A best-in-class city that attracts best-in-class talent, Philadelphia is an incredible place to build a career. From our thriving arts scene and rich history to our culture of passion and grit, there are countless reasons to love living and working here. With a workforce of over 30,000 people, and more than 1,000 different job categories, the City of Philadelphia offers boundless opportunities to make an impact.

As an employer, the City of Philadelphia values inclusion, integrity, innovation, empowerment, and hard work above all else. We offer a vibrant work environment, comprehensive health care and benefits, and the experience you need to grow and excel. If you’re interested in working with a passionate team of people who care about the future of Philadelphia, start here.

What we offer

• Impact - The work you do here matters to millions. 
• Growth - Philadelphia is growing, why not grow with it? 
• Diversity & Inclusion - Find a career in a place where everyone belongs.
• Benefits - We care about your well-being.

Agency Description

The PHL Service Design Studio (SDS) sits within the Office of the Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) and supports service improvement efforts across the City of Philadelphia.

SDS believes our municipal government is closer to creating a more equitable Philadelphia when community members and colleagues, who’ve been historically marginalized by government actions, can access and deliver services with ease and agency. To support this belief, SDS collaborates with residents, direct service staff, and leaders to design accessible and trauma-responsive services that honor the diverse needs of Philadelphians.

In practice, that looks like partnering with:

• Agencies: We advance their strategic goals and service improvement efforts.
• Policymakers: We help prototype policy ideas before implementation.
• Program directors: We evaluate the effectiveness of service delivery.
• Colleagues: We coach colleagues on how to use participatory design methods.

For more information, visit our website at phila.gov/service-design-studio and Twitter @DesignStudioPHL.

As a Lead Service Designer, you’ll:

• Report to the Service Design and Delivery Practice Lead.
• Contribute to service improvement projects—from beginning to end.
• Lead projects with the support of Practice Leads and Strategists.
• Collaborate with colleagues to build and grow the Service Design and Delivery Practice Area for long-term sustainability.
• Lead skill-share sessions with colleagues to help them apply service design methods to their work.
• Contribute to the field of service design.

Essential functions

Below are the primary duties of this position:

Researching

• Contribute to the design and facilitation of thoughtful and ethical qualitative research to understand the service-related needs of community members, staff, leaders, and other stakeholders.
• Work with team members to synthesize research into insights and well-defined opportunity areas for service design intervention.
• Closely collaborate with team members to develop feasible, person-centered, and comprehensive cross-channel recommendations that improve resident and staff interactions with government.

Designing

• Transform evidence-based recommendations into project deliverables, like service blueprints, process flows, stakeholder maps, and project reports.
• Visually communicate research insights and prototyped-ideas in clear ways, so stakeholders can align on concepts.
• Develop compelling narratives that communicate the human experience to decision-makers, so they can make clear decisions that align with evidence and human need.

Implementing

• Work with UX designers, content strategists, technologists, and other subject matter experts to develop and build tools and resources (e.g., websites, one-pagers, applications, etc.) that support service improvement strategies.
• Participate in the evaluation of pilot projects to understand efficacy.

Collaborating with colleagues

• Communicate work without jargon or pretense.
• Offer and take constructive feedback.
• Communicate with clarity and honesty around the status of work.
• Cultivate and maintain respectful relationships with colleagues.

Project managing

• Break down project tasks into reasonable project plans with key milestones and deadlines.
• Clearly communicate the status of work to leadership, team members, and other stakeholders.
• Effectively navigate through ambiguity and project challenges.

Mentoring

• Expand team members’ skill sets through regular feedback and learning sessions.
• Participate in the design and facilitation of skill-shares with City colleagues, so they can apply service design methods to their work.

Advocating

• Work with team members to disseminate lessons learned, tools, and best practices of the Studio to the public.

• Actively contribute to the field of service design through journal submissions, conference participation, and community skill-shares.

