UX/UI Consultant – Data Visualization & Interaction Design

Location: Remote | Reports to: CTO

Position Type: Consultancy (Contract-based)

Duration: 8-12 Weeks (estimated)

About Supply Trace

Almost everything we use from phones, to clothes, to batteries is made from materials and labor from all over the world. Most of us have no idea what went into making any of it, and neither do most of the companies selling it. Workers at the far ends of these supply chains are often invisible and coercive labor practices and unsafe working conditions are all too common. Even attempts to reshape industries to be more green can displace workers already living on the margins.

Data that can be used to understand these risks is fragmented and opaque. The tools for incorporating risk data into sourcing decisions are extremely expensive. NGOs, small businesses, and researchers closest to the problem can't access them.

Supply Trace is building an open-access platform that helps people see where workers are most at risk across global supply chains. We combine international shipping records, labor rights indices, climate risk models, and more. We work with universities, researchers, NGOs, companies and governments to build a tool that is freely available, with full transparency built in.

The Challenge - What we’re building

Supply Trace is building tools to help very different users with a common need - understanding risks to workers in the global supply chain. The tool needs to be transparent and auditable, letting users understand risks at a high level but also allowing them to drill down and understand how risks interact.

• Businesses need to understand human risk embedded in their supply chains (e.g., forced labor, environmental conditions such as extreme heat, etc.), including “transition risk” related to evolving practices with respect to climate change.
• Researchers need to be able to investigate the interaction of different risk types, patterns of risks across sectors, and how risks evolve over time.
• NGOs and labor organizations need to be able to publish findings about worker risks and mitigations gathered from on-the-ground and desk-based research instead of leaving findings buried in reports.
• Consumers want to know if a company they buy from sources their products ethically.

We are seeking a UI/UX Consultant with strong data visualization expertise who can turn a rigorous methodology into an interface these very different users all understand and trust.

Objective and Scope of Work

User Flows

• Map out how different users (small businesses, policy analysts, NGO researchers) move through the tool

Visualization Design

• Develop 2–3 distinct approaches to visualizing layered risk
• Develop a clear, extensible visualization regime for understanding different types of risks and their interactions:
  • “Contextual” country/region-level risk (labor protections, rule of law)
  • Sight/company-specific risks (e.g., known use of forced labor)
  • Industry-specific exposure (sector hazards, known violations)
  • Climate and transition amplifiers (physical climate risk, economic disruption)
  • Known risk mitigations
• Design the conceptual framework for drilling down into complex/composite risks.

UX Architecture, Toolkit, and Design Guide

This is the most important long-term deliverable. We're a small team and future frontend development will often happen without a UX specialist in the room. We need a reference that helps engineers make good design decisions independently.

The toolkit should include:

• Design principles: A short, opinionated guide to the visual and interaction principles behind the tool (e.g., "never aggregate without showing the parts," "every number links to its source").
• Visualization pattern library: Documented component patterns for risk displays, drill-down panels, source attribution, and data overlays. Each pattern should include usage guidance, do's and don'ts, and annotated examples.
• Anti-patterns: Specific examples of what not to do when visualizing layered risk data, and why.
• Accessibility and comprehension notes: Guidance on color choices, labeling, and layout decisions that affect whether non-expert users can actually interpret what they're seeing.
• Clickable prototype: In figma, code, etc show the toolkit patterns in context, show geographic view → risk breakdown → indicator detail → source data, show data provenance and other metadata like confidence scores.

Deliverables

The consultant will deliver:

1. UX architecture map: User flows and information structure
2. Visualization concept options: At least 2 distinct approaches, with rationale
3. Interactive prototype: Clickable demo applying the toolkit patterns
4. UX Toolkit and Design Guide: Pattern library, design principles, anti-patterns, and accessibility guidance (the thing that outlives this engagement)
5. Brief testing summary and recommended future refinements

Qualifications

1. Required
   • Demonstrated experience designing data dashboards or decision-support tools
   • Strong portfolio of data visualization work
   • Experience with ESG, climate risk, governance, regulatory tech, or social impact tools preferred
   • Ability to work with layered indicator systems
   • Experience designing explainable interfaces
   • Proficiency in Figma or similar prototyping tools
   • Strong communication skills in English
2. Preferred
   • Experience visualizing climate or environmental data
   • Experience working with policy-sensitive or compliance-related tools
   • Familiarity with risk modeling or indicator-based methodologies
   • Experience designing tools for SMEs

Reporting & Collaboration

You'll collaborate directly with our CTO, leadership, and staff shaping the risk methodology. We're a small, mission-driven team — expect direct communication, fast feedback loops, and genuine engagement with your ideas. Regular virtual check-ins throughout the engagement.

Compensation & Employment Details

Supply Trace is currently incubated at Northeastern University and is in the process of determining its long-term organizational structure (e.g., independent nonprofit, institutional subsidiary).

This role will be administered on a contract basis through Northeastern University for an initial term of 8-12 weeks. Compensation will be competitive and commensurate with experience.

Applicants are requested to submit a daily or delivables-based rate.

We are committed to flexible work arrangements and encourage candidates from diverse backgrounds to apply.

To Apply

Please submit the following via [link to application form]:

• CV or Portfolio
• Brief statement of interest (max 1 page)
• Relevant work samples
• Proposed rate
• Availability

English proficiency is required.