Product Designer

Background   
Turquoise Mountain is a non-profit, non-governmental organisation established in 2006 to revive traditional crafts, historic areas and to provide jobs, skills and opportunity through cultural heritage projects. By blending heritage buildings, education and enterprise, Turquoise Mountain has created sustainable heritage places and livelihoods that support the revival of artisan industries. Turquoise Mountain now works in Afghanistan, Myanmar, Saudi Arabia, and the Levant. Since 2006, Turquoise Mountain has restored over 150 historic buildings, created employment for thousands of artisans and builders, built over 50 small businesses, and supported and generated over $17 million in sales of traditional crafts to domestic and international markets.   

Turquoise Mountain Levant works in Jordan, Palestine, and the wider region to support cultural heritage. We connect hundreds of artisans to new and sustainable markets, provide training and education in traditional crafts, and lead sustainable regeneration projects of historic buildings. 
 
Job Summary:  
As a Product Designer with Turquoise Mountain, you will help to showcase the talent of Palestinian artisans and innovate and evolve historical crafts in the hopes of preserving them in new forms.  

Through your work, you will develop trusting and respectful relationships with the artisan community, working alongside each artisan to co-design and develop collections that celebrate their crafts and talents to the fullest potential. You will run the design and development process from research, concepting, design development, prototyping, to final production.  

You will contribute to and shape the strategy for the Design & Production Team alongside your fellow team members and Turquoise Mountain’s Regional Head of Design & Production. You will be responsible for, set, develop and implement your own collaborations, and lead the development of commissions with clients. You will interact closely with the Turquoise Mountain sales team to support them in telling the story behind each collection and celebrating each craftsperson.  

جميع الحقوق محفوظة لموقع جوبس.

Responsibilities: 

Managing, Researching, Designing, and Overseeing Production for Craft Collections: 

• Develop new collections and product lines based on research and sampling, managing production across different workshops.  
• Oversee bespoke design commissions for clients.  
• Create and develop necessary design drawings and presentations, such as technical drawings and renderings.  
• Prepare and submit regular progress reports on ongoing projects, collaborations with artisans, and product development to the Regional Head of Design & Production and Country Director. 
• Support the communications and sales teams to best showcase the collections developed.   

Developing Strong & Supportive Relationships within the artisan community: 

• Conduct site visits and meet with artisans to assess their skills, techniques, and materials to develop potential collaborations. 
• Develop and maintain relationships with new artisans, including conducting regular communication and visits, and providing feedback on samples and prototypes.  
• Identify and research new Palestinian artisans and craftspeople, to expand the pool of potential collaborations.
 

 Team Planning, Strategy & Vision: 

• Contribute to the design vision, strategy, and departmental workplan of the Design & production Team in Palestine, guided and supported by the Regional Head of Design & Production.  
• Collaboratively share feedback with the Design & Production team to refine the teams’ product designs to ensure that all collections align with the team’s design vision and project goals.  
• Responsible for creating and implementing your own workplan, in line the department’s yearly workplan and goals.  

 Cross-team Contributions  

• Work collaboratively with the Sales, Enterprise and Entrepreneurship, and Cultural Project teams on the delivery of various projects with the artisan community beyond direct design & production work.   

Qualifications: 

• A minimum of four-years of experience.  
• A degree in Design/ Interior Architecture/ Architecture is required.  
• The ability to understand and conceive of technical drawings.  
• Knowledge of AutoCad and rendering programs is essential.  
• Ability to conduct effective research.  
• Excellent oral and written communication skills in both Arabic and English. 
• Experience in cultural heritage is preferred.  

 Contract Duration:   

Full-time contract, Sunday – Thursday (9am – 5pm) 

 Location:  

You must be based within the West Bank or be able to travel to and around the West Bank on a weekly basis.

Application Pack:  

To apply, please submit the following to [email protected] titled "Product Designer - Your Name" 

In your application pack please include:  

• A brief text describing one Palestinian craft, its importance, and how it could be preserved and developed (300 words maximum). 
• A maximum two-page resumé. 
• A maximum five-page portfolio with samples of your work. 
• Include your e-mail and phone number. 
• Only shortlisted applicants will be contacted for an interview. 

Application Deadline:  
Please apply on or before the 27th May, 2024.  

***Only applications that are compliant with the guidelines and are submitted through email will be reviewed***