Director, Interior Design

Description

• Translates product strategy into interior design standards, capsule collections, kits-of-parts, and reusable selection systems.
• Defines and refines distinct capsule identities with clear stylistic parameters, ensuring collections remain differentiated, cohesive, and aligned with target buyer demographics.
• Provides creative direction that translates conceptual vision into actionable, executable design standards and minimizes downstream reinterpretation.
• Establishes clear design rationale, material strategies, and architectural alignment early in the process to support stronger decision-making and reduce rework.
• Grounds design decisions in local market and buyer-based reasoning rather than one-off preferences.
• Ensures capsule collections maintain integrity over time by evaluating reselections, vendor substitutions, and field-driven changes against original design intent.
• Builds a coherent, repeatable MN Interior Design Language.

• Delivers luxury-grade, cohesive interiors that translate the exterior expression into interior spaces and resonate with buyers.
• Ensures homes are holistically designed: interiors, architecture, materials, lighting, and spatial planning working together as a cohesive experience that meets target buyers’ lifestyle needs.
• Drives elevated, timeless design solutions rooted in strong architectural thinking, restraint, proportion, and materiality rather than trend-chasing.
• Maintains high standards for detailing, composition, and execution so design intent translates successfully from concept through construction.
• Designs research questions and engage buyers and agents to test new ideas and validate key hypotheses.
• Uses buyer insights, market comps, and lifestyle data to guide design direction.

• Partners with Procurement to strategically source capsule collections.
• Improves margins via standardization and value engineering.
• Ensures designs meet customer needs while conforming to project budgets.
• Leads “Design-to-Value” work to determine high-impact features.

• Implements AI-enabled workflows across selection tools, visualization, and digital libraries.
• Drives simplification and automation of ID deliverables, including migration to Revit and related technologies, to improve coordination, speed, accuracy, consistency, scalability, and reduce downstream errors.

• Partners with Architecture, Procurement, Construction, Land Acquisition, Sales, Home Experience, and Marketing teams to align design goals.
• Champions clear ownership and accountability structures across cross-functional teams.
• Represents design intent in design reviews, cross-functional decisions, and executive discussions.
• Ensures alignment between design systems, operational constraints, and customer expectations.
• Builds a culture of creative partnership where design cohesion is a shared outcome, not a downstream hand-off.

• Leads a team of designers (approximately 5-8) with a mentorship mindset: actively developing and inspiring designers through coaching, technical guidance, collaborative critique, and strategic involvement rather than task delegation.
• Fosters an environment where designers contribute ideas, build category ownership, and strengthen cross-functional confidence with Architecture, Procurement, Construction, Land Acquisition, Sales, Home Experience, and Marketing.
• Provides clear, timely, and actionable feedback that helps designers grow both creatively and technically.
• Builds trust through transparency, consistency, and clear communication, ensuring teams understand priorities, expectations, and the reasoning behind key design decisions.
• Establishes clear expectations, accountability structures, workflows, and development pathways.
• Identifies and helps recruit strong design talent aligned with organizational needs.
• Participates in all employee lifecycle activities including but not limited to: interviewing, onboarding, training, mentoring, conducting weekly 1-on-l's, just-in-time coaching, disciplinary actions, performing regular performance reviews, and offboarding. 

• Deep understanding of luxury residential design, including how interior design, architecture, procurement, and construction interrelate.
• Experience working directly with homeowners to solicit input and feedback and address key needs and expectations.
• Strong interior design portfolio demonstrating aesthetic judgment, technical capability, and systems thinking.
• Experience developing reusable design assets, standards, or scalable selection libraries.
• Ability to balance feasibility, desirability, and viability in all design decisions.
• Ability to provided elevated aesthetic, experiential, and technical design quality across all projects.
• Ability to deliver an improved customer satisfaction, lovability, and alignment with luxury buyer expectations.
• Demonstrates a consistent use and adoption of reusable design assets, modules, and standards.
• Able to create a positive impact on margin performance through efficient design systems, use of technology and AI, and smarter design decisions.
• Able to create a reduction in plan defects and design-related rework through systemized design standards.
• Strong understanding of residential construction, critical path order, building codes, and trade coordination.
• Familiarity with Revit or BIM-based workflows; experience supporting Materials & Details migration a plus.
• Hands-on experience working with homeowners a plus.
• Excellent communication and storytelling skills; able to articulate design intent clearly.
• Ability to lead through influence with a low-ego, coaching-first approach.
• Demonstrates a strong executive presence.
• Planning and Functional Alignment: Ability to develop a 1 to 3-year functional strategy aligned to company objectives and translate organizational priorities into clear roadmaps, OKRs, and team-level performance expectations.
• Change Leadership: Skilled in leading significant change initiatives using structured change management practices, including communication planning, milestone tracking, and feedback loops that keep teams informed and engaged through transitions.
• Leader Development and Succession: Demonstrated ability to identify, develop, and sponsor emerging leaders within the function; builds coaching capacity in direct-report managers so leadership capability compounds across team layers.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration and Systems Thinking: Ability to break down silos by partnering across departments on shared objectives, and to understand how functional decisions ripple across the broader organization before acting.
• Emotional Intelligence and Organizational Climate: Skilled in setting the emotional tone for the organization, creating conditions where honest feedback flows in both directions, and responding to team health issues before they become systemic.
• Ownership and Executive Communication: Ability to own functional budgets, OKRs, and operational metrics with full accountability; proactively communicates status and surfaces risks to executive leadership without waiting to be asked.
• Future-Focused and Data-Informed Decision Making: Knowledge of industry trends, competitive landscape, and emerging technologies; uses data to improve functional performance and positions the team to build capabilities needed 3–5 years out.
• Servant Leadership at Scale: Ability to position themselves as a resource rather than a decision-maker for everything; delegates broadly, invests time in developing the leadership team, and creates organizational conditions (structure, culture, resources) that let others do their best work.

• Bachelor’s degree in interior design or a related field required. Master’s degree preferred.
• NCIDQ certification preferred.
• 10+ years of residential interior design experience, with a focus on luxury single-family homes.
• 5+ years leading interior design teams in the residential construction or homebuilding industry.
• Strong command of:
  • Interior design principles and luxury residential aesthetics
  • Material and finish specifications
  • Housing code compliance (local & national)
  • Construction documentation and trade coordination
  • Procurement and sourcing processes
• Proficiency with design visualization and selection software.
• Proven experience influencing executives and leading cross-functional initiatives.
• Strong understanding of cost drivers and value-engineering techniques.

• Infrequent travel to residential home projects, vendors, off-site meetings and/or other markets outside of WA state.
• If/when local travel is required using personal vehicle, possession of a valid WA State Driver’s License and valid vehicle insurance is required. Mileage reimbursement is provided by the Company.

• 100% covered employee premiums for medical and dental self-coverage
• 100% employer-paid life insurance
• 100 % employer-paid long term disability insurance
• Paid medical and family leave
• Critical illness insurance
• 401(K) with generous company match, no vesting schedule, and access to professional financial advisors
• Lifestyle reimbursement account
• 20 days of PTO & 9 holidays 
• New iPhone for your personal and business use
• Free onsite parking
• Company paid events
• Complimentary snacks & beverages