Principal Design Lead - Environments
Chick-fil-A, Inc. - Atlanta, GA
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The Principal Design Lead in Restaurant Design is a corporate professional position responsible for providing strategies, systems and design solutions that align with enterprise business initiatives and drive the future of our restaurant designs. Given the explosive growth of mobile, along with the changing, complex demands of our business and customers, the Principal Design Lead will play a key role in Chick-fil-A's effort to build scalable and differentiated environments & experiences.As a Principal Design Lead on the Restaurant Design Team, you will be responsible for leading a design-thinking approach to human-centered design to create experiences and environments that are industry-leading and relevant to our guests, team members, and Operators. Human-centered design is both a mindset and an iterative process for understanding people’s motivations and needs and responding to those needs through the development of creative solutions that provide value to both them and the business.As part of a multidisciplinary team, you will tackle all aspects of the design process from defining the opportunity to solve, imagining a range of ideas/solutions, physical and/or digital prototyping and validating design solutions for our restaurant chain. You must be able to clearly define project goals and parameters in an ambiguous state of imagining future needs of the business. You must be an ambitious problem solver, flexible, and able to succeed within a cross-functional environment. The ideal candidate for this position will be at ease combining business strategy with design methodologies to execute ideas into solid designs and experiences that meet the needs of our business, as well as translating the design process and resulting solution for multiple audiences inside and outside of the organization.This role will provide Design expertise within the area of Environment (Inside Guest Experience, Interiors and Exterior Brand Expression) initiatives that will have a broad impact across the organization:Develop and communicate the vision & strategy of restaurant environments for a growing portfolio of existing and new building designs Provide guidance on how various organizational initiatives will impact the environment design of New Restaurants, Existing Restaurants, and Custom ProjectsCreate design solutions and experiences that focus on elevating and connecting with our Guests while also creating growth opportunities for OperatorsLead the development of future restaurant environments focused on future drivers of change such as digital sales channels, sustainability and personalized connection. Ensure innovation process includes various approvals/inputs from key stakeholder such as Operators, Field Operations, Marketing, Brand, Risk Management and Restaurant Development teamsLeverage key insights from Operators, Team Members, Guests, and industry trends to identify future design solutions Consult across the business on expert knowledge of environment design principlesBuild and manage appropriate cross-functional teams and partners from across the business to ensure successful design solutions Collaborate with brand strategists, graphic designers, architects, construction, service & hospitality and digital experience designers to enhance environments and create holistic design solutionsOur Flexible Future model offers a healthy mix of working in person and virtually, strengthening key elements of the Chick-fil-A culture by fostering collaboration and community. Lead development of the project plans including:Scope Project Team - internal staff, consultants, agencies, and vendorsMaster Service Agreements, Scope of Work documentsTimelinesBudgetsOversee and be accountable for Design Innovation consultants, contractors, and vendors. Specifically, responsible for building and managing outsourcing/agency strategy for various workstreams Provide initiative report outs to executive leadership Identify a communication plan to keep key stakeholders informed Lead the design of all innovation phases of a project, from translating themes into visual concepts, through design development and refinementLead the selection of interior and exterior furniture, fixtures, finish palettes, and interior and exterior lighting that is aligned with our brand strategy for multiple restaurant programs Lead Operator and Team Member innovation sessions to vet new design solutionsCreate and manage both low and high-fidelity design deliverables for testingLead development of working drawings for field installs and/or test simulationsLead role during test simulations to gain insights on design solutions thru research and observationManage documentation of learnings, creation of guidelines and development of design criteriaDeliver final design guidelines to Integration / Standards team Collaborate with Integration / Standards team to ensure design intent is met during the development and consult with execution team to confirm communication of solution guidelines can deliver the design intent to the fieldBachelor's degree in design (Service Design, Industrial Design, Architecture, Interior Design, etc.) or Design Management6 + years’ of experience in restaurant design, customer experience or innovation managementUnderstanding of the interplay of Brand - Design - CommunicationCurrent knowledge of industry trends in retail store and restaurant design including furniture and ï¬nishesExperience managing external architectural and/or design teamAbility to communicate design with hand sketches/drawingsSkilled in the visual, written and verbal communication of design ideasStrong computer skills with proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite, Adobe Suite,Master's degree8 years of experience in restaurant design, customer experience or innovation management Chick-fil-A corporate or Chick-fil-A Restaurant experienceInnovative conceptualizer, yet has disciplined approaches to accomplishing workStrong problem-solving and decision-making skillsExperience managing external architectural and/or design consultants Ability to work in a highly collaborative environment within a team approach to accomplishing objectivesAbility to adapt and flex within the context of changing prioritiesAbility to simultaneously manage multiple priorities/projects in various stages of completionStrong computer skills with proficiency Bluebeam, Miro, and other applicable design software to convey an idea or design625%Bachelor's DegreeMaster's DegreeDesign (Service Design, Industrial Design, Architecture, Interior Design, etc.) or Design Management
Created: 2024-10-07