Senior Design Director, Lifestyle Brands

Exceptional Hospitality Starts with You

This role is based at of our corporate office in New York City, NY

This is your chance to be part of an in-house Brands team of industry experts in the domains of hospitality, brand management, innovation, food and beverage, wellness, owner relations, and more, for all of Hilton’s unique brands! As a Senior Director, Lifestyle Brand Design, you will support the team that leads our brands with the steadfast goal of strengthening and growing the Hilton portfolio. On the Lifestyle Brand Design team reporting to VP Lifestyle Brand Design, you will work on projects for all lifestyle brands, from rebranding to system building, guideline developments, guest touchpoints, internal design championing, product development, collaborating with external and internal partners, and representing design for Hilton.

What you’ll do during a typical day:

• Serve as the trusted advisor to the VP Lifestyle Design, helping shape creative priorities, organizational direction, and business outcomes.
• Champion Lifestyle Brand Design by bringing deep expertise in lifestyle brands, consumer behavior, cultural relevance, and design differentiation.
• Lead and develop a high-performing team that includes a Director and two Managers, providing coaching, feedback, and growth opportunities while fostering a collaborative and accountable culture.
• Set and uphold a high creative standard, directing and critiquing work to deliver distinctive, brand-defining experiences and design solutions. Review and guide key design presentations, brand guidelines, spatial design projects, and other critical creative deliverables.
• Drive alignment across stakeholders, priorities, and resources, navigating competing demands to achieve the strongest design and business outcomes. Oversee cross-functional design workflows to ensure seamless collaboration and execution across teams and partners.
• Establish scalable processes, governance, and ways of working that improve team effectiveness, clarity, consistency, and execution.
• Balance brand vision, business objectives, and operational realities to make decisions and advocate for the strongest creative outcomes.
• Partner with global and regional teams to advance design initiatives, ensuring consistency while adapting to market and business needs.

How you’ll collaborate with others:

• With the VP Lifestyle Design: Acts as a trusted deputy, thought partner, and escalation point. Anticipates needs, brings recommendations, and helps lead the organization day-to-day.
• With the Creative Director: Partner to steward the vision, shape creative evolution, raise the quality of the work, and maintain consistency across the Lifestyle portfolio.
• With the Director and Managers: Lead, mentor, and inspire the team, building creative confidence and leadership capability while ensuring priorities, standards, and deliverables are clear.
• With other Cross-Functional Partners: Represent Lifestyle Brand Design with confidence across Brand, Marketing, Development, Operations, AD&C, regional and global teams, and external partners. Facilitate alignment across stakeholders, guide key design reviews, and drive execution of strategic design initiatives.
• With External Agencies, Consultants, and Industry Partners: Provide creative leadership, build strong partnerships, and ensure external contributions support brand vision, quality standards, and business objectives.

What It Takes to Make the Stay

You have these minimum qualifications:

• Twelve plus (12+) years of experience in hospitality design, retail and brand design, interior design, branded physical spaces, lifestyle brand development, or a related creative leadership field.
• Experience leading managers, directors, or senior-level design talent.
• Strong portfolio or body of work demonstrating elevated design judgment, lifestyle brand understanding, and integrated design thinking.
• Experience translating complex brand design and business concepts into compelling narratives and recommendations that resonate with executive audiences.
• Travel up to 40%.

It would be useful if you have:

• Understanding of hospitality environments, owner/developer dynamics, and operational considerations.
• Experience managing complex, multi-brand or multi-stakeholder portfolios.
• Experience connecting design decisions to broader brand, development, and business priorities.

How We’ll Help You Thrive

At Hilton, the hosp…