Managing Director

As Managing Director, you will lead our Madison studio. You will be responsible for studio leadership with a focus on building both a vibrant studio culture and community as well as a growing, profitable business. You will build and expand client relationships, ensure quality innovation work, and be accountable for client profitability. You’ll work closely with Account Directors, Project Managers, and Functional Experts within our Practice Areas to deliver the client ownership and outcomes Delve envisions for our client-obsessed strategic goals. As a studio leader, you will also provide mentorship for team members and nurture creative talent.

As a key leader within the organization, you will also collaborate with Delve leadership on broader company initiatives, balancing the local needs of the studio with the greater good of a multi-location company. You will play a role in shaping both the broader company strategy and taking an active role in delivering on that strategy.

Responsibilities

GROWTH

• Partner with Marketing, Sales, and Executive Leadership to develop and execute a successful go-to-market strategy with focus on the Midwest market
• Build upon the existing client-base to establish a portfolio that can deliver both recurring revenue and sustained year over year growth.
• Take an active role in the sales process, shaping solution definition, crafting, and presenting compelling proposals, shaping scope and budget estimates in partnership with Account Directors, Program Managers, and Functional Experts.
• Create and execute strategic plans to extend and expand high-potential client relationships in partnership with Account Director(s).
• Build relationships with key client executives, positioning Delve as a trusted advisor for both strategic and executional programs.
• Be an active member in the broader Product Design and Engineering community within the market; authoring and sharing thought leadership, participating in industry events, etc.

CLIENT SUCCESS

• Serve as a strategic partner to Delve’s clients, advocate for their needs and expectations at both the program and project level.
• Build an understanding of the client’s broader business context and strategic priorities within which our engagements exist to ensure broader strategic alignment.
• Ensure a smooth transition from the sales process to project delivery, ensuring alignment on the vision, scope, budget, and client expectations.
• Serve as an advisor and a partner to the Project Managers and broader team to identify and manage risks and develop mitigation strategies.
• Be available to advise project team members to ensure the project team’s effectiveness, quality of work, and team morale.

FINANCIAL SUCCESS

• Build a client portfolio within the Studio’s market that meets both growth and profitability targets.
• Support PMs and Account Directors to ensure projects are profitable, advising project issues and risk, navigating scope and budget management, securing change orders when appropriate.
• Provide partnership, support, advice, and an escalation path for navigating project finances.

STUDIO LEADERSHIP

• Build a collaborative, innovative, and engaging work environment, acting as a catalyst with the studio and an advocate for the Studio within the broader organization.
• Manage and mentor key leaders within the studio in partnership with Practice Leadership, fostering a multi-disciplinary community and a connection to Delve as a whole.
• Partner with Human Resources, Finance, and Executive Leadership to identify, shape, and execute internal initiatives for both Delve as a whole and for the studio itself.
• Take an active role in building community through studio specific meetings, community activities, culture building events, etc.

About You

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in design, engineering, business, or a related field; advanced degree preferred.
• Extensive experience in design consulting or a related industry, with a proven track record of successful leadership.
• Proven track record in building relationships to meaningful and profitable client portfolios through successful business development partnership and excellence in execution.
• Strong business acumen, including financial management and strategic planning skills.
• Experience managing complex, multi-disciplinary teams and client relationships.
• Proven ability to lead, mentor, and motivate teams to achieve exceptional results.
• Willingness to travel as needed.

Preferred Qualifications

• You are a strategic thinker with a strong background in innovation consulting rooted in design, strategy, or engineering.
• You bring a service-oriented leadership style.
• You cultivate and thrive in collaborative environments.
• You have experience inspiring, empowering, and guiding others.
• You are a good listener and see input from a variety of stakeholders as key to learning, growing, and improving personally and as a team or company.
• You are committed to high standards of workmanship.
• You are self-motivated and can work independently with little oversight.
• You are an excellent communicator with exemplary writing, presentation, and interpersonal skills all needed for interaction with clients, participants, and internal teams.
• You act with an inclusive mindset and model these behaviors for the organization.
• You are motivated by change and see meaningful opportunities to adapt how we design and collaborate, and what we deliver to make a difference.
• You have a point of view about equity, inclusion, and diversity, and have an interest in striving for positive progress in this area.

Be Inspired. Be Inspiring. Be yourself.

Delve embraces difference because creativity, curiosity, and diversity drive innovation. We nurture a supportive and inclusive environment. Be yourself and create a future that improves lives. We encourage applicants of color and those with diverse lived experiences to apply.

About Delve

Delve is a multidisciplinary product innovation firm that brings bold ideas to market those guides clients through the complexities of innovation, delivering better, faster, and more sustainable success. For over 55 years, Delve has mobilized the best experts and technologies for its clients, completing over 10,000 client projects, producing over 1,500 patents, and winning over 200 design awards.

Delve serves ambitious start-ups to Fortune 500 clients in the healthcare, consumer, and commercial industries, delivering innovation through advanced expertise in research, strategy, design, and engineering. Delve has placed innovation studios in Boston, Madison, Philadelphia, and San Francisco to attract forward- thinking leaders to solve complex product challenges through human-centered design.