Design Thinking and Innovation Specialist

Position Summary
The Design Thinking Innovation Specialist will serve as a member of Innovate Carolinas Design and Innovation for the Public Good team and contribute to human-centered design training programming and project execution that nurtures the translation of innovative ideas into innovations for the public good. This full-time in-person role will also serve as a lead designer on projects through our Design Thinking and Innovation Recharge practice and mentor graduate student Design Thinking Fellows and undergraduate interns. Responsibilities: * Work with the Director of Design and Innovation for the Public Good to promote strengthen and evaluate the Carolina design and innovation ecosystem grants programs and faculty engagement sessions. * Serve as a lead consultant on design thinking and innovation Recharge projects for internal and external teams founders and startup ventures * Plan facilitate and lead short- and longer-term human centered innovation workshops training and design sprints to help faculty students and community members translate their ideas into innovations for the public good. * Work with the Design and Innovation Manager to identify and expand the number of Recharge Center clients create proposals and track project progress and outcomes. * Assist in the mentorship of graduate Design Thinking and Innovation Fellows and undergraduate interns to plan and deliver human centered innovation expertise to both for-profit and community engaged ventures and services.

Required Qualifications Competencies And Experience
At least 2 years of relevant experience in design thinking practice including creating leading and managing design thinking trainings and/or projects in community commercial or research settings. Experience leading strategy or innovation projects collecting and analyzing qualitative user stakeholder and customer data or scaling start-up ventures. Ability to distill complex problems through structured insightful and data-driven analysis into testable insights and takeaways. Trained in design thinking methodology and demonstrated success with design thinking frameworks including rapid prototyping and co-creation in practice is a must. Experience with facilitation and design thinking tools in digital workspaces/digital whiteboards/artificial intelligence. Excellent program management skills as well as the ability to set priorities self-organize manage multiple tasks pivot based on the needs of the organization and work with others to achieve common goals. Effective written visualization and verbal communication skills. Proven ability to engage with senior leaders and design solutions to meet project needs. Demonstrated ability to work as a valued team member in an entrepreneurial collaborative fast-paced environment.

Preferred Qualifications Competencies And Experience
Knowledge of human-centered methods and processes required to support design thinking engagements in a variety of contexts including strategy innovation and entrepreneurship research and higher education. Prior experience in the public non-profit industry or private sector with founder and student mentorship experience a plus. Passion to make the world a better place.