Role Description
We are seeking a Human-Centered Design (HCD) Engineer to bridge the gap between user needs and technical execution. You will lead qualitative research, map user journeys, build interactive prototypes, and run usability tests to ensure our products are intuitive, accessible, and impactful for the physicians, clinical staff, billers, front-desk teams, and patients who rely on them every day.
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Conduct contextual inquiries, interviews, field observations, and surveys with physicians, clinical staff, billers, and patients to uncover explicit and latent needs.
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Partner with account managers and support teams to surface usability pain points from client feedback and support tickets.
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Translate research into personas, journey maps, service blueprints, and system workflows across clinical, operational, and billing processes.
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Present insights to product and executive leadership to shape roadmap priorities.
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Facilitate cross-functional design workshops and build low- to high-fidelity wireframes and interactive prototypes in Figma, Sketch, or Adobe XD.
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Design AI-powered features (AI charting, AI agents) that keep clinicians in control and make AI output easy to review and correct.
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Plan, moderate, and analyze formative and summative usability tests to iterate on designs before and during development.
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Evaluate safety-critical workflows such as medication management and e-prescribing, and support ONC Safety-Enhanced Design testing.
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Partner with product managers, business analysts, and engineers in Agile/Scrum teams to maintain design integrity from concept through release.
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Uphold accessibility standards (WCAG, Section 508) and HIPAA-safe research practices across all products.
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Build and scale WRS Health's HCD practice, including research operations, templates, and standards.
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Mentor designers and researchers, and coach teammates on human-centered methods.
Qualifications
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Education: Bachelor's or Master's degree in Human-Centered Design, Human-Factors Engineering, Interaction Design, Cognitive Psychology, or a related field.
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Experience: 3 to 6+ years of professional experience in HCD, UX design, or user research, including enterprise or regulated-industry experience.
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Technical Skills: Proficiency in prototyping software (Figma, Sketch, or Adobe XD), qualitative research methodologies, usability testing frameworks, and Agile/Scrum delivery flows.
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Accessibility: Working knowledge of Section 508 and WCAG standards and how to apply them in practice.
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Core Competencies: Strong empathy, verbal storytelling, analytical problem-solving, and the ability to defend design decisions with data.
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A portfolio or case studies demonstrating end-to-end research, synthesis, prototyping, and measurable impact.
Requirements
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Experience designing for EHR, practice management, revenue cycle, telehealth, or other health IT products.
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Familiarity with clinical workflows and terminology across ambulatory specialties.
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Knowledge of ONC Safety-Enhanced Design (user-centered design and summative testing) requirements, NISTIR 7804, or ISO 9241-210.
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Experience designing AI-assisted or automation features, including human-in-the-loop review patterns.
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Prior experience leading or mentoring designers/researchers, or building a design function from the ground up.
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Experience with remote research and unmoderated testing tools and product analytics platforms.
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Clinical background or prior work in a medical practice setting.
Benefits
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Job Type: Full-time | Independent Contractor
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Location: Remote
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Hours: Must be available during standard US business hours (9:00 AM β 5:00 PM EST or 8:30 AM β 4:30 PM EST)
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Compensation will be based on location, experience, and qualifications.
Success Metrics
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Measurable usability gains: Improved task success rates, time-on-task, error rates, and System Usability Scale (SUS) scores for redesigned workflows.
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Research-driven roadmap: Consistent monthly contact with users across specialties, with a clear, visible share of roadmap items originating from or validated by HCD research.
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Fewer usability issues post-release: Decline in usability-related support tickets, rework, and post-launch design defects.
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Accessibility and certification compliance: New and updated features meet WCAG 2.1/2.2 AA and Section 508 standards at release.
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Adoption and satisfaction: Higher feature adoption (including AI features) and improved client satisfaction or NPS for redesigned areas.