or enterprise service design: Experience improving government or large-scale digital services in government or other highly regulated environments. Experience working with diverse user groups and designing for broad accessibility needs beyond compliance.
• Agile and cross-functional collaboration: Experience partnering directly with product managers, engineers, architects, and policy teams in modern, agile environments.
• Inclusive and/or trauma-informed research: Experience conducting respectful research or co-design with underserved, diverse, or historically underrepresented community groups.

Pulled from the full job description Opportunities for advancement

Together, we innovate for a stronger Colorado The work of employees at the Governor’s Office of Information Technology (OIT) is challenging and diverse because the needs of agencies, customers and Coloradans constantly evolve. But our focus never changes: improve the lives of all Coloradans through innovation and collaboration. We’re building one of the nation’s leading government IT organizations by reimagining how we support agencies, building first-of-their-kind applications, and creating an inclusive, collaborative culture, together. Join us in the important work of providing equitable access to services. Watch this video to learn more about how we’re Serving People. Serving Colorado.