Product Design Lead

Life @ AP+:

We are one connected team in pursuit of one inspiring purpose – to unite people and technology to power better experiences. Each of us has a part to play in making that happen. You’ll be encouraged to bring your big ideas forward and make a difference through your work. Taking steps forward in your career whilst still having room for fun, friendships, and flexibility in your daily life.

We’re driven by our core values: lead with heart, learn for tomorrow and live our legacy. A purpose like ours takes the inspired impact of an incredible team. Ready to change the game? We’re ready to help you do it.

The Purpose:

The Product Design Lead sets the vision and direction for design at AP+, shaping how we create trusted, secure and high-quality experiences across payments, identity and fraud. 

This role leads design strategy, capability, governance and capacity planning across product and service design. It ensures AP+ has the standards, methods, operating model and talent needed to deliver coherent outcomes for members, stakeholders and the broader payments ecosystem. 

Working across AP+, industry partners and the wider ecosystem, the role turns customer, member and system-level insights into clear product, service and business direction. It balances usability, trust, security and long-term value, helping shape the future of trusted digital experiences in support of AP+’s role as critical national infrastructure. 

Key Responsibilities the Role Owns: 

Lead the AP+ Product & Service Design functions, accountable for strategy, capability, governance, capacity and design quality. As part of this: 

• Define and evolve AP+'s design vision, strategy and operating model. 

• Establish and govern design standards, frameworks and ways of working. 

• Build and lead a high-performing multidisciplinary Product & Service Design team, including capability, workforce planning and recruitment. 

• Set the direction for research, insight and experience design to enable evidence-based decisions. 

• Lead Service Design to improve end-to-end customer, member and operational experiences. 

• Oversee the design of complex products and services, embedding usability, accessibility, trust, security and brand. 

• Influence executives, members and stakeholders to shape product, service and ecosystem outcomes. 

• Prioritise and allocate design capability across the portfolio to balance strategic and delivery needs. 

• Provide strategic advice on design-related opportunities, risks and trade-offs. 

• Champion human-centred design and build organisational design capability through leadership, coaching and advocacy. 

• Continuously improve the Design function, driving capability, maturity and delivery excellence. 

You’ll likely be a strong fit for this role if: 

Qualifications 

• Tertiary qualification in Design, Human-Centred Design, UX, Product Design, Business, Technology or a related discipline. 

• Relevant professional certification or equivalent experience in Human-Centred Design, Service Design, Product Management or Agile delivery. 

Experience 

• Extensive experience leading multidisciplinary design teams in complex, regulated or ecosystem environments. 

• Proven success defining design strategy, building organisational capability, establishing governance and operating models, and influencing executive decision-making. 

Knowledge 

• Deep expertise in human-centred design, service design, product design, user research, accessibility and design governance. 

• Strong understanding of systems thinking and designing end-to-end customer and service experiences. 

• Strong knowledge of design operating models, capability development and workforce planning. 

• Sound understanding of product management, Agile delivery and digital technology environments, ideally across payments, identity, fraud or other regulated industries. 

What happens next:

At AP+, we believe in the power of passion, pride, and purpose.­ Our team is driven by a shared mission to make a difference in the world of payments, and we're proud to work together towards this common goal.

If you’re ready to be a game changer, please submit your application. The Talent Acquisition team will endeavour to review your application and notify you of the outcome within the next two weeks.

We want to remove all barriers to inclusion so if you need advice or support with your application, we’re here to help. Please reach out to [email protected] We also encourage you to let us know your pronouns at any point during the recruitment process.

 AP+ are not partnering with Recruitment agencies for this role.