Design Strategy Lead

Welcome to Normative At Normative, we are committed to solving valuable problems through human-centered design consulting. Our team operates at the intersection of strategy, product design, and technology, helping organizations navigate complexity and drive meaningful innovation. We believe that exceptional design comes from true partnerships, where collaboration is built on transparency, trust, and shared ownership. Our expertise in specialized problem-solving enables us to tackle hard challenges, leveraging deep domain knowledge and a user-first mindset. If you thrive in ambiguous and complex environments, seek to design for real impact, and believe in the power of collaboration and innovation, Normative is the right place for you. About This Role We are looking for a Design Strategy Lead to own strategy engagements from framing through delivery. You will lead client work in regulated industries - pharma, financial services, government - shaping research programs, synthesizing insights, building recommendations, and presenting strategic direction to senior stakeholders. You will join a growing strategy practice with real ownership and room to shape how the team works. Whether you are coming from an agency or consultancy, an in-house strategy role, or a research-heavy design practice, the opportunity is the same: lead engagements, make decisions, and build something that matters. We use AI-assisted tools for research synthesis and analysis as part of our working method. Experience in agency or consultancy settings is valued. Work Eligibility & Location Normative is a fully remote team and culture. This role requires candidates to be located in Canada with the ability to travel for work within North America and the EU (up to 25% of the time). What you'll do Lead strategy engagements for clients in regulated industries including pharma, financial services, and government. Own the engagement from problem framing through final delivery, managing scope, timelines, and client expectations. Design and run research programs - qualitative interviews, workshops, co-creation sessions, desk research - that generate actionable insights for complex strategic questions. Synthesize research findings into strategic frameworks, service blueprints, experience maps, and actionable recommendations. Translate ambiguity into clarity for clients and internal teams. Present strategic recommendations to senior client stakeholders. Lead strategic conversations directly, manage expectations, and build trusted advisor relationships. Develop strategy roadmaps and business cases that connect user needs to organizational goals. Bridge the gap between research insight and actionable direction. Mentor junior and senior strategists on engagement craft, client management, and strategic thinking. Raise the bar for the practice through feedback, knowledge sharing, and setting standards. Collaborate with product designers, developers, and other disciplines on cross-functional engagements. Bring strategic perspective to execution-focused teams. Contribute to business development by supporting proposals, scoping new engagements, and shaping how the practice positions its capabilities. What you'll bring 5+ years of experience in strategy, design research, or strategic consulting, with demonstrated experience leading engagements or workstreams independently. Strong qualitative research skills. Experience designing research programs, conducting stakeholder and user interviews, running workshops, and synthesizing findings into strategic direction. Experience developing strategic frameworks, service blueprints, journey maps, and experience strategies. Comfortable working at the intersection of business strategy and human-centered design. Strong facilitation skills. Able to lead workshops, co-creation sessions, and strategic alignment meetings with senior stakeholders. Familiarity with tools such as Miro, Dovetail, Figma, Cowork, and NotebookLM or similar platforms used in strategy and design research work. Applied knowledge and skills of AI-assisted research and analysis tools and ways of working, including prompt and context engineering, workflow automation, and interacting with RAG and MCP services. We are looking for applied skills that add new capabilities to how the team works, not generalist familiarity with AI. Experience working in regulated industries: pharma, health, financial services, insurance, or government is a strong asset. Understanding of the constraints and opportunities in these environments is valued. Strong communication skills; written, visual and verbal. Able to present complex strategic recommendations clearly and persuasively to senior audiences. Comfortable leading client conversations and managing expectations directly. Experience in an agency, consultancy, or professional services environment. Understanding of how to manage scope, timelines, and deliverables across multiple concurrent engagements. Track record of expanding your own scope. You take on more because you want to, not because someone asked. Demonstrated ability to grow beyond your current role. You've sought out responsibility, not waited for it. History of building new capability, not just maintaining existing systems. If you meet most of these requirements and are excited about this role, we encourage you to apply. Working at Normative: At Normative, we offer a place where curious, driven people can do the best work of their careers in an environment built for autonomy, mastery, and impact. We are a fully remote, highly collaborative team, designed to support independent thinkers who thrive in complexity, ambiguity, and high-accountability environments. We take on hard problems that matter, spanning strategy, UX, service design, and technology. You won’t just execute - you’ll shape solutions, drive impact, and push boundaries. We operate with high trust and high accountability. You own your work, manage your time, and contribute at a high level - without micromanagement. We stay connected through deliberate collaboration, a well-defined organizational cadence, and shared rituals. We expect ownership, directness, and bravery, but we also value introspection, creativity, and a positive mindset. We push for excellence while fostering continuous learning and growth. We invest in our team with fair, clearly defined salary ranges. The expected base salary range for a new hire in this role is listed above. The annual base salary offered is determined by each candidate’s relevant knowledge, skills, education, training and experience. It is aligned to ensure both internal and external competitiveness using market data for the geographic location and industry. Normative employees participate in a commission program that rewards individual impact and company performance. We offer meaningful career growth opportunities, and a commitment to well-being. We support professional development, sustainable ways of working, and long-term success - for both our people and our company. Inclusion At Normative, we are committed to building an environment where everyone feels included, valued, and heard. Diversity, inclusion, and belonging are an important part of our everyday work. We strongly encourage applications from Indigenous peoples, racialized people, people with disabilities, people from gender and sexually diverse communities, and/or people with intersectional identities. Accommodations and Accessibility Normative provides employment accommodation during the recruitment process. Should you require any accommodation, please indicate this on your application and we will work with you to meet your accessibility needs. For any questions, suggestions, or required documents regarding accessibility in a different format, please contact us at [email protected]. Use of AI Normative uses AI tools in our recruitment process, including developing job postings and note-taking during interviews. AI is not used to screen, assess, or select candidates. All resumes are reviewed by a human, and all hiring decisions are made by humans. Any AI-generated output used during the recruitment process is reviewed by a human before action is taken.