Strategic Design Manager

At AustralianSuper, we truly care about our colleagues. We know work and life are intertwined. That’s why we support the diverse needs of everyone and have policies that enable us all to thrive and be truly flexible. We ensure diversity is celebrated for the opportunity it provides us all to learn and grow and deliver better outcomes for members. We are dedicated to building a high-performance environment underpinned by a strong risk culture, ensuring we deliver the best outcomes for our members. 

Your New Role

Australia’s superannuation landscape is changing rapidly, shaped by regulatory pressure, emerging technologies, shifting demographics and rising member expectations. As Strategic Design Manager, you will play a key leadership role in helping AustralianSuper respond to this change and shape better outcomes for members now and into the future. 
 

Reporting to the Principal, Customer Experience, this role sits at the intersection of strategy, design, transformation and execution. You will identify, shape and accelerate transformational opportunities across operations, technology and member experience, with a particular focus on retirement and guidance. 
 

Leading a team of Senior Service Designers, you will design future-state experiences and services, connect strategy to experiences, create transformation pathways and influence senior stakeholders. As a Design leader you will help build the new Experience Operating System for the practice, build capability and establish ways of working.
 

This is an exciting opportunity to influence some of the biggest questions facing superannuation over the next decade, including retirement confidence, personalisation, AI, operational efficiency and the future of service delivery. Your work will help shape the systems, services, capabilities and decisions that support the financial wellbeing and retirement outcomes of millions of Australians. 

In this role, you will:

• Lead strategic discovery, diagnostic and transformation initiatives across member life stage journeys and complex organisational challenges. 
• Identify and shape opportunities that improve member outcomes, operational effectiveness and organisational performance. 
• Guide the development of future-state services, experiences, operating models and strategic roadmaps. 
• Apply systems thinking to uncover root causes, challenge assumptions and connect opportunities across organisational boundaries
• Build strong partnerships across Product, Technology, Operations, Marketing, Strategy and Experience to align priorities and create momentum for change. 
• Influence senior stakeholders through evidence, insight, strategic thinking and compelling storytelling. 
• Lead, coach and develop a high-performing team, creating an environment that encourages curiosity, experimentation, collaboration and continuous learning. 
• Support the evolution of design practice operations, including AI enablement, tooling, knowledge management, governance and practice development
• Ensure your team operates in line with AustralianSuper’s policies, standards, procedures and risk management framework.

What You’ll Need

We’re looking for an experienced strategic design leader who can work confidently with ambiguity, influence complex decisions and bring people together around future-focused opportunities.

You will bring:

• 8+ years’ experience in strategic design, service design, experience design, product design, transformation, innovation or a related discipline. 
• Tertiary qualifications in business, marketing, design or a related field. 
• Demonstrated experience leading complex transformation, service redesign or strategic initiatives in large organisations. 
• Strong people leadership experience, including coaching, capability development and performance management. 
• Strong systems thinking capability, with the ability to understand and influence interconnected organisational systems. 
• Experience influencing senior leaders and navigating complex stakeholder environments. 
• Strong strategic thinking and problem-framing skills, with the ability to identify opportunities and define future direction
• Excellent facilitation, alignment and stakeholder engagement skills.
• Commercial acumen and the ability to balance member outcomes, organisational priorities and delivery realities. 
• Strong communication, storytelling and visual thinking skills.
• Experience establishing or evolving design practices, governance, frameworks and operating models. 
• Digital and AI literacy, including experience using modern design, research and collaboration tools to improve outcomes and ways of working. 
• A passion for emerging technologies, continuous learning, service transformation and the future of customer experience.

Life at AustralianSuper

AustralianSuper is committed to colleague development, and we support our people with ongoing learning, coaching and training, as well as career opportunities across our expanding global organisation. We offer generous leave entitlements and promote a blended working environment in which all roles can flex, and we’re happy to discuss what this looks like for you. 

We cultivate a workplace that champions safety, respect, inclusiveness and diversity. We are committed to supporting our diverse workforce in a way that is inclusive and embraces diversity in all its forms. If you require any reasonable adjustments to the recruitment process or the role, please let our recruitment team know. 

What’s Next

Apply now, if you share our values of Energy, Integrity, Generosity of Spirit and Excellent Outcomes and would like the opportunity to work in a challenging, growing and rapidly evolving team to deliver outstanding results.
 

AustralianSuper uses AI to review resumes and conduct initial phone interviews. This involves processing your resume, cover letter, and voice recording in Australia and the USA to help assess your suitability for the applied role. When invited to an AI phone screening, you may opt for a traditional phone screening instead. For information on how we handle your personal data, please refer to our Candidate Privacy Policy:
https://www.australiansuper.com/careers/candidate-privacy-notice

Agencies please note: this vacancy is being managed directly by AustralianSuper’s Talent Acquisition team. We will contact our preferred agency partners should we require additional support. Thank you.