Associate Director, Information Design; Deputy Competency Manager

Who We Are: LINK is a fast-growing Woman Owned Small Business (WOSB) that leverages human-centered design to support strategy, innovation, communication, change, and branding within the federal government and adjacent industry partners. At LINK, we partner with engineers, futurists, and thought leaders to untangle complexity, discover opportunity, and communicate clearly with visual stories.

Let us be your partners in change.

 

About the Opportunity

As the Associate Director, Information Design; Deputy Competency Manager, you will lead and inspire a high-performing team of Information Designers to deliver innovative, human-centered solutions across a diverse client portfolio. You will help support the vision for the Information Design competency by shaping frameworks, tools, and thought leadership, while supporting recruitment efforts to build a values-driven, high-performing team.

In your role as Associate Director, Information Design; Deputy Competency Manager, you will coach, mentor, and manage information designers —fostering a collaborative culture and developing talent that excels at crafting compelling narratives and translating strategic insights into impactful design solutions aligned with client goals. While your client engagement will be primarily indirect, you will play a critical role in supporting teams as they identify challenges and deliver strategic outcomes.

 

Responsibilities

Talent Management & Employee Development

• Directly manage assigned employees within the competency. 
• Conduct performance management activities, including coaching, feedback, development planning, performance reviews, and promotion recommendations. 
• Support employee engagement, retention, career growth, and professional development. 
• Foster a collaborative, inclusive culture aligned with LINK's values. 
• Support onboarding and integration of new employees into the competency and broader organization. 
• Address employee concerns, performance issues, and challenging personnel situations, escalating issues as appropriate.

Talent Acquisition & Workforce Planning

• Participate in recruiting activities, including interviewing, candidate evaluation, selection, and onboarding. 
• Provide input on hiring needs, workforce planning, and capability gaps within the competency. 
• Support development of talent pipelines and recruiting efforts aligned with competency growth needs. 
• Build and maintain relationships with prospective talent and external communities that strengthen the competency talent pipeline. 
• Contribute to role requirements, capability needs, and hiring criteria for competency-related positions.

Competency Health & Growth

• Partner with the Competency Manager to maintain and improve competency standards, tools, frameworks, methodologies, and best practices. 
• Contribute to competency development initiatives, including learning opportunities, mentorship, knowledge sharing, and capability-building efforts. 
• Identify employee trends, development needs, and capability gaps within the competency and provide recommendations for improvement. 
• Monitor emerging client needs, industry trends, and capability gaps and share insights with the Competency Manager. 
• Support implementation of investments in hiring, development, tools, and capability-building initiatives that strengthen the competency.

Leadership Partnership & Operations

• Partner with Project Team Leadership to support employee development, staffing discussions, and project success. 
• Provide support to project teams on an ad hoc basis. 
• Collaborate with the Competency Manager on employee concerns, competency priorities, and organizational needs. 
• Escalate employee issues, risks, trends, and recommendations to the Competency Manager as appropriate. 
• Represent the competency in meetings, discussions, and initiatives as delegated.

 

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Graphic Design, Visual Communication, Visual Journalism, Animation, Information Design, or a related field. 
• 12+ years of experience in graphic design, information design, visual communication, or a related field. 
• Ability to obtain and maintain a security clearance. 
• Demonstrated people management experience, including performance management, coaching, employee relations, conflict resolution, and employee development.
• Experience recruiting, hiring, onboarding, and developing high-performing teams while fostering an inclusive and collaborative culture.
• Strong expertise in information design, visual storytelling, and communicating complex information through