About the Role
As an Associate Director of Experience (UX) Design based in Hilversum, you’ll serve as a strategic partner to a major client on a long-term, retained basis. We are looking for someone who is passionate about seeking new opportunities to create impactful work, capable of guiding the client with a UX strategy perspective—supported by data and tech leads—from initial conversations all the way to delivery. In this role, you won’t just be "working on a project." You will work across multiple projects within a single account, requiring you to collaborate with a wide range of roles and maintain oversight of everything in motion. You will translate client requirements into internal briefings and switch seamlessly from being strategic to tactical, leading the production of concepts and prototypes. You will use your experience to create approaches for complex projects while supporting and mentoring other designers, ensuring stakeholders are put at ease by your well-informed and confident direction.
Responsibilities:
- Translate requirements into internal briefs and involve the appropriate disciplines for execution.
- Build and lead a (UX) Design team producing high-quality work across a variety of digital channels.
- Lead, scope, and staff UX projects for the group, working with other Creative and UX leads to present proposals for new engagements.
- Act as a thought leader to our team and a partner to our clients, serving as the go-to person for creative and innovative solutions.
- Collaborate closely with data and tech to understand user needs and steer toward the right solutions.
- Oversee and safeguard processes, the design system, and documentation to ensure strong cross-disciplinary collaboration.
- Develop a deep understanding of the client’s brand and product offerings to lead the development of strategic ideas.
- Create approaches for complex projects and scalable systems, flexing from creative innovation to global product rollout.
- Champion our culture and values within the team.
About Monks
Monks is the global, digital-first, data-driven, unitary operating brand of S4 Capital plc. With a legacy of innovation and specialized expertise, Monks combines an extraordinary range of global Marketing and Technology Services to redefine how brands interact with the world. Through Monks.Flow, its flagship AI ecosystem for marketing orchestration, Monks transforms marketing into a growth engine, collapsing timelines and connecting brands to culture in real time. By deploying bespoke intelligent agents across disciplines and delivering culturally relevant, high-impact creative and digital solutions, Monks solves key critical business challenges across the entire brand enterprise to help brands sustain long-term impact.
Monks was named a Contender in The Forrester Wave™: Global Marketing Services, ranks among Cannes Lions' Top 10 Creative Companies (2022-25) and remains the only partner featured in AdExchanger’s Programmatic Power Players list every year (2020-24). Named Adweek’s first AI Agency of the Year (2023) and The One Show’s inaugural AI Pioneer Organization, Monks was also awarded Business Intelligence Group’s 2025 Excellence in Artificial Intelligence Award in both the Organizational and AI Product categories. As a trusted partner to cutting-edge innovators in tech, Monks earned titles such as Optimizely Experimentation Partner of the Year (2025), runner-up for the Adobe Firefly Partner Award (2024), and Workato’s AI Visionary Customer Impact Award (2024). Additionally, Monks achieved a record-breaking number of FWAs and continues to hold the most of any partner.
We are an equal-opportunity employer committed to building a respectful and empowering work environment for all people to freely express themselves amongst colleagues who embrace diversity in all respects. Including fresh voices and unique points of view in all aspects of our business not only creates an environment where we can all grow and thrive but also increases our potential to produce work that better represents—and resonates with—the world around us.
About You
The essentials:
- 8+ years of experience working as an Experience (UX) or Product Designer.
- Fluent in both Dutch and English.
- A stellar portfolio that demonstrates creativity, experience, and attention to detail.
- Strong understanding of business strategy and how design can drive it.
- You think in ecosystems, connecting multiple solutions into a unified experience that drives increased recruitment for werkenbijdefensie.nl.
- Expertise in design, workflow, and prototyping tools (Sketch, Figma, Google and Adobe Suites, Marvel, etc.).
- Experienced at workshop facilitation, information architecture, designing flows/screens, user testing, and design optimization.
- Comfortable with UX research methodologies, capable of pushing for and executing them.
- Ability to pitch design approaches, provide estimates, and lead the creative delivery process.
- Experience prioritising AI as part of your daily workflow and staying up-to-date with trends.
Not a must, but a plus:
- A solid understanding of content strategy
- Experience in setting up and running usability tests
