Director of Design

About the Role

Frontier is an independent video game developer and publisher, crafting immersive gaming experiences with fun gameplay and unparalleled artistic quality. Renowned for its iconic creative management simulation games, Frontier captivates players worldwide with immersive and authentic game worlds. The modern studio is located in the vibrant technology hub of Cambridge (UK). The talented team at Frontier are dedicated to nurturing our existing portfolio and delivering our exciting future roadmap. 

This role is offered on a full in-studio basis or a hybrid basis (typically 3 days per week in the studio). We can provide a comprehensive relocation support package as part of any offer, should you need to relocate. 

WHAT’S THE ROLE? 

We’re looking for a Director of Design to join our development leadership team which is responsible for making the strategic decisions critical to our future commercial and creative success.  Reporting to the Director of Creative Development, you’ll provide leadership to Frontier’s Design and UI teams with accountability for ensuring that we have the right people, skills, design methodologies and tools in place to deliver on our ambitious roadmap. You’ll help shape the department's future by championing quality, leadership, and timely delivery, ensuring design excellence within time and budget constraints.

With a strong understanding of how games are made and a deep understanding of game mechanics and player engagement, you’ll also support Heads of Development and Development Leads in solving challenging and mission critical technical and creative problems on projects.

If you’ve got significant experience in game design leadership, with a strong portfolio of successful game projects on console and PC, then we’d love to hear from you!

WHAT YOU’LL BE DOING

• Collaborating with the Director of Creative Development and the Chief Development Officer on departmental planning, recruitment, training, and succession planning.
• Championing and reinforcing the design vision for all projects, focusing on player experience over complexity.
• Fostering a high-performance culture within the department through leadership, people development, and team engagement.
• Providing people leadership and management to your direct reports (currently 2 people) through effective communication, objective setting, feedback, coaching, mentoring and support with career development to maintain an engaged, productive and inclusive team environment.
• Developing and driving the design strategy for projects, setting the appropriate quality bar and ensuring adherence across projects.
• Applying leadership skills to guide development teams in making difficult decisions impacting quality and time.
• In collaboration with other Development leaders, setting new projects up for success by ensuring that the appropriate structures, processes, tech and people are in place.
• Removing blockers on key issues and coaching developers, recognising when to be more hands-on when an impasse is reached, or a development issue is time critical. 

WHAT YOU’LL BRING

• Proven experience in a game design leadership role with a strong portfolio of successful game projects on console and PC.
• Excellent leadership and team management skills, with the ability to inspire and motivate a design team.
• Deep understanding of game mechanics, player psychology, and engagement strategies.
• Strong communication and collaboration skills, with the ability to work effectively with cross-functional development teams.
• Knowledge of current game design trends, best practices, and emerging tools and technologies.
• Strong problem-solving skills and the ability to think creatively, commercially, and strategically.
• Passion for games and a deep understanding of various game genres and platforms.

WHAT WE CAN OFFER YOU

You will work with talented and passionate people to support, develop or publish our sophisticated and enduring games, in a creative, collaborative and inclusive environment. We love what we do, and we work hard to provide outstanding experiences for our players. 

 

Wellbeing is a big focus at Frontier, and we are continually evolving how we can support our people. We encourage a healthy work/life balance and provide a range of wellbeing activities, initiatives and sessions to support both mental and physical health.  

 

We offer a competitive salary and benefits package, which includes a success-based annual bonus, share option schemes, life assurance, private family healthcare, flexitime working hours, enhanced maternity/paternity leave, in-house subsidised catering, support with relocation, a Cycle to Work scheme, free bike servicing, and social activities and events. 

 

We strive to create an environment where everyone can fully demonstrate their capability and potential. If you therefore need any reasonable adjustments to support you during the recruitment process, please speak to your Talent Acquisition representative.