Building a unified design org

In the beginning

When I joined Jobsite, it operated independently from The Totaljobs Group and Stepstone Continental Europe, each with its own design structure, disciplines and ways of working.

Soon after, Stepstone UK was formed and I was tasked with bringing together the Jobsite and Totaljobs design organisations. A few years later, that challenge expanded again as we aligned teams across the UK and Continental Europe.

Alongside creating a unified organisation, there was a broader opportunity to change how design was perceived within the business.

The challenge

Design was primarily viewed as an execution function. Teams were brought in once requirements had been defined, research was conducted on an ad hoc basis, and design had limited influence over product direction.

At the same time, roles, remits and disciplines varied across organisations. Some capabilities existed in one team but not another, and new disciplines I was introducing were unfamiliar to much of the business.

The challenge was to create a shared design organisation with clear roles, consistent practices and a stronger voice in shaping strategy.

Bringing people together

To help the newly combined organisation understand and value each other’s expertise, I organised and facilitated an off-site team day built around a “Design Marketplace”.

Each discipline created a stand to pitch its services and explored the marketplace to understand how other disciplines could support their work. The exercise helped build relationships, create shared understanding and establish a common identity across the team.

Creating structure

To support growth and consistency, I introduced:

Regular team rituals including stand-ups, design critiques and 1:1s
A competency framework to define expectations and support development
Team meetups focused on reflection, celebration and collaboration

These practices provided greater clarity for individuals while creating a more connected organisation.

Improving operations

To reduce duplication and improve effectiveness, we invested in shared foundations:

A centralised research repository using an atomic research approach, making customer insights easier to find, connect and reuse
A design system that enabled designers and engineers to work more consistently and efficiently, supporting 12+ brands across the group

The outcome

The organisation became more aligned, scalable and effective.

Teams had a clearer understanding of each discipline’s role and value, new capabilities became embedded within the business, and shared practices improved collaboration across countries and brands.

Most importantly, perceptions of design changed. With clearer roles, stronger evidence and greater organisational maturity, design became a strategic partner rather than a delivery function.

I went from being asked to execute designs against predefined requirements to being asked to assess, challenge and influence product roadmaps.