Design Lead Jobs in Illinois

Design Lead jobs in Illinois are in steady demand, concentrated in product, digital, and brand design across technology, advertising, financial services, and retail sectors, with openings at every level from junior design lead to senior creative director. Chicago anchors the market, drawing the bulk of hiring, while Schaumburg and Naperville support significant suburban demand from corporate headquarters and consultancies. Employers like McDonald's, Morningstar, and Publicis Groupe maintain deep design functions in Illinois and hire design leads on a recurring basis. Find a role that fits below and apply directly.

Find Design Lead Jobs

Overview

Open roles24
Top employerEFK Moen
Top cityChicago, IL
Cities hiring9
Work type64% Hybrid
Top industryConsulting

Showing 5 of 24+ Design Lead jobs

MacLean-Fogg
Tooling Systems Design Lead
We won't show you this job again
MacLean-Fogg
Added 2d ago
Tooling Systems Design Lead
MacLean-Fogg
Mundelein, Illinois
Customer Service
Customer Support
Hospitality & Guest Services
$43.27 - $52.88/hr
Bachelor's degree
1,001-5,000

Have you applied for this role?

Oak Street Health, part of CVS Health
Lead Director, Admission Prevention — Clinical Program Design & Enablement
We won't show you this job again
Oak Street Health, part of CVS Health
Added 3d ago
Lead Director, Admission Prevention — Clinical Program Design & Enablement
Oak Street Health, part of CVS Health
Illinois
Customer Service
Customer Success
Customer Support
$100k - $232k/yr
Remote (US)
Master's degree in business administration
5,001-10,000

Have you applied for this role?

CDM Smith
Transit Facility Architectural Design Lead
We won't show you this job again
CDM Smith
Added 1w ago
Transit Facility Architectural Design Lead
CDM Smith
Chicago, Illinois
Executive Leadership & C-Suite
Program Management
Project Management
$110k - $193k/yr
Hybrid
Bachelor's degree in architecture
5,001-10,000

Have you applied for this role?

CDM Smith
Transit Facility Structural Design Lead
We won't show you this job again
CDM Smith
Added 1w ago
Transit Facility Structural Design Lead
CDM Smith
Chicago, Illinois
Quality Assurance & Testing (QA Testing)
Software Engineering
Technical Program Management
$110k - $193k/yr
Hybrid
Bachelor's degree in architectural engineering
5,001-10,000

Have you applied for this role?

Ryder System
Lead Solutions Design Engineer - SIMIO Warehouse & Transportation Simulation (REMOTE)
We won't show you this job again
Ryder System
Added 1w ago
Lead Solutions Design Engineer - SIMIO Warehouse & Transportation Simulation (REMOTE)
Ryder System
Chicago, Illinois
Business Development
Growth Marketing
Marketing
$100k - $124k/yr
Remote (US)
Bachelor's degree in industrial engineering

Have you applied for this role?

See All 24 Design Lead Jobs in Illinois

Find roles in Illinois that match your experience and apply in just a few clicks.

Find Design Lead Jobs

Design Lead Jobs by City in Illinois

Where Illinois roles are concentrated, by current openings.

Rosemont
2 jobs
Lisle
1 job
Deerfield
1 job
Mundelein
1 job
Springfield
1 job
Libertyville
1 job
Rolling Meadows
1 job
Fairview Heights
1 job

Design Lead Job Market in Illinois

A snapshot from current Illinois openings, updated as new roles post.

Who's Hiring

EFK Moen
EFK Moen2 open roles
CDM Smith
CDM Smith2 open roles
Honeywell
Honeywell2 open roles

Top Industries Hiring

  • Consulting & Professional Services
  • Technology & Software
  • Banking & Financial Services

What Illinois Employers Look For

The qualifications that appear most often in design lead jobs across Illinois.

  • Portfolio demonstrating end-to-end design ownership and team leadership experience
  • Bachelor's degree in graphic design, interaction design, or a related visual discipline
  • Proficiency in Figma, Sketch, or Adobe Creative Suite for design and prototyping work
  • Experience managing and mentoring junior designers across project lifecycles
  • Ability to present design rationale and influence decisions with cross-functional stakeholders
  • Familiarity with agile product development workflows and design systems at scale

Design Lead Jobs in Illinois: Frequently Asked Questions

How do you become a design lead in Illinois?

Becoming a design lead in Illinois follows a portfolio-driven path rather than a state licensing requirement, as the role carries no Illinois-specific credential or board registration. Most candidates build toward the title by earning a bachelor's degree in graphic design, UX, or a related field, then spending several years as a senior individual contributor at an Illinois employer before stepping into a lead role that includes team oversight and project ownership.

How much do design leads make in Illinois?

Design leads in Illinois earn a median of about $103,550 a year, based on May 2025 Bureau of Labor Statistics wage data, ranging from around $69,200 for the lowest 10% to over $172,050 for the top 10%. Pay rises with experience, specialty, and employer.

Which companies hire design leads in Illinois?

Employers hiring design leads in Illinois right now include EFK Moen, CDM Smith, and Honeywell, based on current listings on Migrate Mate as of August 2026. Illinois's dense concentration of corporate headquarters, digital agencies, and fintech companies in and around Chicago means design lead openings appear across a wide range of industries rather than clustering in a single sector.

Which Illinois cities have the most design lead jobs?

Chicago, Rosemont, and Illinois are the Illinois cities with the most design lead openings. Chicago dominates because it is home to the state's largest concentration of technology companies, advertising agencies, and corporate brand teams, while suburban hubs like Schaumburg and Naperville draw openings from major corporate campuses and consultancy offices that maintain dedicated in-house design functions.

Are there remote design lead jobs in Illinois?

Yes, and more than most fields, since design lead work is fundamentally screen-based and collaborative through digital tools. About 91% of design lead openings tied to Illinois are remote or hybrid as of August 2026, reflecting how broadly companies have accepted distributed design teams. The most fully remote positions tend to be at product companies and digital agencies, where design workflows are already built around asynchronous review and cloud-based design tools.

How can I get hired as a design lead in Illinois with little or no experience?

The most realistic entry path is landing a senior designer role first and growing into a lead title, rather than applying for design lead positions directly. Large Illinois employers like Walgreens, United Airlines, and Discover Financial run rotational or associate design programs for early-career candidates, and staffing agencies with strong Chicago footprints regularly place contract designers who build the client exposure needed to move into a lead role. A strong portfolio of self-initiated or freelance projects demonstrating systems thinking is the credential that most consistently moves a candidate without formal lead experience past the initial screen.

Where can I find and apply to design lead jobs in Illinois?

You can find and apply to design lead jobs in Illinois on Migrate Mate, which lists current Illinois openings. Find roles that fit your experience and apply directly from the listings.

See All 24 Design Lead Jobs in Illinois

Find roles in Illinois that match your experience and apply in just a few clicks.

Find Design Lead Jobs