Principal UI Designer, Consumer

Location:

124 East 14th Street, Suite 1100 - New York, New York 10003

Location:

Mobile - In office 3 days a week; 124 East 14th St. Suite 1100 New York, NY

About the Role

As a Principal UI Designer, Consumer, you will be a senior creative leader within the Consumer Design group of the Experience & Design team, responsible for elevating the visual design excellence and brand expression across KeyBank's consumer-facing digital products and services.
 

You will craft sophisticated, accessible, and emotionally resonant visual experiences that connect with millions of consumers daily through our digital banking platforms. Your work will establish the visual language that defines how customers interact with KeyBank across web, mobile, and emerging channels.
 

You will lead initiatives that push the boundaries of visual design while maintaining consistency with our design system, mentor a team of UI designers, and collaborate closely with UX strategists to ensure that every pixel reflects our commitment to clarity, beauty, and customer delight.
 

This role requires a visionary visual designer who can balance creative excellence with systematic thinking, inspire teams through craft leadership, and drive visual innovation while respecting business constraints and technical feasibility.
 

Key Responsibilities

VISUAL STRATEGIC LEADERSHIP

• Define and evolve the visual design strategy for consumer digital products, ensuring brand consistency and market differentiation

• Lead the creation of high-fidelity designs, interactive prototypes, and design specifications that set the standard for visual excellence

• Champion accessibility and inclusive design principles, ensuring our visual solutions work for all customers

• Drive innovation in motion design, micro-interactions, and visual storytelling that enhance user engagement

DESIGN SYSTEM & STANDARDS

• Partner with Design System Lead to evolve KeyBank's Design System, ensuring visual components, patterns, and guidelines needed in Consumer experiences are represented
• Contribute to and uphold visual design standards (including typography, color systems, iconography, and illustration principles) across the Consumer design team
• Assist in creating scalable design tokens and component libraries that enable efficient, consistent design across teams
• Partner with engineering to ensure pixel-perfect implementation of design system components

EXECUTION & CRAFT EXCELLENCE

• Lead the visual design of high-priority consumer initiatives from concept through launch

• Create compelling visual narratives through user interface design, data visualization, and information architecture

• Develop responsive design solutions that maintain visual integrity across devices and platforms

• Conduct visual design audits and competitive analyses to identify opportunities for differentiation

• Ensure all visual design work maintains the highest standards of craft, detail, and polish

COLLABORATION & INFLUENCE

• Partner closely with strategists, engineers, and business stakeholders to ensure visual design amplifies business and client impact

• Collaborate with brand, marketing, and content teams to ensure cohesive customer experiences

• Present design concepts and rationale to senior stakeholders, articulating the business value of visual design decisions

• Work with engineering teams to ensure technical feasibility while maintaining design integrity

• Facilitate design critiques and workshops that elevate the visual design discourse across the organization

MENTORSHIP & PRACTICE DEVELOPMENT

• Mentor a team of UI designers, fostering excellence in visual craft and professional growth

• Lead the Consumer UI Design team, establishing best practices and advancing the discipline of visual design at KeyBank

• Contribute to the recruitment and development of design talent, building a world-class design organization

• Share knowledge through internal presentations, design documentation, and external thought leadership

QUALIFICATIONS

• 8+ years of experience in UI/visual design, with at least 3 years in senior or lead roles

• Exceptional portfolio demonstrating mastery of visual design, typography, color theory, and composition

• Deep expertise in creating and maintaining design systems at scale

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