Senior UX Designer

At Toyota Research Institute (TRI), we’re on a mission to improve the quality of human life. We’re developing new tools and capabilities to amplify the human experience. To lead this transformative shift in mobility, we’ve built a world-class team in Automated Driving, Energy & Materials, Human-Centered AI, Human Interactive Driving, Large Behavior Models, and Robotics.

The Team

The Robotics UX team is made up of UX designers, researchers, and engineers, and is based in TRI’s Los Altos, CA office. We research and design robot interfaces for the manufacturing environment, and contribute directly to the design of robot prototypes for both research and applied projects. 

The Role

We are looking for a Senior UX Designer to join our team! The ideal candidate has extensive interaction design experience as well as the ability to create pixel-perfect design specifications that can be picked up and built by a front-end engineer.  

You will focus on our factory robotics initiative, and will have the opportunity to design both screen-based interfaces and in-person, tangible interactions between robots and humans. 

TRI’s Robotics division builds exciting, groundbreaking robotics capabilities. In this role, you will help translate user needs into impactful robotics applications, and craft the future of human-robot interaction design.

• Undergraduate or graduate degree in HCI, Interaction Design, or a related field, and 6 years of industry experience.
• A strong portfolio that demonstrates the user-centered design process and includes prototypes of varying fidelity.
• Experience designing interfaces & interactions for a physical device, such as a robot.
• Able to work independently with some guidance from senior design staff; demonstrates a solid understanding of best practices in design methodologies and tools.
• A keen eye for visual design and the ability to produce pixel-perfect design specifications. 
• Expert in Figma, with a solid understanding of industry standards and features. Able to design a variety of UX artifacts, including personas, user journeys, prototypes, presentations, and UI mock-ups. 
• Hands-on experience with a design system (even better if you developed one yourself!), and a strong grasp of design system best practices to ensure consistency within the team and across projects. 
• Proficiency and confidence in working closely and harmoniously with engineers; able to advocate for the best design approach while remaining open to discussion and compromise, when needed.
• Comfortable in a collaborative, interdisciplinary team environment with excellent visual, verbal, and written communication skills; comfortable receiving and incorporating constructive feedback.
• Able to travel domestically 4-6 times per year. Occasional international travel may be required.

• Experience facilitating design sprints, workshops, and brainstorming sessions with interdisciplinary teams. 
• Experience conducting evaluative research on UI prototypes and making updates to the design based on the results.

The pay range for this position at commencement of employment is expected to be between $180,000 and $270,000/year for California-based roles; however, base pay offered may vary depending on multiple individualized factors, including market location, job-related knowledge, skills, and experience. Note that TRI offers a generous benefits package (including 401(k) eligibility and various paid time off benefits, such as vacation, sick time, and parental leave) and an annual cash bonus structure. Details of participation in these benefit plans will be provided if an employee receives an offer of employment.

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