Innovation Programs Associate

JOB SUMMARY:
The Innovation Programs Associate is an intermediate-level position for the Innovation organization working on the core project teams. This individual must be proficient with collaboratively facilitating the design of product initiatives, making sense of user needs and delivering designs and features that address unmet client needs and elevate their experience. We are looking for an innovator who thrives in engaging clients and internal partners, mapping patterns, and busting complexity in partnership with product and business models in the pursuit of breakthrough solutions that may invent or disrupt the industry. This role will report into the Sr. Manager-Innovation Portfolio.
ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS AND RESPONSIBILITIES:
Key responsibilities of this role:

• Understands HCD and Lean/Agile methodologies and performs key activities using these methodologies and respective tools
• Collaborates and communicates effectively using modern suite of available tools
• Conducts research and analysis of complex problem spaces leveraging primary & secondary research, and turns research into user centered insights, problems and solutions
• Actively participates (and may lead) user interviews and other activities with stakeholders, SMEs
• Through user exploration and testing cycles, gather requirements, generate shared understanding, work through tradeoffs, produce ideas, and deliver optimal solutions
• Demonstrate the ability to partner with various stakeholders and business partner groups
• Contributes (and may lead) discussions, working sessions, and workshops through active planning, collaboration, strong questioning, action items, and sharing knowledge
• Embodies the mindset of an innovator e.g. curiosity, tenacity, collaboration, flexibility, creativity, comfort with ambiguity, problem solving
• Prepares and delivers effective and compelling presentations for governance board
• Contributes to market analysis, competitor landscapes, business creation
• Build trust through exemplifying embedded user-centered product design to the organization
• Continuously learn through self-study, engagement with the innovation community, and professional development opportunities (e.g. books, workshops, conferences, certifications)
• communicate metrics to team, management and any impacted stakeholders
• Support best practices by scouting and standardizing market research methods for novel ideas and insights; strategic innovation; promoting open innovation; and introducing group tools and processes that encourage creative thinking.
• Maintain relationships internally and externally that help facilitate rapid, scrappy experimentation by “borrowing” smarts, resources, or permission from others
• Lead or participate in other projects or duties.
• General understanding of Vertex’s organization, business lines, and competitive environment is a plus
• Occasional travel required.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES:

• Ability to think outside the box
• Team player
• Ability to work with external partners, cross functional teams and customers as needed
• Business finance fundamentals is preferred
• Strategic thinker with the ability to build and execute innovative digital products, combined with tactical ability to execute simultaneously against multiple competing priorities
• Strong communication, active listening, critical thinking, and presentation skills
• Passionate about the corporate innovation, Vertex business lines, industry trends, events
• Ability to work and manage projects independently. Ability to work without supervision
• Experience working with teams comprised of a variety of skills (customer development, experience design, software development, marketing, project management, education, ops)
  
• Can apply HCD and Lean/Agile methodologies of solving user problems, designing for ideal experience, ideating expansively, prioritization based on validation and learnings cycles, collaborating and iterating and testing early, nimbly, and often
• Can demonstrate comfort with ambiguity and change, and introduce strong thinking, planning, and activities to identify the best solutions
  
• Work autonomously, anticipate issues & challenges, propose solutions prior to being prompted
  
• Can confidently plan and follow well-established approaches to solve problems
• Can demonstrate knowledge and application of one or more design competencies e.g. market research, business case creation, competitor landscape, technology assessment, user research, content strategy, information architecture, interaction design, user interface design, visual design, usability testing, etc.
• Proficiency in any one of the following common design tools or platforms (Invision, Figma, Marvel, XD, Studio, Sketch) is a plus
• Literate with front-end technologies and standards (e.g. HTML 5, CSS 3, WCAG compliance), how these inform your work, and how to effectively communicate with developers and architects in their own language is a plus
• Literate in specifically in machine learning tools and libraries is a major plus

EDUCATION, TRAINING:

• Bachelor's degree in Business Management, Innovation Management or equivalent
• Six (6) years plus experience working in an innovation or product management/development environment required – at an innovation consulting firm, a design firm and/or within a corporate innovation team
• Prior experience working in Startup/Incubator environment, Product Teams, Digital Agencies (Design Think/Agile), Corporate Innovation, and/or Strategy Consulting preferred
• Or equivalent combination of education and/or experience

Other Qualifications – The Winning Way behaviors that all Vertex employees need in order to meet the expectations of each other, our customers, and our partners

• Communicate with Clarity - Be clear, concise and actionable. Be relentlessly constructive. Seek and provide meaningful feedback.
  
• Act with Urgency - Adopt an agile mentality - frequent iterations, improved speed, resilience. 80/20 rule – better is the enemy of done. Don’t spend hours when minutes are enough.
  
• Work with Purpose - Exhibit a “We Can” mindset. Results outweigh effort. Everyone understands how their role contributes. Set aside personal objectives for team results.
• Drive to Decision - Cut the swirl with defined deadlines and decision points. Be clear on individual accountability and decision authority. Guided by a commitment to and accountability for customer outcomes.
• Own the Outcome - Defined milestones, commitments and intended results. Assess your work in context, if you’re unsure, ask. Demonstrate unwavering support for decisions.

COMMENTS:The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by individuals in this position. Other functions may be assigned, and management retains the right to add or change the duties at any time.