Competencies, knowledge, skills, and abilities

Competencies  

• Be for your colleagues: Ability to support the success and growth of your colleagues. 
• Equity-centered: Ability to respect, honor, and center the experiences of residents and staff who’ve been marginalized by government actions in all that you do.   
• Excellent communicator: Ability to communicate in plain language, explain complex subjects in simple terms, and speak in respectful ways.   
• Self-awareness: Ability to understand what you need from a work environment and articulate healthy boundaries based on those needs. 
• Relationship-builder: Ability to work with a variety of people and personalities and cultivate strong relationships to ensure healthy collaboration.   
• Curious: Ability to practice active listening, ask questions to get at the root of a problem, and be willing to have difficult conversations.   
• On-going learner: Be open to engaging in feedback loops, reflecting on lessons learned, and implementing changes based on new information. 
• Humble: Ability to operate beyond self-interest.   
• Compassionate: Ability to empathize with others’ experiences, and based on that understanding, take appropriate action.   
• Intentional: Ability to be purposeful and detail-oriented in your work.   
• Organized: Demonstrated ability to manage projects, estimate timelines, rework a project approach based on unforeseen challenges, and set reasonable deadlines.   
• Proactive: Ability to see opportunities, navigate barriers, be self-directed, and problem-solve solutions.   

Knowledge, skills, and abilities  

• Experience in qualitative research.
• Ability to create service blueprints, journey maps, and other service design deliverables.
• Strong data visualization and visual design skills.
• Project, time, and relationship management skills.

Nice-to-have skills 

• Bilingual  
• Experience with community-based and participatory design 
• Experience working in the social impact space on complex service challenges 

Work-Life
Currently, the team works 40 hours a week on a hybrid schedule. We work four days from home and one day in the office. This schedule isn’t permanent. Meaning, it may change depending on the status of COVID-19 and the needs of the administration.

A successful candidate will have:

• A design-related degree or relevant industry experience. 
• At least three years of professional experience practicing service design or a graduate degree plus one year of professional experience practicing service design.
• At least three years managing projects and project relationships with colleagues, clients, and other stakeholders. 

TO APPLY: Interested candidates  should submit the following through Smart Recruiters:

• Streamlined cover letter highlighting qualifications not evident in your resume. (No more than 300 words.)
• Your resume or curriculum vitae.
• At least three work samples that demonstrate your expertise in service design. Samples could include research protocol and workshop plans, findings and recommendations reports, and service blueprints and other design outputs.

Our hiring process is as follows:

• A hiring committee will review complete applications.
• Top candidates will be asked to participate in a 30-minute informational phone conversation to learn more about the position and the hiring process.
• Top candidates will participate in a 2-hour virtual interview and portfolio review with the PHL Service Design Studio team.
• Final candidates will participate in a 45-minute virtual conversation with the Chief Administrative Officer.
• We'd like the new employee to start in January 2024.
• Complete applications are due on October 13, 2023, by midnight ET. 

Salary Range: $85,000 

Discover the Perks of Being a City of Philadelphia Employee:

• Transportation: City employees get unlimited FREE public transportation all year long through SEPTA’s Key Advantage program. Employees can ride on SEPTA buses, subways, trolleys, and regional rail for their daily commute and more.
• Parental Benefits: The City offers its employees 6 weeks of paid parental leave.
• We offer Comprehensive health coverage for employees and their eligible dependents.
• Our wellness program offers eligibility into the discounted medical plan
• Employees receive paid vacation, sick leave, and holidays
• Generous retirement savings options are available
• Pay off your student loans faster - As a qualifying employer, City of Philadelphia employees are eligible to participate in the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program. Join the ranks of hundreds of employees who have already benefited from this program and achieved student loan forgiveness.
• Unlock Tuition Discounts and Scholarships - The City of Philadelphia has forged partnerships with over a dozen esteemed colleges and universities in the area, ensuring that our employees have access to a wide range of tuition discounts and scholarships. Experience savings of 10% to 40% on your educational expenses, extending not only to City employees but in some cases, spouse and dependents too!

Join the City of Philadelphia team today and seize these incredible benefits designed to enhance your financial well-being and personal growth!

*The successful candidate must be a city of Philadelphia resident within six months of hire

Effective May 22, 2023, vaccinations are no longer required for new employees that work in non-medical, non-emergency or patient facing positions with the City of Philadelphia. As a result, only employees in positions providing services that  are patient-facing medical care (ex: Nurses, doctors, emergency medical personnel), must be fully vaccinated.

The City of Philadelphia is an Equal Opportunity employer and does not permit discrimination based on race, ethnicity, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, national origin, ancestry, age, disability, marital status, source of income, familial status, genetic information or domestic or sexual violence victim status. If you believe you were discriminated against, call the Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations at 215-686-4670 or send an email to [email protected].

For more information, go to: Human Relations Website: http://www.phila.gov/humanrelations/Pages/default.aspx