Colorado Benefits Eligibility and Enrollment Systems (CoBEES)
CoBEES is seeking a UX/Design Lead to own and execute user experience, research, and
design activities across complex government benefits systems, navigating ambiguity to deliver user-friendly solutions for Coloradans and the county workers who serve them. The Lead Designer will guide user research and design processes, collaborating with product managers,
engineers, business analysts, data analysts, subject-matter experts, individuals with lived experience, and eligibility technicians to understand real-world problems, break down barriers, and design technically feasible software solutions that improve outcomes.
This role spans multiple workstreams within the CoBEES portfolio — including shared services that power the Public Portal, Worker Portal, and Platform Services. The contractor will set the standard for design quality and research rigor across vendor and contractor teams, partnering with organizations including Code for America and Gary Community Ventures.
Key Responsibilities
• UX vision and strategy: Develop and maintain a clear UX vision and strategy for
shared services that power Colorado's government benefits systems, aligning with
Coloradans' needs and broader organizational goals
• End-to-end design process: Lead the end-to-end user experience design process,
including user research, journey mapping, wireframing, prototyping, and user testing,
ensuring solutions are intuitive and accessible
• Mixed-methods research: Design mixed-methods research studies that create deep
understanding of the day-to-day experiences of internal and external users.
• User-focused prioritization: Enable the team to understand user needs and impact as part of the product prioritization process
• Lean UX and Rapid validation: Uses lean research, quick prototyping and
experimentation to validate design solutions before large-scale builds, quickly iterate,
pivot, and minimize risk.
• Measurement: Define and track key user experience indicators (UX KPIs) for the
system; gather and synthesize user data in collaboration with data analysts and other
team members
• Stakeholder management: Manage relationships and build alignment with internal and external stakeholders, including agency leadership and frontline county staff, on UX
design decisions
• Cross-functional collaboration: Collaborate with cross-functional program and policy
teams to thoroughly understand problems and recommend user-friendly, tested software solutions for the government benefits system
• Vendor and contractor guidance: Collaborate with a team of vendors and contractors and provide guidance on UX and research best practices
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams including product managers, designers,
engineers, subject-matter experts, program leadership, and county stakeholders
• Participate in agile ceremonies (sprint planning, standups, reviews, retrospectives) and contribute to a matrixed product organization
• Document work, decisions, and artifacts in state-owned tools and repositories so that knowledge transfers cleanly to permanent staff and successor teams
Working Arrangement
• Contractor will be available for scheduled meetings during Mountain Time core business hours of 9:00 AM – 3:00 PM; otherwise, contractor sets their own schedule to deliver against agreed milestones.
• Sprint cadence: two-week sprints aligned with the broader CoBEES delivery rhythm
• All work products (designs, prototypes, code, research, documentation) are owned by the State and delivered to State-owned tooling and repositories on a continuous basis
Qualifications
Required Qualifications
• 6–8 years of experience in user experience design, preferably with complex systems
• Proven ability to execute on design practices such as conducting research, prototyping, usability testing, and producing design artifacts such as service blueprints, journey maps, and wireframes (candidates selected for a skills assessment interview will be asked to provide work examples)
• Excellent stakeholder management and communication skills
• Experience with workshop facilitation and co-design sessions
• Experience with agile methodologies and experimentation
• Ability to collaborate effectively with diverse teams, including product managers,
engineers, program and policy professionals, and data analysts
• Demonstrated ability to operate effectively in environments with ambiguity, evolving
requirements, and multiple stakeholders
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to translate complex
topics for both technical and non-technical audiences
• Experience working in agile, cross-functional teams
Preferred Qualifications
• Experience in government technology, civic tech, or public-sector software delivery
• Experience with human services programs (Medicaid, SNAP, TANF, CCCAP, or similar
benefits programs)
• Experience supporting major platform builds, system migrations, or organizational
transformation efforts
• Experience doing research with and designing for vulnerable populations and/or critical
government safety net systems
• Understanding of government programs and the needs of safety net beneficiaries
• Experience with community-centered design and/or facilitating communities
Key Competencies
• Comfortable operating with ambiguity and incomplete information
• Pragmatic and outcome-focused; able to balance speed, quality, and sustainability
• Excellent stakeholder management skills; able to influence without formal authority
• Systems-thinking mindset — able to see patterns across teams and address root causes
• Commitment to user-centered design and equitable outcomes for the people Colorado's benefits programs serve