User Interface Designer

The User Interface Designer collaborates closely with software development, product management and brand marketing to develop cohesive user-centric solutions for Guild Launch's UI across the web, in-game, desktop and mobile platforms.

The User Interface Designer is responsible for designing and producing professional software interfaces and website designs. This person will participate in the entire design process from start to finish, beginning with learning client requirements, establishing design direction, identifying and solving design challenges, creating modern and innovative interfaces, producing all required assets, and implementing designs with front-end code. The designer should possess excellent written and verbal communication skills, and the ability to maintain professional working relationships with clients, stakeholders and users.

We currently have a top notch team of developers, testers and customer service personnel and we are looking for absolutely kick-ass talent to join the team. If you can keep up in a fast paced environment, challenge conventions and champion awesomeness then you are well on your way to being a good fit for this position.

Education and Experience

• Bachelors degree or equivalent experience in visual arts, graphic design, interactive design or related applicable field
• Some coursework or equivalent experience in software (including web) development
• Minimum of 3 years professional web or interface design experience
• Experience working with a development team to deliver software products

Essential Job Functions

Contribute to the delivery of highly functional, usable products through a holistic application of design principles and research.

• Conduct user and product research
• Participate in requirements-gathering from user surveys, trouble tickets and other sources of user info. Analyze the business needs, the project at hand, how it fulfills business needs, the audience/users of the project, and its desired outcome
• Create and execute user research plans
• Develop information architecture
• Organize and document the content and information required to assemble a design
• Analyze and architect user interaction flow
• Distill site content or features into logical screens or application areas to be designed
• Produce diagrams to illustrate user workflow
• Create wireframes to communicate design concepts to clients
• Develop grids and templates for interfaces
• Produce low-fidelity visuals (wireframes)
• Produce basic interactive (clickable) prototypes from wireframes
• Create finished designs, applying visual styling to wireframe layouts that
• Meets branding requirements
• Results in readable, organized visuals that meet any specific accessibility requirements
• Clearly communicates the purpose of its elements to the user
• Influences the user to take the intended steps in using the site or application
• Uses recognized patterns and conventions
• Has flexibility for reuse as the application expands in scope or as content changes
• Is visually attractive and appealing
• Collaboratively work with team to achieve desired results
• Justify design decisions and answer questions objectively
• Manage alterations and suggest solutions that meet business requirements while enhancing the user experience
• Conduct and observe acceptance testing of designs
• Produce and optimize final design assets
• Produce finish graphic assets that can be integrated into the finished software
• Optimize assets for file size and quality
• Deliver organized and readable file names and structures according to company convention
• Implement finished design
• Build flexible markup that can accommodate variations in content while maintaining design integrity
• Produce production-quality, standards-compliant HTML markup that offers graded browser support according to client requirements
• Produce production-quality Flex layouts
• Produce Flash Catalyst Project or MXML files that can be integrated with developer-produced back-end services requiring minimal rewriting or editing
• Deliver produced code and assets according to standard company workflow (commit to a repository or upload via FTP)
• Develop front-end behavior
• Produce production-quality basic design behaviors such as visual effects, validation, and user interaction, following best practices, using JavaScript (including libraries such as jQuery, YUI or EXT as defined by the project technical requirements) OR ActionScript (occasionally working with developers on advanced behaviors)
• Deliver a working client-side prototype that can be integrated with back-end services requiring minimal rewriting or editing
• Contribute to a project team, working with
• Developer(s) to ensure design integrity is maintained after design portion is turned over for development
• Project manager(s) to ensure client requirements are fulfilled and project schedules are met
• Support staff to ensure that the user experience feedback loop is properly taken into account
• Perform occasional in-house design tasks, such as
• Identity products (business cards, stationery)
• Brochures, flyers, advertisements and case studies

Required Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

• Professional demeanor, outstanding communication skills
• Knowledge of
• Graphic design, aesthetics, and color theory
• User interface and interaction design principles
• Basic web programming
• Software development lifecycle
• Basic search engine optimization/findability best practices
• Basic preparation of design materials for printed application
• Proficiency in the following software:
• Industry and company standard design tools including Adobe Creative Suite (Fireworks, PhotoShop, Illustrator, InDesign)
• Industry and company standard development tools (Dreamweaver or Eclipse)
• Flash and Flex authoring tools (Flash Catalyst, Flash Builder)
• Wireframing and diagramming tools (Fireworks, Visio, OmniGraffle)
• Microsoft Office suite of products
• Experience with the following languages:
• Web standards-based HTML (advanced)
• CSS (advanced)
• JavaScript  (intermediate, ability to use common libraries)
• ActionScript 3 (syntax and basic constructs and functions)

Beneficial Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

• A Passion for Gaming in General and MMOs Specifically
• Playing games is not required, but a passion for gaming and an understanding of the market, our user's sensibilities and aesthete will undoubtedly be beneficial
• Some exposure to PHP, mySQL and other back-end software development concepts sufficient to communicate effectively with team.
• Experience with LUA Scripting Language or World of Warcraft Addon Authoring
• Familiarity with Agile/Scrum methodology
• Experience with the aesthetic and design sensibilities of gamers and MMO players.

Environment

• Guild Launch is a privately owned company focused on creating top notch software for online gamers to build communities and improve their game play
• Guild Launch has a registered user base of more than 1.8 million, with ~700k unique monthly visitors generating more than 30 million monthly page views. Your work will be seen and used by a large user base of loyal customers.
• Guild Launch employs a scrum/agile development methodology which provides a strong development rhythm and ensures accountability
• Performance expectations are high, but effort is recognized and rewarded
• Health and dental benefits are offered. 
• Guild Launch has a strong culture of integrity, honesty and transparency.
• Occasionally tight schedules
• Normal/Reasonable turnaround times
• Heavy customer interaction
• Frequent review of work progress
• Very little travel

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